ABM/FIPP World Conference 2008 Speakers

Ray Anderson

CTO, Online Products Group
IDG (USA)

Ray Anderson is CTO of the Online Products Group for IDG Communications, responsible for the technological direction and implementation of the company’s business-to-business publications, including Computerworld.com, Infoworld.com, CIO.com, CSOonline.com, ITworld.com and Networkworld.com.  

Ray has more than 20 years of technology experience in the publishing and manufacturing industries. Prior to joining IDG, he led technology departments and implementations at Egenera, Inc., TechTarget, Inc., and Inso Corporation.

Anurag Batra 

Managing Director & Editor-in-Chief
Exchange4media Group (India)

Anurag Batra is an entrepreneur, media expert and journalist rolled into one. He is currently the managing director and editor in chief of Exchange4media Group, which includes exchange4media.com, PITCH, IMPACT, Realty Plus and Franchise Plus.

After acquiring his B. Tech degree in computer science, Anurag joined the Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon, one of India’s leading business schools. In early 2005, he was awarded the Young Marketer of the Year Award from the Indira Group of Institutes in Pune. The next year, his alma mater, the prestigious MDI, named him the Most Distinguished Alumni of the Decade.

Anurag is a member of the Sales & Marketing Committee of the Delhi Management Association and president of the Franchising Association of India, Northern chapter. He also serves on the Executive Committee of the Association of Indian Magazines (AIM) and is chairman of the Advisory Board of the Futuristic Media Communication Centre (FMCC), a leading media and communications school in India. Further, Anurag is part of a core group of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TIE), a special Internet group focused on education and training.

In addition to advising the government through a series of white papers on the Internet, media, television and their impact on society, Anurag writes a monthly column on entrepreneurship for India’s only entrepreneurship magazine, Dare. He is also a regular speaker at national and international conferences.

Ian Bedwell

Director
MediaStraat B.V. (Netherlands)

Ian Bedwell is director of Mediastraat B.V., a boutique media consultancy based in The Netherlands. Set up by Ian in April 2007, it’s a highly-focused company currently working with publishing companies in Europe, the Middle East and other emerging markets. Mediastraat specializes in effective and pragmatic business planning for media companies developing new markets and new strategies.

Ian began his publishing career in 1984 with VNU Business Publications London; he became publishing director there in 1995. In 1998, he moved to The Netherlands as publishing director of VNU Business Publications Netherlands.

In early 2000, Ian became CEO of VNU Global Media, a role which included the management of the company’s international sales teams in Europe, the U.S. and Asia. During this time, he was responsible for establishing VNU Global Media as one of the world’s leading sales houses. In November 2003, Ian was appointed CEO of a new division, VNU Global Publishing Partnerships, which focused on the licensing and syndication of VNU Business Media Europe content and brands across the world. He continues to travel the world extensively on business, speaking at international publishing conferences around the globe.

Marcelo Burman

CEO
Compania Editora de Centroamerica S.A. - Grupo Cerca (Costa Rica)

Marcelo Burman is president and CEO of Compañía Editora de Revistas de Centroamerica (GRUPO CERCA), a publishing company based in Costa Rica, with offices in seven other countries: Panamá, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. CERCA publishes both b-to-b and consumer magazines and represents advertising sales for Televisa Publishing and Reader’s Digest throughout Central America.  

Marcelo has more than 15 years of industry experience, beginning his publishing career in Argentina and now in Central America. He serves as president of Costa Rican publishing association ACER and is a member of the board of the National Institute of Advertising. He has also been a featured speaker at the FIPP Iberoamerican Congress (Madrid, 2001; Mexico, 2004; and Sao Paulo, 2006) and FIPP’s B2B Worldwide Congress (Barcelona, 2004; and London, 2006), as well as several events in Central America and the Caribbean.

Kirk Cheyfitz

CEO
Story Worldwide (UK)

Kirk Cheyfitz is CEO and co-chief creative officer of Story Worldwide, a brand marketing firm with offices in New York, London and Seattle.  

Kirk is an award-winning journalist, author, pioneer in non-traditional marketing and custom-created content, and successful international businessman. He has enjoyed a global career in entertainment, journalism, marketing and publishing, and is a leading expert in the use of content to profitably extend brands, win customers, create loyalty and build sales. He also has an extensive history of building successful companies, both nationally and internationally, employing mergers and acquisitions and start-ups.

In 1999, Kirk founded The Publishing Agency for McCann WorldGroup, operating award-winning and market-leading content shops in Spain, The Netherlands, the U.K. and North America. In 2005, Kirk and his partners bought The Publishing Agency from McCann, and re-branded it as Story Worldwide, the first multi-national, multi-channel marketing content agency for the post-advertising age. Story’s clients include Lexus, Bank of America, UPS, Nortel, Microsoft, the Chartered Institute of Marketing, General Motors, the International Air Transport Association and many others.

Along the way, Kirk wrote a business book for Simon & Schuster. “Thinking Inside the Box” now appears in five languages, including Chinese, Japanese and Korean. He also co-wrote “Beyond the Wardrobe,” the official guide to C.S. Lewis and “The Chronicles of Narnia,” for HarperCollins.

Fun facts: Kirk was an assistant director on a feature film for 20^th Century Fox in Europe at age 17 and was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for the Detroit Free Press.

Sabrina Crow           

Senior VP, Marketing, Media & Visual Art Group
Nielsen Business Media (USA)

As senior VP of Nielsen Business Media's Marketing, Media & Visual Arts Group, Sabrina Crow leads a portfolio of integrated brands including trade shows, publications, online businesses, conferences and events. The group is comprised of leading brands including Adweek, Brandweek, Mediaweek, Editor & Publisher, The Clio Awards, National Jeweler, Couture International Jeweler, JA NY shows, PDN and PhotoPlus, Incentive, Sales & Marketing Management, Training, Business Travel News, Successful Meetings and MeetingNews.

