Online registration is now available for Louisiana Looking Up 2008. The regisration form link, with instructions is below in the section labeled 'Registration'
The Flores MBA Alumni Association - Louisiana Chapter will be hosting
Louisiana Looking Up 2008
on Thursday, September 25, 2008. This is the fifth
year for an event which will accentuate Louisiana's
positive business news,
serve as a venue to exchange
business ideas, and provide
a premier networking opportunity.
This year's event will be
held at Lod Cook Alumni Center from
1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
A reception will be held in the lobby of the Lod Cook Alumni Center from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Agenda
Louisiana Looking Up 2008
Celebration of Entrepreneurship in Louisiana
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Date: |
Thursday, September 25, 2008 |
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Time: |
1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
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Location: |
The Lod Cook Alumni Center
3838 West Lakeshore Drive
Baton Rouge, LA 70808
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Cost: |
$75.00
$50.00 Flores MBA Alumni Association Members
Flores MBA Students
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Contact: |
Troy Prevot
Flores MBA Alumni Association - Louisiana Chapter
Vice President for Fundraising
llu@lsu.edu
Flores MBA Alumni Association -
c/o Troy Prevot, Chair - Louisiana Looking Up
242 Shady Lake Place West
Baton Rouge, LA 70810-342
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Public invited to attend.
For sponsorship information, please contact Troy Prevot at llu@lsu.edu.
Registration
Registration for Louisiana Looking Up 2008 is available. You will need to complete the registration form first, where you will be prompted for payment options. If you are paying by credit card, you will be sent to the Louisiana Looking Up PayPal site. If you choose to pay by check, you can print the regisration with the mailing instructions once you have completed the first form.
Seats will be reseverd when payment is recieved.
REGISTER FOR LOUISIANA LOOKING UP 2008
Past Louisiana Looking Up Events
The Lod Cook Alumni Center
Directions - http://www.lsualumni.org/about/mapdirections.htm
The Cook Hotel -http://www.thecookhotel.com/
Moderator:
Dan S. Borne'
President
LA Chemical Association (Baton Rouge)
Dan Borné is the president of the Louisiana Chemical Association, which represents the interests of
nearly 70 chemical manufacturing companies that operate at over 90 locations statewide. Borné is also
the president of the Louisiana Chemical Industry Alliance, a partnership of Louisiana’s chemical plants
and hundreds of their suppliers, contractors, and vendors.
Additionally, Borné has served previously as vice president of Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical
Corporation, worked in television news and sports, and held positions for various politicians, including
three U.S. Senators and one governor. Borné is the public address announcer at LSU’s Tiger Stadium for
football games and the Pete Maravich Assembly Center for men’s basketball games. |
Opening Welcome:
Eli Jones
Dean
E. J. Ourso College of Business
Eli Jones began his tenure at LSU as the dean of the E. J. Ourso College of Business on July 1, 2008. He
holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism, an M.B.A., and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. Previously, Jones
served as executive director of the Sales Excellence Institute and the Program for Excellence in Selling at
the University of Houston.
Jones has also taught sales and sales management at the undergraduate and MBA levels and a doctoral seminar in marketing strategy at the University of Houston. Additionally, he taught leadership, sales
strategies, and customer relationship management to senior- and mid-level executives in China, Dubai,
France, India, Malaysia, Mexico, Trinidad, the United Kingdom, and in the United States. He has won 10
Excellence in Teaching Awards at the college, university, national, and international levels.
In addition to publishing 30 articles in major marketing and management journals, Jones has co-authored
two books, serves on four editorial review boards, and is a member of the board of directors of Administaff. |
Special guest speakers:
Michael V. Martin
Chancellor
Louisiana State Univeristy
Dr. Michael V. Martin assumed the chancellorship of Louisiana State University and A&M College on August 1, 2008. Prior to his appointment as LSU’s eighth chancellor, Dr. Martin established a distinguished career in higher education, serving most recently as president of New Mexico State University.
