The one-day conference offers workshops on risk management and an international trade “boot camp.” Futurist and global management consultant Barry Minkin, author of “ECONOQUAKE,” is the keynote speaker at lunch.
Mayor Tom Henry will present the 2007 Indiana Exporter of the Year award on behalf of the City and the Indianapolis U.S. Export Assistance Center. Award nominations are being accepted through Sept. 22.
Mayor Henry encourages business owners, managers, documentation clerks, purchasing directors, salespeople and community leaders to attend the conference.
“In Fort Wayne and across the state, Indiana manufacturers are producing world-class products that have worldwide demand,” said Mayor Henry. “The challenge of entering the international marketplace and staying competitive in a constantly changing environment may feel out of reach, but this conference provides knowledge and information from people who have been successful in being able to compete in a global economy.”
The deadline to register for the conference is Sept. 22. The cost is $50 for the workshops and lunch or $35 for lunch only. The conference runs from 7:30 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. Oct. 1 at the Grand Wayne Center. To register online or pay using a credit card, visit https://learn.ipfw.edu/CourseStatus.awp?~~07SBUS158. For more information or to request a brochure, contact Ola DeGabriele, the City’s international trade manager, at
(260) 481-0498
.To learn more about doing business in Asia, contact http://www.midwestUSAChina.com
Ambassador Clark T. Randt, Jr. is the longest serving United States Ambassador to the People's Republic of China. Mr. Randt was confirmed by the Senate in July 2001.
Minxin Pei is a senior associate in the China Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. His research focuses on economic reform and governance in China, U.S.-China relations, and democratization in developing countries. He is the author of From Reform to Revolution: The Demise of Communism in China and the Soviet Union and China’s Trapped Transition: The Limits of Developmental Autocracy. Pei’s research has been published in Foreign Policy, Foreign Affairs, The Financial Times, The New York Times, The Washington Post, as well as many other print and radio outlets. 
Randall Schriver is president and chief executive officer of The Project 2049 Institute, a non-profit organization that promotes international security, individual freedom and democratic institutions in the Asia-Pacific region. He is a founding partner of Armitage International LC, a Washington, DC based organization that provides multinational clients with critical support in the areas of international business development, strategic planning, and problem-solving. Mr. Schriver also serves as a senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He served as deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs from 2003 to 2005, and as chief of staff and senior policy advisor to then-Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, from 2001 to 2003. 