Sabrina is a transformational leader, moving single medium brands into multiple channels with an emphasis on the digital world. She joined Nielsen Business Media in 2007. Prior to that, she was group VP/managing director at Reed Business US, leading the science and medical portfolio, where she was recognized for integrating product lines. Earlier in her career, Sabrina served as CEO of Freedom Magazines International. Previously, she was with Knight Ridder for nearly a decade, where she ran a $100+ million revenue business for The Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald.

Sabrina has served as president of a chapter of the International Advertising Association and has held board and committee seats at non-profits including the United Way, American Business Media and the John Reisenbach Foundation.

Charlie Engros

Managing Partner
Morgan Lewis (USA)

Charlie Engros is managing partner of Morgan Lewis in New York, head of the firm’s mergers and acquisitions practice and also the leader of its media and information industry team.

The Morgan Lewis corporate transactional media and information practice, and Charlie in particular, are named by Chambers as leaders in media and information matters. Among the clients whom Charlie represents are Pearson, The Daily Mail Group, The Economist, Bertelsmann, United Business Media and numerous other private investors and owners of information businesses.

Media industry transactions he has recently completed include Pearson’s sale of its Government Solutions business and its purchases of Harcourt Assessments, eCollege, Money Media and Edustructures; UBM’s acquisitions of Portelligent, U.S. Newswire and Shorecliff Communications; and the purchase of George Little Management by DMG World Media.

John Failla

President
Tesoro Events, LLC (USA)

John Failla is the president of Tesoro Events, LLC. He has more than 20 years of management experience in business media, including responsibility for face-to-face events, business publications and eMedia products serving a wide variety of markets. In his current role, John continues to explore, study and evaluate emerging business-to-business media models. Prior to starting Tesoro Events in 2007, John served as group president at VNU (Nielsen) Exhibitions, where he was responsible for tradeshows, publications and online services serving several markets.  

Before entering the tradeshow business in 1999, John was president of VNU Business Media’s retail group and vice president of retail media at Bill Communications. In these roles, he developed and spearheaded the successful launch of a series of tradeshows under the “eRetailing” brand. Prior to joining Bill Communications, John spent 15 years at Lebhar-Friedman, where as vice president/publisher of Discount Store News, he developed and successfully launched the DSN Conference Group.

An authority on business media brand development and events, John has been a featured speaker at domestic and international conferences. He has given presentations at American Business Media’s Executive Conferences, the VNU Expositions Executive Management Meeting, the M2 Executive Management Conference and the ABC Convention. John is a member of ABM, the Society of Independent Show Organizers (SISO), the International Association of Exhibitions & Events, the Healthcare Exhibitors Association and ASAE & The Center.

Rebecca A. Fannin

Editor, Digital Magazine News/International Editor
AsianFN (USA)

Rebecca A. Fannin is an international business journalist and author of the well-received book that profiles leading Chinese entrepreneurs, Silicon Dragon (McGraw-Hill, 2008).

With 18 years of experience covering global business and media trends, Rebecca is the founding editor of Digital Magazine News and international editor of the Hong Kong-based www.asianfn.com. She also writes a blog for Huffington Post and contributes to Inc., Fast Company, The Deal and Worth. Previously, Rebecca was international news editor at Red Herring (1999-2002), deputy editor at Advertising Age International (1996-1999) and editor of the Pulitzer-owned International Business (1990-1995). Her work also has appeared in Wired, Asia Inc., Merrill Lynch 360 and Time Inc.’s AsiaWeek. Rebecca began her career as a copy editor at the Dayton Journal Herald, as a Dow Jones intern. 

Rebecca is a graduate of the Ohio University Scripps School of Journalism and a recipient of an Asian studies fellowship from the Freedom Forum. Combining her love for travel and adventure with passion for writing, Rebecca has been on assignment in many of the world’s capitals. She is a frequent moderator, panelist and presenter at industry events in Asia, Europe and the U.S. Rebecca is a member of the Overseas Press Club in New York, the Foreign Correspondents’ Club in Hong Kong and Tokyo, and the World Affairs Council in San Francisco. 

Marco Giberti

President
Reed Exhibitions, Latin America (Brazil)

Marco Giberti has more than 15 years of intensive experience in marketing and communications with a focus on the media and tradeshow industry.

After several years as a successful corporate executive, Marco decided to give free rein to his entrepreneurial spirit and became: co-founder and board member of Mind Opener, a leading publishing group in Latin America which was later sold to British Pearson Media Group; co-founder of e-mind, an Internet and media communications company which was sold to Liberty Media; and co-founder, president and CEO of Mind Trainer, a firm specializing in the organization of major regional tradeshows and events in Latin America.

In 2000, Mind Trainer was sold to Reed Elsevier, a global leader in media and events; Marco became its president for the events and tradeshow division in Latin America, a role he has been performing since then. Under his leadership, Reed Exhibitions Latin America became the leading company in the region, organizing more than 50 events annually in different markets throughout Latin America, including Brazil, Mexico and Argentina.

Over the course of his business career, Marco has been awarded a number of distinctions in his field, including, among others, the 1999 Entrepreneur of the Year Award. He was also named one of the 100 most influential people in the global convention and exhibition business by Trade Show Week magazine.

Marco is a regular guest speaker at conferences and business schools in Latin America, Europe and the U.S., and is considered a referential figure in the media, marketing and events industry for Latin America.

Melvyn Goh

CEO and Group Publisher
M Media Group (China)

Melvyn Goh is CEO and group publisher of M Media Group, a media investment arm of Morningside Asia. M Media Group and its media partners in China and the U.S. publish leading magazine titles including Forbes China, Harvard Business Review China, Information Week China and The Bund, all focused on reaching China’s business and elite community.  

In his current role, Melvyn is responsible for the direction and leadership of the company, and he oversees all aspects of strategic and operational management. Melvyn brings to M Media Group a 20-year media experience spanning Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo and New York.

Melvyn serves on the advisory board for the Stanford Professional Publishing Course at Stanford University.

