Kansas City, MO — The Business Technology Association’s (BTA’s; www.bta.org) Gateway to Success event, hosted by BTA Mid-America, will be held June 7-8 at the InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza in Kansas City, Missouri. Open to dealers from across the country, the event will feature: a keynote address presented by 2013 CNN Hero of the Year Chad Pregracke of Living Lands & Waters; a featured educational session presented by Dr. Neeli Bendapudi, provost, executive vice chancellor and professor of marketing at the University of Kansas; six additional educational sessions led by industry leaders; and time to network with peers and more than 30 exhibiting sponsors, including breaks between sessions, a welcoming reception and a Houston Astros versus Kansas City Royals baseball game.
Gateway to Success will begin at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, June 7, with welcoming comments and the keynote address, “From the Bottom Up,” presented by Pregracke. A break and the featured educational session, “Creating the Living Brand,” presented by Bendapudi, will follow.
A welcoming reception will be held from 6 until 7:30 p.m., giving attendees time to network with fellow dealers and exhibiting sponsors. Breaks between sessions on both days will also give attendees additional networking time.
The second day of Gateway to Success will begin at 7 a.m. on Thursday, June 8, with breakfast, followed by opening comments and the first three educational sessions: “Selling — Not Compliance — Is My Priority,” presented by Bob Goldberg, BTA; “Highly Productive Sales Professionals,” presented by Tom Callinan, Strategy Development; and “Retain Top Talent, Before It’s Too Late,” presented by Sally Brause, GreatAmerica Financial Services Corp.
Lunch will be served after Brause’s session, followed by the final three educational sessions: “Death of a Salesman: How to Sell in the Information Economy,” presented by Richard Farrell, Tangent Knowledge Systems; “Building Value in Your Business,” presented by Ed McLaughlin, Innovolt and Valderus; and “Eight Hacks of Sales Masters,” presented by Melissa D. Whitaker, Melissa Whitaker International LLC. The educational portion of the event will conclude with closing comments and exhibitor prize drawings. Dealers can also enter the BTA Events Sweepstakes during Gateway to Success.
At 5:45 p.m., buses will leave for Kauffman Stadium, where the event will wrap up from 7:15 to 10 p.m. as attendees enjoy a Houston Astros versus Kansas City Royals baseball game and dinner in a private suite.
The Gateway to Success exhibiting sponsors: ACDI, BEI Services, Carolina Wholesale, Clover Imaging Group, Continuum, DCS, ECi Software Solutions, EDA, Epson, ESP/Ametek, EverBank, Evolved Office, GreatAmerica Financial Services, HP, Innovolt, Keypoint Intelligence, Laserfiche, LMI, Muratec, OKI, Panasonic (June 8 Breakfast Sponsor), PHSI, Polek & Polek, ProcureIT (June 7 Reception Sponsor), Select Imaging, Supplies Network (June 7-8 Breaks Sponsor), Tigerpaw, TonerCycle/InkCycle, TSO Distribution, Wells Fargo and Xerox (June 8 Lunch Sponsor).
BTA members receive 2-for-1 registration to Gateway to Success. BTA member dealer registration (with a baseball game ticket) is $199, which includes the Wednesday and Thursday educational sessions; Wednesday welcoming reception; Thursday breakfast and lunch; and a baseball game ticket. Non-member registration with a baseball game ticket is $249.
Three front-runner events will be held prior to Gateway to Success. The Seat-Based Billing (SBB) Road Show, presented by Clover Imaging Group, GreatAmerica Financial Services Corp., Office Document Consulting, Print Audit and Supplies Network, will be held on June 6. This one-day learning event will arm dealers with all the necessary components they need to successfully deliver a SBB program for managed print. SBB Road Show attendees can stay for the Gateway to Success event for half price. For more information, visit www.bta.org/SBB.
On June 6-7, the National Printer Repair Network (NPRN) and Clover Imaging Group will host the NPRN/Clover CEO Summit 2017. The summit starts with a Member’s Welcome Dinner on June 6 and proceeds with a full day of activities on June 7, including executive networking and round-table exchanges. For more information, visit www.bta.org/CEOSummit.
On June 7, PathShare HR Services, a service of GreatAmerica Financial Services Corp., will present the Hiring for Top Performance Workshop to help BTA Channel dealers find top talent, build more effective teams and reduce their hiring costs. The training is based on the experience PathShare HR Services has acquired as it has successfully helped office equipment dealers hire, develop and retain top talent. For more information, visit www.bta.org/TopPerformance.
For more information on Gateway to Success, including full session descriptions and the registration form for the event, visit www.bta.org/BTAKC.
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About the Business Technology Association:
Founded in 1926, the Business Technology Association serves office technology dealerships, resellers, manufacturers, distributors and service companies. Its core members — office technology dealerships — consult, sell and service hardware, software and supplies with the goal of helping businesses maximize their investment in devices and technology. Through the association’s various educational programs, information, research, legal services, publications and guidance, BTA member dealerships are positioned to be the premier source of the office technology used by businesses throughout the United States every day. For more information on BTA, visit its Web site at www.bta.org or call (800) 505-2821. The fax number is (816) 941-4838. You may also write to: BTA, 12411 Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO 64145.
