Governor's Small Business Forum 2017

Agenda

9:30am: Registration and Networking Breakfast

10:15am: Welcome 

• Senator Don Huffines
• Aaron Demerson, Director, Employer Initiatives Texas Workforce        Commission
• Amber Gosser, Business Services Director, Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County

11:00am: Small to Significant: A panel discussion by CEOs from varied backgrounds who will share their experiences of growing their businesses from small enterprises to companies of significance.

• Suhas Naik, Partner, Sava Holdings Ltd.
• Betty Manetta, President & CEO, Argent Associates Inc.
• Prabhu Patil, CEO, Prolim Global Corporation
• Keith Britton, President, Iconic Consulting Group Inc.
• Moderator: Dr. Rajiv Shah, Professor, JSOM, UT Dallas

12:00pm: Governor's Small Business Awards & Luncheon

• "Selling is Serving: How our perceptions of who sells and how they do it are holding us back" by Bob Sanders, CEO at AXIOM Sales Force Development, LLC

Presentation of Governor's Small Business Awards

1:00pm: Enabling Small Business Development Through Technology: A  panel discussion among tech entrepreneurs who enhance small business development through their products and services.

• Sachin Bakhai, Founder & CEO, EZlytix
• Craig Lewis, Founder & CEO, GigWage.com
• Alok Tyagi, Partner, Fortium Partners
• Moderator: Chris Bhatti, Assistant Dean, Alumni Relations, Erik Jonsson School of Engineering, UT Dallas

2:00pm: Identifying Preliminary Growth Opportunities: A panel discussion by representatives of Governmental Entities, Multinational Corporations and other large organizations, with procurement opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses.

• Greg Spoon, Vice President of Procurement & Materials Management, DFW Airport
• Mari Phonasa, Procurement Manager, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
• Mike Vilello, National Manager, Procurement Operations, Toyota North America
• Oliver Turman, Director, Supplier Diversity, AT&T
• Hershel Becker, Chief Procurement Officer, Texas Department of Information Resources
• Moderator: Mahesh Shetty, Chairman, US India Chamber of Commerce DFW

3:30pm: Closing Remarks

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Sponsorship Details

Small Business Award Nomination Document

GRAND SPONSOR

Governor's Office

OTHER SPONSORS

DFW International Airport

UNT System

Prudent Technologies & Consulting 

Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses (GS10KB)

Bill J. Priest Small Business Innovation Center

Naveen Jindal Institute of Indo American Business Studies, UT Dallas

UT Dallas Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science

Lawson Travel

Texas Association of Business (TAB)

Workflow Products LLC

Sunil Maini CPA, PC

SurveyLocal

PARTNERING STATE AGENCIES

Governors's Office

Texas Workforce Commission

Texas Department of Motor Vehicles

Texas Department of Criminal Justice

Texas Department of Insurance

Texas Department of Transportation

Texas Department of Information Resources

University of Arlington Veterans Business Outreach Center

Cross Timbers Procurement Technical Assistance Center

COLLABORATING ORGANIZATIONS

US Small Business Administration (US SBA)

TiE Dallas

Yeti (Nepali) Chamber of Commerce

Metrocrest Chamber of Commerce

Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science at UT Dallas

Women's Business Council Southwest (WBCSW)

IIT Alumni of North Texas

Launch DFW

DFW Minority Supplier Development Council Inc. (DFWMSDC)

North Texas District Export Council

US Chamber of Commerce

Regional Hispanic Contractors Association

 Regional Women's Chamber of North Texas

MEDIA PARTNER

KERA

Dallas Business Journal

Dallas Morning News

SOUTH ASIAN MEDIA PARTNER

FunAsiA

SOCIAL MEDIA PARTNERS

iAsia TV

Desiplaza TV