Peter Goldstone

President
Hanley Wood Business Media (USA)

Peter Goldstone is the president of Hanley Wood’s business media division, responsible for growing its 30 publications, 24 Web sites, 15 conferences and ancillary products. His strategic direction has gained the company additional market share and has strengthened its presence in the building industry.

Hanley Wood is a leading business-to-business media company serving the residential and commercial construction industry. The Washington, DC-based firm has 750 employees and revenues in excess of $250 million. It has four operating divisions structured to meet the multiple needs of readers and advertisers with high-quality publications, conferences, trade shows, consulting services, Web sites and interactive products.

Previously, Peter was vice president of marketing for Intertec Publishing, a division of Primedia. He was named senior vice president/publishing director of Cowles Business Media's magazine group in January 1996, after serving as publisher and group publisher of the company's marketing and media publications. Under his leadership, the CBM Magazine Group strengthened its leadership position in the specialized marketing and media categories of promotional marketing, direct marketing, cable, marketing demographics and research, and publishing. Prior to his tenure of CBM, Peter worked at Hearst Business Publishing and SRDS. He is an active member of American Business Media, the Magazine Publisher’s Association and the Direct Marketing Association.

David Hill

President & CEO
International Publishing Services, IDG (USA)

David Hill is president and CEO of international publishing services for International Data Group, and sits on the executive committee at IDG, the world’s largest publisher of information on information technology.

Working with all 300 IDG publications and 450 Web sites in 90 countries, David directs IDG’s worldwide publication licensing activity, supervises international editorial resources and does new market development. He spent 10 years in the daily newspaper business before joining IDG in 1986. 

Geoff Hird

Associate Publisher, Operations Director
Westwick-Farrow Publishing (Australia)

Geoff Hird is the associate publisher/operations director at Westwick-Farrow Publishing (est. 1981), a privately-owned market leader in industrial and technology business-to-business publishing in Australia. He has more than 18 years of experience in b-to-b magazine and online publishing, covering sales, marketing and management roles.

In 2007, Geoff was appointed chairman of the board of directors for Publishers Australia, a leading industry association representing more than 120 niche consumer and b-to-b publishers. Geoff is a member of FIPP's International Research Committee and has presented at numerous conferences and events on business marketing and media, with specific focus on multi-platform publishing.

Michael Höflich 

Managing Director
Forum Corporate Publishing e.V (Germany)

Michael Höflich is the managing director of Forum Corporate Publishing e.V., the association of corporate publishing companies in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

Gordon T. Hughes II

President/CEO
American Business Media (USA)

Gordon T. Hughes II is the president and CEO of American Business Media. He joined the Association in 1994 as president, and took on the title of CEO in 2000. Gordon has more than 25 years of advertising experience under his belt. During his tenure at ABM, he has repositioned the Association from a traditional publishing group to a global organization of business information providers. Today, ABM is the authoritative voice of business media and information companies.  

Gordon has recharged the business information industry's influence in Washington, D.C. Under his leadership, ABM has won major victories before the Postal Rate Commission. In addition, he developed a number of initiatives to raise the visibility and stature of business media. These include the Business Information Network (BIN), an ad tracking system for business media print publications; the prestigious Creative Excellence in Business Advertising (CEBA) Awards; and the Timothy White Award for editorial courage and integrity.

Prior to joining ABM, Gordon was president of the marketing division for the Outdoor Advertising Association of America. He also served as vice president of marketing for CBS Stations Division. While at CBS, he won two Emmy Awards as a producer of major sports and entertainment events, as well as the Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia Broadcast News Award. Earlier in his career, Gordon was vice president and station manager at WCAU-TV in Philadelphia, and director of sales at KCBS-TV in Los Angeles.

Wilma Jordan

Founder and CEO
The Jordan, Edmiston Group, Inc. (USA)

Wilma Jordan is founder and CEO of The Jordan, Edmiston Group, Inc. (JEGI), the most successful investment bank for global media, information, marketing and related technology companies.

Wilma’s “Best Practices” approach to M&A advisory services has been instrumental in forging the firm's reputation for overall excellence, integrity and the ability to maximize value for its clients. Her vast industry experience includes having founded, owned, managed, advised and served on the board of directors of a number of high-profile companies, including publishing, broadcasting, marketing services and Internet businesses.

Wilma was one of the founders and initial shareholders of the 13-30 Corporation. After 15 years of building the business, ultimately generating a profit margin of 21% on revenues of $80 million, she and the other founding shareholders sold their stake to a management-buyout group in 1985, earning a return on investment in excess of 100% a year. Wilma also participated as shareholder, COO and principal negotiator in the revitalization and 1986 sale of Esquire Magazine Group, which included Esquire, New York Woman and other media assets.

In addition to her election to the board of Lin Broadcasting in 1987, Wilma was also one of three directors chosen in 1990 to serve on a newly-assembled board after McCaw Cellular purchased 52% of the outstanding ownership in a hostile takeover. She was also elected to the board of Lin Television, an independent NASDAQ-listed company that was spun off from Lin Broadcasting in 1994. Following a successful IPO in May 2002, Wilma was invited to join the board of Lin Television as an independent director, and she served on the Lin TV Board until August 2006.

Wilma was most recently elected to the board of directors of Blyth, Inc., a home décor and home fragrance company that sells its products through multiple distribution channels throughout North America, Europe and Australia. She resigned from the board of Clayton Homes, Inc., the largest vertically-integrated manufactured housing company, upon the very successful sale of the company to Berkshire Hathaway (Warren Buffett) for $1.7 billion.

David Klein

Publishing & Editorial Director
The Ad Age Group (USA)

David Klein was named publishing and editorial director of The Ad Age Group in November 1999. The group's weekly Advertising Age newspaper is the industry leader in advertising, marketing and media news.

In 1996, David joined Ad Age as editor and then became associate publisher and group editor. As its current publishing and editorial director, he has overall responsibility for the print, Internet and database publishing enterprises of Crain's marketing and media publications, including TelevisionWeek, BtoB and Creativity magazines.

