Get the Most Out of Your ESOP

Three-Day Conference on Best Practices for an Effective ESOP Culture

Atlanta, GA

October 29-31, 2007

You've established an employee ownership plan at your company, but are you getting the most out of your ESOP? This meeting will help you tap into the real potential of employee ownership and begin to develop your own company action plan---giving employees the tools, training, and opportunities to think and act like business owners.

What Makes This Conference Different?

This interactive working conference features dynamic presentations by experienced trainers, organizational development experts, and insiders from successful companies. It also integrates structured activities and unstructured opportunities to network with fellow ESOP companies struggling with similar issues. Participants will gain from the wisdom of their peers through sharing best practices and group problem-solving. The conference aids participants in creating their own concrete (and unique) solutions.

Who Should Attend?

Anyone involved with building the effectiveness of an ESOP should attend, including (but not limited to) those working with ESOP communications, human resource development, training or organizational change, as well as ESOP committee members, steering committee members, team leaders, and active front-line employees.

Praise from Past Participants

"Good balance of 'group' time mixed with 'presentation' time"

"Thought provoking and engaging"

"I would absolutely come back..."

Program

Day One: Monday, October 29
7:45 am	Continental Breakfast, Registration
8:30 am	Understanding ESOPs: An Interactive Approach Alex Moss, Praxis Consulting Group (morning break: 10:15-10:30 am)
12:15 pm	Luncheon Meet fellow attendees and set your goals for this conference
1:15 pm	Agenda Overview/Orientation Loren Rodgers, NCEO
2:00 pm	Creating and Improving ESOP Communications Carla Klingler, PyraStar Pension Plans
3:15 pm	Communications Table Talks and Problem Solving Carla Klingler, PyraStar Pension Plans
4:00 pm	Question and Answer Period on ESOP Technical and Legal Issues Moderator: Loren Rodgers, NCEO. Speakers: Mike Hartman, Willamette Management; David H. Williams, Schiff Hardin LLP; Steve Martin, Reliance Trust Co.; Steven G. Schaffer, Powell Goldstein; Susan Petrirena, Swerdlin & Co.
5:00 pm	Day One Adjourns
Day Two: Tuesday, October 30
8:00 am	Continental Breakfast
8:30 am	Incentive Plans that Work Brad Hams, Ownership Thinking
10:15 am	Gallery of Communication Materials Loren Rodgers, NCEO
10:45 am	Open Space-Discussions and Brainstorming Session (All Presenters)
12:15 pm	Luncheon and Company Case Study Speaker, sponsored by Swerdlin & Co. Christopher Zinski, PrivateBancorp, Inc.
1:45 pm	Participation Tools and Strategies Chuck Morn, The North Highland Company
2:30 pm	Participation Table Talks and Problem Solving Loren Rodgers, NCEO, and Chuck Morn, North Highlands Company
3:15 pm	Afternoon Break Sponsored by Reliance Trust Company
3:45 pm	Business and Financial Literacy Alex Moss, Praxis Consulting Group
5:15 pm	Company Case Study Gregory Lucas, Robert Bowden, Inc.
6:00 pm	Day Two Adjourns
6:00 pm	Organized Dinner Groups or Dinner on Your Own
Day Three: Wednesday, October 31
7:45 am	Continental Breakfast
8:30 am	The Great Game of Business: Getting Employees to Understand and Act on the Critical Numbers of Your Business Rich Armstrong, The Great Game of Business
10:15 am	Encouraging and Creating ESOP Committees Loren Rodgers, NCEO
11:00 am	Table Talks, ESOP Committees Loren Rodgers, NCEO
11:45 am	Wrap Up, Evaluation and Review Loren Rodgers, NCEO, and panel of presenters
12 noon	Conference Adjourns

All attendees will receive a complimentary copy of the new edition of the NCEO publication An Introduction to ESOPs,courtesy of Powell Goldstein, LLP.

Conference Presenters

Rich Armstrong is general manager of the Great Game of Business, Inc. He has more than 15 years of experience in employee ownership, open-book management, and business literacy training, principals that GGOB teaches companies to address through innovative gameplaying techniques. Mr. Armstrong has worked at many of SRC Holding's 22 subsidiaries in positions from business development to operations.

Brad Hams, founder and president of Ownership Thinking, LLC, has been consulting, training, and speaking about improving business performance through employee education and involvement for over a dozen years. Previously, he served as president of Mrs. Fields Cookies for Mexico, and held other senior level finance and operations positions. Mr. Hams serves as a director of the NCEO and is a nationally known public speaker.

Carla Neal Klingler is the co-founder of the national pension administration and consulting firm, PyraStar Pension Group, LLC, in Roswell, Georgia. Her 25+ years of ESOP experience includes developing third party administrator services for clients of all sizes and corporate structures for plan design, implementation, operations, legal compliance, and communications. She is an active member of the NCEO and the ESOP Association.

