JoAnne Ward | CEO & Founder, Grow Forward Business Consulting

JoAnne’s passion for inspiring nonprofit and small-business leaders and team members  is evident in the results she has achieved working with organizations for over 30 years.  As manager of a corporate division, JoAnne increased revenue by 300% within the first year and by 1000% within three years.   She has served as an educator, business entrepreneur, success coach, author of 11 books, and leader, and  has provided numerous organizations guidance and training in growth, vision, and purpose.

Her ultimate goal is to provide her audience with sensible information that can be used immediately to improve performance. She will guide organizations, teams, and individuals to use their talents, skills, and situations to grow and move forward.

She is the CEO and founder of her businesses, Grow Forward Business Consulting and Stepping Stones Life Coaching Services.  She’s earned degrees in Economics and Commerce, Education, from Simon Fraser University and a Masters degree in Leadership and Organizational Change from Royal Roads University, in Victoria, BC.  She is an active member of the Vancouver Chapter of the International Coaching Federation, a Director of the Quesnel Chamber of Commerce, and is a graduate of Coach University Inc. 

JoAnne can be contacted at 250-747-0948 or 604-617-0366 | e. joanne@sbizgrowforward.com | www.bizgrowforward.com

11:00am | Main Conference & Tradeshow | Planning for Success – a business plan that works

2:45pm | Main Conference & Tradeshow |How to market your business in the changing world of media

Dr. Leslie Roberts | President, GoForth Institute

Dr. Leslie Roberts’ leadership role on Canada’s entrepreneurial landscape is the result of a lifetime dedicated to fostering the most fundamental elements of new business and community growth. From breakthrough roles in academia, government, private sector and community-based projects, and now with GoForth Institute, she employs her unique insights to educate and facilitate small businesses and their owners across the country.

Dr. Roberts latest vision is GoForth Institute, an educational and small business research firm providing comprehensive, best practices training for Canada’s new and existing small business owners. GoForth Institute launched Canada’s first national online education program for entrepreneurs in April, 2010. GoForth Institute is a leader in entrepreneurship research in Canada, authoring the National Entrepreneurship Sentiment Survey™, which measures the pulse of Canadian entrepreneurs on their greatest business challenges, plans for growth, and attitudes toward small business.

An entrepreneur herself, Dr. Roberts was also founder of Mercatus Research Ltd., a market research consulting firm dedicated to serving the needs of small and emerging businesses. Her success in these fields has made her a sought-after consultant to government and industry, especially on home-based business and micro-enterprise development; and as a lecturer at both Mount Royal University’s Bissett School of Business and the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business, where for sixteen years she instructed and mentored students in entrepreneurship, marketing and marketing research.

Dr. Robert’s own entrepreneurial success owes much to an education singularly focused on small business. She earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree in marketing (1984), a Master of Business Administration degree in entrepreneurship and new venture development (1994), where she won the “Julius Schulich Award for Entrepreneurship” for her master's thesis on the contributions of home-based businesses to the City of Calgary. Her PhD in Management, specializing in entrepreneurship and corporate strategy (1999), from the University of Calgary was the first PhD in entrepreneurship to be awarded in Canada. Her doctoral research received The University of Calgary’s Stew Fairbanks Memorial Award for Scholarship in Entrepreneurship. Leslie’s research has been published in scholarly publications in Canada and the United States.

Email: leslie@goforthinstitute.com
Phone: 403.242.2546
Toll free: 877.345.2546
goforthinstitute.com

12:00 noon - 1:30pm | Keynote Lunch | The World Has Gone Social and That’s Why Businesses Need to Harness the Power of Friends Influencing Friends

Sandy Chernoff | Owner, Soft Skills for Success

Soft Skills for Success is a consulting and educational business providing customized training programs.

Sandy Chernoff, RDH, B.Sc., is a Soft Skills Consultant who has delivered interactive workshops since 1991 to audiences from Victoria to New York City.
Sandy’s extensive client list includes law firms, teaching institutions, professional groups, volunteer organizations, businesses, and individuals.

Her energetic and humorous presentation style provides her sessions with variety and pace, in an atmosphere conducive to retentive learning.

www.softskillsforsuccess.com

1:45pm | Main Conference & Tradeshow | Marketing and Mastery

3:45pm | Main Conference & Tradeshow | How to Do Business with the Federal Government

Sue Clement | CEO, Success Coaching

A international dynamic speaker, entrepreneur, and business coach Sue Clement is known for expediting business success.  After building a local employment agency from concept into a multi-million dollar enterprise, she is an expert in marketing, sales, customer service and leadership and brings a depth of real world experience to her clients and audiences. As a certified business coach since 2000, she has impacted thousands of entrepreneurs and small business owners helping them simplify their marketing and get more clients.

www.sueclement.com

8:15am | Roundtable Networking Breakfast