Kirk Laughlin

Strategic Consultant, Live Events
Ziff Davis Enterprise (USA)

Kirk Laughlin is strategy consultant and past VP/managing director of live events at Ziff Davis Enterprise, which operates more than 200 face-to-face events annually.

Kirk has been a central contributor to the growth of ZDE’s invitation-only roundtables, wine tastings, half- and full-day summits and specialty recruitment programs. He has also been chiefly involved with product innovation and delivery, programming, client services and operational excellence.

Prior to becoming managing director, Kirk served as editorial director over the events business unit. Before joining ZDE, he was editor in chief of America’s Network magazine, an Advanstar title, and also held posts at Cygnus Business Media. Kirk has won numerous awards for editorial excellence from the American Society of Business Publication Editors and the Western Publications Association. In his consulting role, he leads content and event strategy at Next Coast Media. 

David Levin

CEO
United Business Media PLC (UK) 

David Levin is CEO of United Business Media plc (UBM), an international media and business information company whose businesses inform markets and bring the world’s buyers and sellers together at events, online, in print, and with the information they need to do business successfully. UBM has two principal areas of business activity: the first is the distribution of news and information from the world’s top companies, organizations and agencies; UBM’s business in this market is PR Newswire. UBM’s second area of business activity is serving professional and commercial communities of buyers and sellers with media products that integrate events, online, print and business information; UBM has a number of businesses operating in this market.

Prior to joining UBM, David was CEO of Symbian, the leading provider of smartphone operating systems. He joined Symbian after serving as COO of Psion, Symbian’s original parent company. There, David led the acquisition of the industrial computing group Teklogix and managed Psion’s exit from the consumer handheld business. Previously, he held senior management positions at the international business publisher Euromoney Institutional Investor, including COO and finance director. David also worked for the venture capital firm Apax Partners. He began his career with consulting firm Bain and Company, working in locations around the globe, including West Africa, North Asia, Southeast Asia and the U.S.

David holds a Master of Arts in politics, philosophy and economics from Oxford University and a Master of Business Administration from Stanford University. He is a member of the World Economic Forum as well as the Oxford University Press. Previous speaking engagements include the International Business Magazine and Business Media Conference; Davos Summit; The Jordan, Edmiston Group, Inc. (JEGI) Business Information Executive Forum; and the Society of Independent Show Organizers (SISO) CEO Summit.

R. Christopher Lund

President
Grupo Lund (Brazil)

R. Christopher Lund was chairman and CEO of the Brazilian-based Grupo Lund de Editoras Associadas (Lund Group of Associated Publishers) from 1976 to 2006. In January 2007, he stepped down as CEO, keeping his responsibilities as chairman and principal shareholder. The Lund Group was founded in 1960 by Chris’ father, Bob, after an extensive publishing career in Latin America with American consumer and business publishing companies.

It has always been the Lund Group’s mission to bring Latin American readers and international advertisers business media that’s on a par with the best in the world. Over 45 years, the group has become, according to American Business Media’s white paper on publishing in Latin America, Brazil’s (and probably, Latin America’s) leading business media company. The group’s success has resulted in large part from its ability to build international partnerships, initially with North American business publications (such as Medical Economics and Progressive Grocer), and later, with major North American publishing companies such as Thomas Publishing, MacLean Hunter and Hearst Business Media. In July 2007, the Lund Group joined forces with the Carvajal Group of Colombia, active worldwide in business media through its b-to-b Portales division. 

In addition to his responsibilities at the Lund group, Chris has served on the executive committee of the Brazilian section of the Brazil-US Business Council and Brazil’s “Grupo of 30.” He also served on the American Chamber’s board of directors for 20 years, 19 as a member of its executive committee and twice as its president. He coordinated the Brazilian government’s Foreign Investors Group over seven years and was also director of Brazil’s National Quality Prize Foundation.

Chris Majer

CEO
The Human Potential Project (USA)

Chris Majer is founder and CEO of The Human Potential Project (HP2), which instills commitment-based management practices in all types and sizes of businesses. HP2 guarantees its clients a clearly-defined return on investment during its engagement. Clients such as AT&T, Cargill, Microsoft, Intel, EDS, Capital One, Amgen and Allianz Life of North America have been transformed by HP2's work.

Chris began as a competitive rugby player. In 1981, he started working exclusively with athletes to isolate and reproduce the elements of consistent winning performance. He soon began training soldiers in innovative practices that dramatically improved their performance. This work resulted in a year-long classified project with the Army’s Special Forces. Chris used this background with world-class athletes and the military as a foundation for his work with organizations. He has spent more than two decades developing innovative and highly-effective approaches for enabling organizations of any size to maximize their performance. He is currently authoring a book exploring these methods to be published this year.

Chris has studied extensively with philosopher Dr. Fernando Flores, known for his work on the foundations of commitment-based management. He has been featured in Time and Esquire and has appeared on “The Today Show,” “Charlie Rose” and “The MacNeil/Lehrer Report.”

Gisella Bertini Malgarini

Publisher
Associazione Nazionale Editoria Periodica Specializzata (Italy)

Gisella Bertini Malgarini has been president of the Associazione Nazionale Editoria Periodica Specializzata (ANES) since March 2007, after five years as VP. ANES is the Italian Association of Specialized Periodical Publishing and deals with business-to-business, business-to-consumer and consumer magazines. Founded in 1995, ANES has registered continuous growth in the number of its members; at present, it represents 210 companies with more than 950 titles, and actively lobbies on behalf of them.

For more than 10 years, Gisella has been a member of the management board and has participated in the international work of FIPP, FAEP and IFabc as an ANES International Delegate. Since 2006, she has served as president of FAEP’s Business Professional Specialized Magazines Group and has promoted the launch of an international search engine for magazine categories that will soon be adopted by the European Association of Advertising Agencies. From 1997-2007, Gisella was president of CSST, the ANES Auditing Bureaux of Circulation.

