News

MSU-B puts together forum on international business

When the College of Business at Montana State University-Billings decided to put together a multi-day,
multi-speaker conference, organizers thought it was going be difficult to find enough speakers and draw
enough guests.

By JOHN FITZGERALD
Of The Gazette Staff

Both fears were for naught.
"We already have more than 100 business people and 140 students signed up, plus 40 speakers and a
bunch of faculty so the conference should be well-attended," said Jerry Thomas, the director of outreach and
development with MSU-B’s College of Business.
He and other conference organizers had hoped to get 250 people to attend, "and, with a few last-minute
registrations, I think we’ll be there."

"Passport To Success, A Conference in International Business" is sponsored by the College of Business
and begins with registration at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Student Union Building on the MSU-B campus. It ends
Wednesday.

In addition to educators, agriculture and corporate leaders and marketing experts, speakers include Sen.
Conrad Burns, Rep. Denny Rehberg and Gov. Judy Martz, all Montana Republicans.
Planning began in December, Thomas said, and was spurred by the College of Business’s accreditation
process. The conference came together so easily that Thomas said it may become an annual event.
One of the workshop moderators will be Chato Hazelbaker, the director of marketing at MSU-B. He said
attendees will be amazed at the amount of international business being done in Montana.

"I think people will take away from the conference a very real sense of how to move their business
internationally – especially what resources are available that their business can use," he said.
"Until you really get out there and start talking to people in the business community in Billings, it’s hard to
know how many are out there doing significant business internationally."

The first event is a welcoming session at 9 a.m. Tuesday with MSU-B Chancellor Ron Sexton and Sen.
Burns. Three concurrent workshops begin at 9:30 a.m.:

"Shipping, Documentation and Transportation: Details on Exporting" will be moderated by Ross
Lyle, assistant port director for the U.S. Customs Service in Great Falls.

"Trade Policy and Legal Issues" will be moderated by Angela Marshall, the international trade
counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance. Panelists will include Raul Urteaga, the
economic counselor for the Mexican Embassy’s NAFTA office in Washington, D.C., and others.

"International Finance" will be moderated by Michelle Johnston, district director of the U.S.
Small Business Administration Montana District Office in Helena.

At the noon lunch, the keynote speaker will be Rep. Rehberg.
From 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., a general session titled "Resources for Your Business" will be moderated by Arnie
Sherman, director of the Montana World Trade Center in Missoula.

A social hour will begin at 3:30 on campus, followed by a reception at 6 p.m. at the Western Heritage
Center in downtown Billings.
Martz will give her speech at 9 a.m. Wednesday. Three concurrent workshops begin at 9:30:

"Agricultural Exporting" will be moderated by Michael W. Punke, partner at Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw
in Washington, D.C.

"Education and Technology" will be moderated by Bruce Whittenberg, president of Sutton’s Sportswear in
Billings. Panelists will include Fife MacDuff, academic coordinator at Uniao Cultural Brasil Estados
Unidos in Sao Paulo, Brazil; S. Scott Nadler, a marketing professor at the University of Alabama and
others.

"International Marketing" will be moderated by Hazelbaker. Panelists will include Guido Wagler,
international sales and marketing manager at Kampgrounds of America in Billings; Tristina Toll Kirsten,
West Coast outreach director for Global Technology Network in Newport Beach, Calif., and others.

Lunch will be from noon to 1:30 p.m., with Punke as speaker.
Registration is $35 for both days and includes lunch. After two from any business are registered, the rest
are free. For information, call Karen at 657-2812.

Copyright © The Billings Gazette, a division of Lee Enterprises

http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&display=rednews/2002/03/29/build/business/12-msub-econ.inc

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