Before arriving at NMSU in 2004, Dr. Martin served for six years as vice president for agriculture and natural resources at the University of Florida, leading the university's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences with more than 3,000 employees statewide. He was elevated to senior vice president of the University of Florida shortly before being selected as NMSU's president. Previously, he was vice president for agricultural policy and the dean of the College of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences at the University of Minnesota. He began his academic career at Oregon State University as a faculty member in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics.
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Steven Moret
Secretary
LA Economic Development (Baton Rouge)
Prior to being appointed by Governor Bobby Jindal as secretary of Louisiana Economic Development
in 2008, Stephen Moret served as president and CEO of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce
(BRAC). Under Moret’s leadership from 2004-07, BRAC became a regional economic development
organization of national caliber. Revenues tripled during Moret’s tenure following the launch of “The
Campaign for a Greater Baton Rouge,” a five-year, $15 million economic development initiative for the
nine-parish capital region.
Moret’s other professional endeavors include working as a management consultant with McKinsey
& Company, a leading global consultancy serving senior executives of Fortune 500 companies and large
public sector organizations. Previously, he was a project supervisor with Trinity Consultants, where he
advised large industrial facilities in Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, and California on environmental issues
related to major plant expansions. Moret also served as an assistant to the LSU Chancellor, an independent
consultant to Harvard University, and a Public Policy Fellow with the Public Affairs Research Council of
Louisiana (PAR). |
Dennis Blunt
Partner, Phelps Dunbar and
President, 100 Black Men (Baton Rouge)
As a partner in the regional commercial litigation practice group in the Baton Rouge office of Phelps
Dunbar, Dennis Blunt has represented clients across a wide spectrum of industries and has extensive trial
experience in matters involving corporate governance. His practice focuses on business disputes, including
business torts and insurance company solvency and regulations.
Blunt holds the “AV” rating from Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, which is the highest possible rating
for legal ability and ethical standards. In February of 2007, Blunt was named one of the most influential
people in the City of Baton Rouge by Capital Assets IV: The Power Book of The Greater Baton Rouge
Business Report. |
Speakers:
Lee Michael Berg
President and CEO
Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry (Baton Rouge)
After gaining experience in the Fine Jewelry Division of Zale Corporation, Lee Michael Berg opened his
first retail jewelry location in The Mall at Cortana in Baton Rouge. Lee Michaels specializes in the finest
gems, timepieces, and giftware by the world’s most distinguished designers and craftspeople. The Greater
Baton Rouge Business Report named Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry its Company of the Year in 1991 for
businesses with 26-99 employees. The company today employs more than 150 people combined in its eight
stores, which are located in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
Berg believes in building the community through philanthropic efforts. He is a member of the board of
directors of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, Crime Stoppers, and a
member of the LSU E. J. Ourso College of Business Dean’s Advisory Council. Local recognitions for Berg
include the Baton Rouge Volunteer Activist Award, the Business in the Arts Award, and the Louisiana Entrepreneur of the Year Award in Retailing.
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Tom Cox
President and CEO
Golfballs.com (Lafayette)
A graduate of the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Tom Cox co-founded Einstein Digital Media, a Web
development firm that grew into the second largest in Louisiana prior to being sold to Brightstar
Technology Group in 1997.
Utilizing his previous experience as a country club manager and executive director of a nationwide PGA
Tour golf event, Cox co-founded Golfballs.com in 1995. This multi-channel retailer of golf equipment, custom
imprinted golf balls, and embroidered golf apparel posted revenues of $9 million in 2007.
Cox is also a member of the editorial board of Internet Retailer Magazine, the premier publication for
businesses that sell on the Internet. In addition to being a commissioner with the Lafayette Economic
Development Authority and the former chairman of the Louisiana Workforce Commission, Cox has been
named to the Chase Top 40 Under 40 list for the Lafayette area and the Young Entrepreneur of the Year.