Gisella is also the sole administrator of BE-MA editrice, a company she co-founded in 1975 which has built upon and consolidated its experience in the sector of technical and special interest publications. The company presently publishes 30 periodicals, guides and yearbooks, six portals and several editorial works. Over the years, BE-MA has published eight annotated collections and launched six book series. To-date, as many as eight thematic areas are covered: “Architecture/Building,” “Environment,” “Systems,” “Hospitality and Wellbeing,” “Graphic Arts and Packaging,” “Trends,” “Gardening” and “Earth Sciences.” Gisella is publisher of content related to “Architecture/Building,” “Environment,” “Systems,” and “Graphic Arts and Packaging.”

Charles G. McCurdy

Chairman/CEO
Canon Communications LLC/Apprise Media LLC (USA)

Charles G. McCurdy is chairman and CEO of Apprise Media LLC, which he founded in January 2004, and chairman and CEO of its Canon Communications LLC unit.  

Charles has more than 25 years of experience managing and investing in niche media, information and education companies. Under the Apprise umbrella, he has led the acquisition and development of three platform companies. Canon Communications is a leading b-to-b company active in trade shows, magazines and digital media. The Beckett Media LP and Action Pursuit Group LLC units, which together form Apprise Enthusiast Media, cover various special interest consumer niches through magazines, live events and digital media.

As a co-founder, president and director of PRIMEDIA Inc. (NYSE: PRM), Charles oversaw the acquisition, development and build-up of more than 20 platform niche media companies. He engineered the company's entrance into a broad range of niche media businesses, including enthusiast and b-to-b magazines, consumer guides, specialty video, supplemental educational publishing and their related online and digital media activities. Charles pioneered the practice of the leveraged build-up in the niche media and information sector through the 1990's. He developed and helped implement the strategy of growing niche media businesses by surrounding their markets with print, live events and digital products. He successfully led the raising of more than $9 billion in debt and equity financings.

Prior to launching PRIMEDIA, Charles was the top finance and development executive at Macmillan Inc., the educational and professional book publisher and b-to-b information services provider. He began his publishing career as an editor.

Charles sits on American Business Media’s board of directors and is chair of the Association’s Marketing Committee. He is also on the board of directors of the Society of Independent Show Organizers (SISO).

Patrick J. McGovern

Founder/Chairman,
Internation Data Group (IDG) (USA)

Patrick J. McGovern is founder and chairman of International Data Group (IDG), the world’s leading technology publishing, research and event management company, with annual revenues in 2007 of $3.02 billion.

Patrick’s publishing career began while he was a student at MIT, when he applied for a part-time editorial job at Computers and Automation, the first U.S. computer magazine. He was promptly named associate editor and became associate publisher upon his college graduation.

In 1964, with the computer industry still in its infancy, Patrick founded International Data Corporation (IDC), now an IDG research subsidiary, to provide the industry with timely and reliable statistics on information technology (IT) markets. Three years later, he launched Computerworld, a weekly newspaper dedicated to keeping computer buyers abreast of industry and product news. Computerworld became IDG’s flagship publication, and in 1972, Patrick began exporting the Computerworld concept, launching Shukan Computer in Japan. By “thinking globally but acting locally,” a strategy that continues to guide IDG’s worldwide expansion, he ensured that the Japanese publication would not be a Computerworld clone. From the start, it was edited and managed by a Japanese staff whose mission was to satisfy readers through a superior editorial product tailored to local market needs.

Patrick has overseen IDG’s launch of more than 300 magazines and newspapers in nearly 90 countries, including such globally-recognized titles as Computerworld, GamePro, InfoWorld, Macworld, Network World, CIO and PC World. In 1980, he established one of the first joint ventures between a U.S. company and the People’s Republic of China (Today, IDG has more than 40 publications in China, the world’s fastest growing major IT market). IDG also produces more than 750 events and expos in 55 countries, including an international series of LinuxWorld Conference & Expo and Macworld Conference & Expo.

In 2008, Patrick received the Robert L. Krakoff Lifetime Achievement Award from American Business Media. In January 2005, he received the Magazine Publishers of America’s (MPA) Lifetime Achievement award. His other recent awards are the 2004 Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Business Publications Editors (ASBPE) and a Top Innovator in Business Publishing Award from BtoB Media Business magazine. Additional honors include The James Smithsonian Bicentennial Medal from the Smithsonian Institution, The Business Publisher of the Year from The Delaney Report, The Communicator of the Year from the New York Chapter of the Business and Professional Advertisers Association, The Entrepreneur of the Year from Ernst & Young and the Entrepreneurial Leadership Award from the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge, Inc.

Harold “Terry” McGraw III

President/CEO/Chairman
The McGraw-Hill Company (USA)

Harold “Terry” McGraw III is chairman, president and CEO of The McGraw-Hill Companies, a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through such leading brands as Standard & Poor’s, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates.

Under Terry’s leadership, the corporation has undergone a complete transformation, becoming an innovative, global information company built to serve three powerful trends driving long-term economic growth around the world: the need for knowledge, the need for capital and the need for information transparency. Terry joined The McGraw-Hill Companies in 1980, and has held a number of positions with increasing responsibilities, including VP of corporate planning; publisher of Aviation Week & Space Technology; president of McGraw-Hill Publications Company; and president of McGraw-Hill Financial Services Company.

Terry serves on the boards of directors for United Technologies and ConocoPhillips. He is chairman of Business Roundtable and the Emergency Committee for American Trade (ECAT) as well as a member of the Business Council. Terry is also a member of the State Department’s Advisory Committee on Transformational Diplomacy and the U.S. Trade Representative’s Advisory Committee for Trade, Policy and Negotiations (ACTPN). He is also chairman of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy and serves on the boards of several non-profit organizations.

