The Hague, The Netherlands – The dates, site, speakers and strategic partners for the 3rd International CEO Forum were announced today by Seven Smulders, the event’s founder and organizer. The forum will be held in Barcelona, Spain from January 19-21, 2005 at the five-star Arts Hotel, part of the Ritz Carlton Group. Trade Show Executive magazine has been named the official magazine of the forum, and the Society of Independent Show Organizers (SISO) is a Supporting Sponsor. Sandy Angus, Bob Krakoff, and Joris van Wijk are a few of the headliners at the event. The executive-level forum drew over 160 CEOs from nearly 30 countries when held in December 2002 in Cannes and last December in Monte Carlo.
Responding to input from past delegates, the event was moved from its traditional early December time slot to January to avoid pre-holiday stresses and conflicts.
Smulders says the conference program will address the strategic challenges facing CEOs of exhibition companies and will examine future trends. Sandy Angus, Chairman of Montgomery Exhibitions, will serve again as moderator, and Bob Krakoff, Chairman of Advanstar, will cover the topic, “Private Equity Investors and the Exhibition Industry – An Update.” The BRIC economies, especially Brazil and India, will be highlighted by Joris van Wijk, CEO of VNU Expositions/Brazil and Rajan Sharma, CEO of Interads/India, followed by a panel discussion with speakers from China and Russia. Roger Martin-Fagg, twice chosen by the delegates as the most effective presenter (in 2002 and 2003), will give his “Annual Round-Up of Global Economic Conditions.”
Additional details on the International CEO Forum can be found at www.internationalceoforum.com, or reach Seven Smulders at 31-651-495-445 or 31-70-344-1522; email: sevennch@wxs.nl or ceoforum@nchnl.nl