Gregory Lucas, CPA, is the chief financial officer, VP finance, an ESOP trustee, and secretary/treasurer at Robert Bowden Inc. (RBI), a privately held wholesale building material supply and manufacturing corporation headquartered in Marietta, Georgia. RBI became a 100% S corporation ESOP in 2002 and has 375 employee owners at three facilities. The company has won many industry awards including three AACE awards.

Alexander P. Moss is a principal with Praxis Consulting Group and advises corporate, employee-owned, and non-profit clients about a broad range of organizational performance improvements. He is a nationally recognized leader in designing business and ownership training, communications, employee participation, and incentive systems, and in building tools that enable employees to solve production, quality, and client service challenges. He is an active member of the NCEO and the ESOP Association.

Chuck Morn is a co-founder of North Highland, an employee-owned management consulting firm. Mr. Morn has had various roles at North Highland, including client service delivery, board member and ESOP trustee. In the last 15 years, North Highland has grown from 3 to over 500 employees, and is widely recognized as delivering the highest quality service to its clients.

Loren Rodgers is a project director at the National Center for Employee Ownership, where he specializes in ESOPs and best practices in management for employee-ownership companies. He speaks and writes extensively about communications, ESOP education, employee committees, building and maintaining enthusiasm, current research, and corporate governance for employee ownership companies.

Christopher J. Zinski is general counsel of PrivateBancorp, Inc., a company that owns separate bank subsidiaries under The PrivateBank name in Chicago, Michigan, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Atlanta, Georgia. Previously, Mr. Zinski was a partner in Schiff Hardin LLP, a Chicago-based law firm. Before that, he practiced law in Washington, D.C. While a lawyer in private practice he represented financial institutions and other companies in ESOP-related matters. He also is a CPA.

Conference Site

Crowne Plaza Hotel Atlanta-Buckhead
3377 Peachtree, NE
Atlanta, GA 30326
Hotel Front Desk: 404-264-1111

Call 1-877-2Crowne to make sleeping room reservations for this conference. Reservations must be made on or before October 8, 2007 to take advantage of the special conference sleeping room rate of $149 for a single or a double (sleeping rooms are subject to state and local taxes). After this date, the hotel may continue to accept reservations, but on a space and rate available basis, subject to increase. To get this special rate, you must mention the Group Code: NCEO-National Center for Employee Ownership.

Parking and Transportation: The Crowne Plaza Buckhead is conveniently located within steps of the Buckhead MARTA (light rail) station which can take you to and from the airport in less then � hour for only $1.75 each way. Day parking for guests not staying at the hotel is only $6 for self parking (no in-out privileges) $10 valet parking. Overnight parking for guests, with in-out privileges, is $18 for self parking or valet . There is a complimentary hotel local area shuttle with a radius of 3 miles from the hotel in any direction (nearby are several shopping malls, movie theatres and other entertainment).

Going Green

The NCEO is working toward hosting greener meetings. We are trying to eliminate excess paper use and, whenever possible, we choose hotels with recycling programs and other green policies. If you would like to join in this effort, consider making a donation to offset the impact of your air or ground travel. Several organizations, such as carbonfund.org, provide a simple way for you to calculate and offset the carbon emissions resulting from your trip.

Registration

Fee Information

NCEO members: $395 1st registrant, $360 for each additional registrant from the same company. If you are not an NCEO member but join now ($80 for 1 year), you will receive the member rates.

Nonmembers: $495 1st registrant, $460 for each additional registrant from the same company.

Cancellation policy: A full refund will be issued, less a $50 administrative fee, if the request is received by the close of business on October 15, 2007. Cancellations made after that date and by the close of business on Thursday, October 25, 2007 will be eligible for credit towards another program, minus a $50 administrative fee. Those canceling on or after the guarantee date of October 26, 2007 will not receive a paper credit or refund.

Late fee: If you do not register online, a late fee of $35 per attendee will apply after October 15.

How to Register

Register online (recommended), or
If you have the printed brochure, fax it with your credit card information or mail it with your credit card information or check, or
Telephone us at 510-208-1300 with your credit card in hand.

CPE Credit for Accountants

The National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO) is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be addressed to National Registry of CPE Sponsors, 150 Fourth Ave. N., Nashville, TN 37219-2417. Web site: www.nasba.org

This conference is a "Group-Live" offering and provides 16.5 hours of CPE credit in the area of specialized knowledge and applications. The material is basic level. No prerequisites or advanced preparation is required.

For more information regarding administrative policies such as complaint and refund, please contact the NCEO offices at 510-208-1300.

HRCI Recertification Credit

HRCI Recertification Credit: This program has been approved for 16.5 recertification credit hours toward PHR and SPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). For more information about certification or recertification, please visit the HRCI home page at www.hrci.org.