Nancy McKinstry

CEO/Chair of the Executive Board
Wolters Kluwer (The Netherlands)

Nancy McKinstry is CEO and chairman of the executive board at Wolters Kluwer nv. She successfully spearheaded the transformation of the company into a forward-looking, customer-focused global information services provider for professionals worldwide.  

Before assuming her present position, Nancy gained more than a decade of experience at Wolters Kluwer and its operating companies in North America. Most recently, she was an executive board member of the company and previously served as CEO of Wolters Kluwer’s operations in North America. Earlier, Nancy held product management positions with CCH INCORPORATED, now part of Wolters Kluwer’s Tax, Accounting & Legal division. During her tenure there, the company emerged as a leading provider of electronic publishing products. In 1999, she worked briefly as CEO of SCP Communications, a medical information company, and held management positions with Booz Allen Hamilton earlier in her career.

Scott Mozarsky

Executive Vice President/Chief Strategy & Development Officer
United Business Media Limited (UBM) (USA)

Scott Mozarsky has worked in the United Business Media (UBM) Group since June 2000. In his current positions as EVP and chief strategy & development officer, he is responsible for corporate development and M&A for PRNewswire. In this role, Scott works to identify, evaluate, negotiate, structure and complete mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, investments and strategic alliances throughout the world. He is also responsible for PRN’s Vintage Filings subsidiary as well as its Finance and Legal Groups. 

Prior to assuming this role, Scott was EVP and COO of UBM LLC (formerly CMP), responsible for working with each of UBM's technology divisions (Everything Channel, TechInsights, TechWeb and Think Services) to achieve profitable growth. He remains on the boards of TechWeb and Everything Channel. From 2002-2007, Scott headed up global corporate development and M&A for United Business Media Limited’s U.S.-based subsidiaries including UBM LLC (formerly known as CMP Media), PRNewswire, Commonwealth Business Media and CMP Medica. He has completed more than 60 transactions for UBM Limited's subsidiaries in Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America.

Prior to joining the UBM Group, Scott spent eight years at two multinational law firms representing media, technology, telecommunications and manufacturing companies. Scott, who speaks Japanese and lived in Japan, has also advised numerous companies on business, financial and legal issues arising out of cross border transactions.

Jane Ottenberg

President
The Magazine Group (USA)

Jane Ottenberg is president of The Magazine Group, a Washington D.C.-based custom media firm that produces magazines, online content and videos for 70 corporations and associations. The firm has won more than 500 awards on behalf of its b-to-b, consumer and non-profit clients. 

Launching TMG Online Video in early 2008, Jane is spearheading TMG's fast-growing initiative to produce content-rich, professionally produced and customized online video to further engage customers, members, advertisers and other stakeholders.

In addition to her responsibilities at The Magazine Group, Jane serves on the board of the Custom Publishing Council and several educational and philanthropic organizations. She was a finalist for Ernst & Young’s 2007 “Entrepreneur of the Year” award.

Chander M. Rai

President/CEO
Cross Border Media Inc. (India)

Chander M. Rai joined Cross Border Media Inc., an international media consultancy across all platforms, in April 2007 as president and CEO. He brings with him several years of media experience across the three major markets, and in the running of newspapers, magazines and online ventures. Cross Border Media plays a vital role in forging arrangements in cross-border licensing, joint venture deals and in the setting up of wholly-owned subsidiaries. It also advises on media mergers and acquisitions and in carrying out market research, strategy for new market development and measurement of advertising effectiveness.    

Previously, Chander worked at the helm of a newspaper in Dubai, as publisher of several magazines in India and as chief executive, based in New York, of an Indian media conglomerate. He was the first to recognize the importance of online syndication while in Dubai and carried out arrangements with some of the best-known and authoritative publications across the world, including the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Times and Sunday Times, Asahi Shimbun and The Economist. In recent years, Chander has been responsible for bringing major magazine publishers like Rodale, Hearst and Conde Nast to India and Doubledown Media titles to the Gulf.

Chander has been an active member of several international media associations and is a member of the Magazine Publishers of America's international committee and its International Editors Committee. 

F. Michael Reilly

President & CEO
Randall-Reilly Publishing (USA)

F. Michael Reilly is president and CEO of Randall-Reilly Publishing Company. He began working there while still a student at the University of Alabama. Upon graduating, he joined Randall full time, working closely with the company’s CEO, Pettus Randall, III. Excluding two and a half years at Gulf Publishing Company, Michael has spent his entire career with Randall. Founded in 1934, Randall-Reilly publishes more than 35 magazines, directories, periodicals and Web sites.

In February 2002, Michael was promoted to president and CEO after serving as president and COO since 1984. Prior to that, he was president and publisher of both Overdrive and Equipment World magazines, and vice president of sales and marketing for the entire Randall Publishing Company. He directed a major reorganization of the company in 1994, and in 2005, along with Wachovia Capital Partners, purchased Randall Publishing Company from the Randall family. Under his direction, the company has experienced phenomenal growth reaching more than $65 million in gross revenue. Randall-Reilly employs more than 350 associates in 20 different states.

Michael currently serves on the board of directors for: The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, President’s Cabinet (University of Alabama), Commerce & Business Administration Board of Visitors (University of Alabama), Boys & Girls Club, United Way of West Alabama, West Alabama Chamber of Commerce, North River Yacht Club and American Business Media.

Harry G. Sachinis

President of Business Information Group
The McGraw-Hill Companies (USA) 

Harry G. Sachinis is president of The McGraw-Hill Companies’ Business Information Group, which comprises Platts, McGraw-Hill Construction and the Aviation Week Group.

Harry directs the day-to-day and strategic operations for this group of leading global businesses that connect buyers and sellers. He focuses on leveraging the Business Information Group’s capabilities and infrastructure to best meet the needs of customers in all covered industries, focusing on pursuing innovative growth opportunities and on transforming the Group into the b-to-b business of the future.

