‘The Sky’s the Limit’ is the theme of the Sept. 25-27 Chicago event for digital and traditional printers, mailers, and marketing service providers.

East Rutherford, N.J. - Author and radio personality Bryan Dodge of Dodge Development, Inc., and virtuoso guitarist/humorist Mike Rayburn will be keynoters at the 2014 Owners Conference to be held Sept. 25-27 at The Palmer House Hilton in Chicago, immediately preceding GRAPH EXPO 2014. The Conference’s downtown Chicago location and pre-GRAPH EXPO schedule offer convenience and travel cost savings for those wanting to attend both events.

“The Sky’s the Limit” is the theme of the 2014 Owners Conference, formerly the NAQP Owners Conference, which features a program developed specifically for digital and traditional printers, mailers, and marketing service providers. “We are very excited to have Bryan and Mike at this year’s conference,” says Conference Co-Chair Craig Dellinger of New Haven Print in Fort Wayne, Ind. “Mike was a standout presenter at last year’s conference in Nashville and is being brought back by popular demand. And Bryan is a superb motivator and humorist who will add an outstanding new voice to our program.”

“How to Have Your Best Year Ever” is the title of Dodge’s keynote, which promises to open the minds and hearts of attendees to help them focus on “the most essential aspects of life.” In his presentation, he will show how top producers and effective leaders achieve excellence and will help coach attendees on how to create consistent upward growth in their business and personal lives.

Guitarist Mike Rayburn will present his funny, musically amazing program, “What If…?” His motivational session entertainingly offers listeners powerful tools they can use to tap into their unrealized potential and surpass their perceived limitations. He has an extraordinary ability to combine world-class musicianship with gentle humor to reach his audience and help them understand how to set goals that will take their companies far beyond what they ever imagined possible.

“Both of our keynoters will underscore our conference theme with readily actionable takeaways that can help our attendees move beyond any perceived limits and achieve their full potential,” says Conference Co-Chair Charlene Sims of The Master’s Press in Dallas, Texas.

The conference will also feature a number of general sessions and breakouts, including:

• “Back in the Trenches: What I’ve Learned as Owner, Consultant, and Employee,” a general session featuring Debra Thompson, former printing company owner and President of TG & Associates, who will call on her nearly four decades of industry experience to pinpoint what separates industry winners from the rest of the pack.
• “The New Sales Process: What Will Work and What Won’t,” a general session featuring industry sales expert Bill Farquharson, who will show the latest methods salespeople can use to achieve their goals in an environment of new technologies, new services, new buyers, and new challenges.
• “Web-to-Print,” a general session featuring Jennifer Matt, WhatTheyThink Print Software Section Editor and President of Web2Print Experts, Inc., who will review the latest W2P developments and what they mean in terms of new service affordability for small business owners.
• “Why Gen X and Millennials Are Better at Your Job Than You,” a general session moderated by Donna Vieira of interlinkOne and GrowSocially, will feature of panel of companies that have successfully leveraged younger generations in their business to effect radical change, innovative thinking, and increased profitability.
• “Selling on Value,” a general session featuring a panel of industry owners who have battled the temptation of competing on price and learned how to position their businesses to sell based on the value they bring to the customer.
• “Update on the Affordable Care Act: What You NEED to Know,” a breakout featuring Kathleen Barrow of Jackson-Lewis, who will discuss the latest ACA modifications and what they mean to business owners.
• “Building a Team That Works Without You,” a breakout featuring Bryan Dodge, who will show attendees how to unleash their full potential by employing new skills for coaching and mentoring today’s new generation of workers (hint: they don’t want to be managed).
• “Exploring Wide Format,” an informative breakout covering the latest technical advances and cost modifications for this still-growing technology and its profit potential as a service offered by smaller graphic communications industry companies.

“Beyond this great content, our Owners Conference will provide our attendees the perfect venue for networking with their peers, discussing similar issues they face, and learning about new solutions and strategies from fellow owners, industry experts, and vendor representatives,” says Sims. “And, as with every Owners Conference, it will also provide an opportunity to catch up with old friends and start new industry friendships.”

The site of this year’s conference, The Palmer House Hilton, has been awarded an AAA Four-Diamond rating and is located on the Chicago Loop in the heart of the theater district, two blocks from Grant Park, six blocks from the Sears Tower, and just a mile from the Navy Pier. The property features a spa and fitness center, Potter’s Lounge, and the Lockwood Restaurant and Bar on site. 

Registration for the 2014 Owners Conference is $595 for members and $795 for non-members beforeAug. 25, 2014; $695 for members and $995 for non-members after that date. Register at iLink.me/RegOC14 or contact Donna Komlo at (201) 523-6345 or [email protected] for more information.

To reserve a room at The Palmer House Hilton ($235 Single/Double), book it through the GRAPH EXPO housing site at iLink.me/OC14Hotel and select “NAPL-AMSP-NAQP” under attendee type. Hotel reservation cutoff date is Aug. 29, 2014.