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Dwayne G. Honore
President
D. Honore Construction (Baton Rouge)
Dwayne Honore, a native of Baton Rouge, was raised in a family widely recognized for its knowledge and
expertise in the commercial construction industry. At age 18, he became a 25% owner of Harvey Honore
Construction Company Inc., which was started by his father in 1957. After completing projects for Harrah’s
Casino, the U.S. Postal Service, the state of Louisiana, and numerous private owners, Honore founded
D. Honore Construction in 1998.
D. Honore Construction Inc. has successfully completed projects for Folgers Coffee, BREC, Wells Fargo, and
other well-established businesses. Honore is associated with various organizations in Louisiana, including
the Better Business Bureau, Young Entrepreneur’s Organization, Rotary Club, and Southside YMCA. |
 
Steve and Cindy Kuhnau
President/CEO and Vice President
Smoothie King (Covington)
Steve Kuhnau is the co-founder, president, and chief executive officer of Smoothie King. As a young man,
Kuhnau fought food allergies, which led him to develop the first nutritional smoothie in 1967. Later,
while stationed at Fort Sam Houston, Texas and serving as a nurse at Brooks General Hospital, he learned
more about nutrition and its effects on the body.
In 1973, Kuhnau opened Town & Country Health Foods in Kenner, Louisiana, where he served the first
Smoothie King smoothies. It did not take long for Kuhnau, and his wife and business partner Cindy, to
realize how popular their smoothies were. Their passion for healthy living continued to be enhanced as
Smoothie King was later incorporated and became one of the fastest growing franchises in America
under Kuhnaus’ direction with 380 locations. |
Janice Harvey Pellar
President
EMCO (Baton Rouge)
Janice Harvey Pellar is the president and owner of EMCO Technologies, a company founded by her late
father in 1962. EMCO has brought the latest in communication, information technology, and emergency
notification to the marketplace in effective and innovative ways, receiving the Motorola Pinnacle Award
for outstanding sales for eight years.
Pellar has served in all areas of EMCO, which now has locations in 11 states and approximately 450
employees. She also serves as a board member of Capital Area United Way, Rotary of Baton Rouge, and
Carter Chambers LLC. Pellar served on the Motorola MSS Advisory Council from 1990–1993 and was
later appointed to the National Motorola Problem Resolution Council to represent the Southeast Region. |
Manuel J. Perez de la Mesa
President and CEO
Pool Corporation. (Covington)
Manuel Perez de la Mesa has been chief executive officer of SCP Pool Corporation (POOL) since May
2001 and has served as its president since February 1999. POOL is the world’s largest wholesale distributor
of swimming pool supplies and related equipment. Established in 1993, POOL has grown to over 280
sales centers in North America and Europe, through which it distributes more than 100,000 national
brand and private label products to over 70,000 customers.
Prior to joining POOL, Perez de la Mesa worked with Watsco Inc., Fresh Del Monte Produce B.V., IBM
Corporation, and Sea-Land Service Inc. in various general, financial, and other management positions. |
David R. Voelker
Owner
Frantzen, Voelker and Conway Investments, LLC (New Orleans)
David R. Voelker has been actively investing in emerging as well as mature companies for the past 25 years.
Voelker has successfully grown his business ventures in various industries such as oil & gas exploration,
technology, and real estate development. Some of Voelker’s business ventures include Summit Holding
LLC, FV Diversified LLC, Stone Energy Corporation, and
Prescient Technologies, LLC.
Additionally, Voelker has contributed to his community and state through founding and serving on
numerous non-profit organizations, including the UNO Foundation, Touro Infirmary, New Orleans Business
Council, and the National World War II Museum.
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Wendy Osborn Luedtke
Director, Alumni and External Relations
LSU E. J. Ourso College of Business
225-578-8865
E-mail: wendy@lsu.edu
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