Harry joined The McGraw-Hill Companies in 1984 as a consultant at Standard & Poor's. Over the next several years, he held a variety of roles of increasing responsibility at Commodity Information Services, Standard & Poor's and Platts. At Platts – the world's leading provider of energy information, services and solutions – Harry grew and transformed the business through executing a mix of organic growth opportunities and strategic acquisitions. During his years at Platts, Harry also led efforts to promote transparency, integrity and innovation in the global energy industry. In 1997, he was given The McGraw-Hill Companies Excellence in Management Award.

Prior to joining The McGraw-Hill Companies, Harry held a variety of consulting and research positions in government and the private sector in Europe and the U.S.

Sam Sebastian

Director of B2B and Local Markets
Google (USA)

Sam Sebastian is the director of B2B and Local Markets for Google, Inc.  

Google’s B2B Markets team is responsible for helping B2B manufacturers, distributors, service providers and publishers connect with their target audiences around the globe to generate leads, drive sales and build brands. The Local Markets team helps locally-driven marketers, such as classifieds, directories and franchise companies, utilize Google's ad platform to realize greater efficiencies and returns from local advertising. To date, Google has enjoyed productive relationships with leading brands in the Local and B2B marketing space; Sam is responsible for growing those relationships and continuing to support growth and progress in the industry.

Sam joined Google from Classified Ventures (CV), an online joint venture of major U.S. newspaper companies, where he was the general manager at Homescape.com and SVP of sales & marketing at HomeGain. He worked with the newspaper and real estate communities for over seven years at CV to grow the usage and effectiveness of online real estate and home builder products on newspaper websites. Prior to CV, Sam was a consultant with Arthur Andersen in Chicago, IL. 

In addition to numerous interviews in national industry publications, Sam is a regularly-featured speaker at many local and b-to-b advertising trade events.

Pramath Raj Sinha

Founder & Managing Director
9.9 Mediaworx Pvt. Ltd. (India)

Pramath Raj Sinha is managing director of 9.9 Mediaworx Pvt. Ltd., a company he helped found. 9.9 Media has a diverse set of traditional and new media businesses, spanning print, online, research, conferences and events.

Pramath spent 12 years with McKinsey and Company, where he was a partner. During his tenure there, he assisted both public and private sector clients in a diverse set of industries on issues relating to business strategy and performance improvement in North America and Asia. After starting his career in the North American practice, he moved to India in 1997 and helped build and grow the Indian practice. Pramath led McKinsey India’s telecom, IT and media practices as well as its Organisation practice, where he focused on issues of transformation and leadership. He has assisted several blue-chip Indian companies address the challenges of transforming their existing organizations to world-class levels and has also helped several MNCs with the organizational and leadership challenges of setting up a world-class operation in India.

Pramath took a year off from McKinsey to be the founding dean of the Indian School of Business (ISB), an initiative led by McKinsey and a group of leading Indian business leaders, in partnership with Kellogg and Wharton, to establish a world-class business school in India. The ISB is today regarded as one of India’s leading b-schools and was ranked 20^th in the latest Financial Times ranking of global business schools. Pramath has been associated with the project from its inception and continues to be actively involved as a member of its board of governors. He is also on the board of directors for BILT, India’s largest paper products company; Kaleidoscope Entertainment Pvt. Ltd., a prominent film, media and general entertainment business in India; Vienova, an online education venture he helped found; V-Soft Inc., a Silicon Valley-based hi-tech services company, and Technopak, a management consulting firm specializing in the retail sector.

Before founding 9.9 Media last year, Pramath was managing director and CEO of the ABP Group, one of India’s leading and most diversified media conglomerates with leading properties in the newspaper, magazine and TV genres. It has properties such as Ananda Bazar Patrika, the #1 Bengali daily, The Telegraph, Eastern India’s #1 English daily, Businessworld, the #1 national business weekly magazine, STAR News (in partnership with STAR TV), the popular Hindi news channel, and India’s top book publisher, Penguin Books India (in partnership with Pearson International).

Jeffrey T. Stevenson

Managing Director/Co-CEO
Veronis Suhler Stevenson (USA)

Jeffrey T. Stevenson is the managing partner and co-CEO of Veronis Suhler Stevenson, a private equity fund with $2.5 billion of capital under management. VSS manages private equity and mezzanine funds dedicated to companies engaged in the media, communications and information industries.

Joining the firm in 1982, shortly after its formation, Jeffrey has headed its private equity business since the first investment in 1989. He serves as president of each of the equity funds, approves all capital commitment, and directs investment activities. Previously, Jeffrey was executive VP in charge of corporate finance at VSS, a department he founded.

Jeffrey currently serves as director of Xtreme Information, Access Intelligence, Infobase Publishing, ITN Networks and TMP Worldwide, just to name a few. Previously, he’s served as director of Canon Communications, Hanley Wood, Centaur Communications, Birch Telecom, ITE Group, Yellow Book USA, Broadcasting Partners Holdings, Spectrum Resources Towers, PJS Publications, International Media Partners, Hughes Broadcasting Partners and Mediatel, among others.

Christopher Strobel

Managing Director
Strobel Verlag (Germany)

Christopher Strobel is managing director of STROBEL VERLAG, which has been publishing leading magazines of high reputation as information and advertising media since 1872.

Following a number of short positions, Christopher joined the company in 1990 and has been the sole executive partner of the STROBEL PUBLISHING COMPANY GmbH & Co. KG since 2003.

Pat Davis Szymczak

Publisher & Editor in Chief
Oil and Gas Eurasia (Russia)

Pat Davis Szymczak is founder and publisher of Oil & Gas Eurasia and president of Eurasia Press, Inc. 

A U.S. citizen resident in Moscow since 1994, Pat oversees the first and only media property in Russia to have completed an audit by BPA – Oil & Gas Eurasia, a b-to-b glossy monthly magazine, and its Web site, www.oilandgaseurasia.com. Published by U.S. registered Eurasia Press, Inc., but with editorial, production and distribution offices in Moscow, OGE pioneered a unique bilingual format (Russian and English) to meet the mixed language needs of the international oil and gas industry active in Russia. 

A former Chicago Tribune staff writer, Pat worked as a correspondent in Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Moldova at the time of the Soviet break-up. In 1993, she joined Russian Petroleum Investor (RPI), an English language intelligence report for global oil companies seeking to invest in Russia and Central Asia. At that time, business media did not exist in Russia, let alone b-to-b. In 1995, Pat joined UK publisher Argus Media and proceeded over the next three years to establish their Russian business operations, launching publications in Russian and English to divergent audiences, and developing a strategy for the quoting of a crude oil market price for Azerbaijani oil exports.

Pat launched Oil & Gas Eurasia in 2000 to target the growing demand in Russia for information on global oil and gas technologies and equipment, and to open western suppliers of technology and equipment to market opportunities in Russia. This year, Eurasia Press launched a new title, Eurasia Offshore, and is investing in its Web site to offer bilingual cross marketing opportunities.

Pat currently chairs the marketing committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Moscow as well as the international appeal to restore St. Andrew’s Anglican Church, a 19th Century English neo-gothic listed building near the Kremlin. She was also a founding board member of the Russian Orphan Opportunity Fund, which enables graduates of Russia’s orphanage system to gain college admission. Pat was invited to speak about Russian gas exports at conferences in Beijing and Paris organized by Singapore-based CMT, and has also been invited to chair the MIOGE and KIOGE conferences associated with the international oil and gas exhibitions of the same name held in Moscow and in Almaty.

Yuko Tanaka

Group Manager, Advertising Sales/International Relations
Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. (Japan)

Yuko Tanaka is the group manager of international advertising sales and international relations for Nikkei Business Publications, Inc., a media company delivering information through a mix of magazines, books, Web sites, e-newsletters, seminars and tradeshows.   

Upon college graduation, Yuko joined Recruit Co. Ltd., where she sold advertising for job listing magazines. In 1991, she took up an international position at Nikkei BP and has been dedicated to the field ever since. Presently, she looks after various international projects, from licensing negotiations to corporate communications and global marketing. Her main responsibility is to head the global advertising sales team of Nikkei BP, which has offices in New York, London, Santa Clara, Hong Kong, Taipei and Singapore. Yuko serves on the International Committees of Japan Magazine Publishers Association and The Japan Magazine Advertiser Association. She also heads the committee to organize The First Asia-Pacific Digital Magazine Media Conference, to be held in November 2008.

Nikkei BP is Japan’s leading provider of technology and management information, providing content in a broad range of fields, including business and management, electronics, IT, medicine, construction, health, entertainment and lifestyle. Its mission is to provide innovative ideas in these fields and inspire readers and advertisers through the process.

Bhupesh Trivedi

CEO
Chronospere (India)

Bhupesh Trivedi is CEO of publishing consultancy and services company Chronosphere, and publisher of 16 b-to-b online news and community networking Web sites under the umbrella brand of IndianBusinessObserver.com.

Bhupesh has more than 23 years of experience in print and online publishing as well as Web-based technologies. He began his professional life as a reporter for an English language newspaper in Mumbai in 1985, and worked for various newspaper and magazine publishing houses before starting his own online publishing company in 1996.

In 2002, Bhupesh launched Chronosphere and has since consulted for various international print publishing companies looking to enter Indian business through licensing, joint ventures or 100% ownership routes.

Jayne Van Hoen

Global Director of Conferences and Events
Financial Times (UK)

Jayne Van Hoen is global director of conferences and events for the Financial Times.

An energetic and entrepreneurial “business shaper” with 17 years of experience in global publishing and conferences, Jayne joined the FT in 2005 and quickly strengthened its conference business, launching programs in Asia and the Middle East and expanding online offerings, including a Web site redesign, event podcasting and online payment systems. Under her watch, FT conference revenue grew 71 percent in 2007.

From 2002 to 2005, Jayne worked as a freelance conference and event director, developing programming, securing sponsors, managing event marketing and overseeing sales and logistics for IIR Conferences & IBE Events Ltd, The Financial Times Conference Division, European Lawyer Magazine and IQPC. She also served as head of conferences for the magazine division of EuroMoney Institutional Investor from 1999 to 2002.

Prior to that, Jayne was head of conferences and exhibitions at Hemscott, where she held responsibility for a portfolio of global treasury management conferences and awards in the UK and Asia. And as head of business development for Thomson IFR from 1994 to 1997, she oversaw production of six conference newsletters and led the company’s sales team in the UK, US, Europe and Asia. Jayne began her career at Haymarket Publishing LTD as a sales executive and joined Adam Smith Institute in 1992 as its head of sponsorship.

Tim Weller  

Group CEO
Incisive Media (UK)

Tim Weller is chief executive and founder of Incisive Media, a rapidly-growing specialist business information provider operating in four markets: financial services, risk management, professional services and marketing services.

Tim has a long-established career in publishing, having begun at VNU Business Publications in 1982. He was subsequently a director of Centaur Publishing and a managing director at Reuters Publishing. He founded Incisive Media with the launch of Investment Week in 1995. Tim has grown the company from a staff of 13 people 13 years ago to a company with over 2,200 employees, offices in the UK, North America and Hong Kong and annual revenues of over £250m. Tim floated Incisive Media on the main market of the London stock exchange in December 2000 and the company was valued at £75m. 

In Dec 2006, Tim completed an MBO of Incisive Media plc, successfully taking the company private with the backing of Apax Partners, in a deal that valued the company at £275m with the objective of becoming a major consolidator in b-to-b information. In August 2007, the acquisition of ALM, the leading integrated media company focusing on the legal and business communities, was completed for a total value of approximately £315 million in cash. 

Tim was voted PPA Publisher of the Year in 1997 and 1998, and Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2001. In November 2005, he was awarded the UK publishing industry’s top honor, the Marcus Morris Award, which is presented to an individual who has gained distinction through a significant and longstanding contribution to the magazine publishing business.

Tim is also chairman of PPA Business and Professional and a non-executive director of RDF Media plc.