More than 2,000 Senior Executives from North America listened to personal insight offered by Bill Clinton, Rudolph Guiliani, Colin Powell, Michael Porter, Malcolm Gladwell and others. Viewpoints spanned three dimensions - political, academic and practical - with keynote speakers addressing the critical issues in each field in ten enlightening presentations. This was the year's most important gathering of business leaders in the world.

On June 6th and 7th more than 2,000 senior executives gathered at Chicago's Navy Pier to be a part of the most important business conference of the year: The World Business Forum. WBF is a symposium featuring ten of the most important leaders, speaking in person on topics of the utmost importance to the business community. The speakers at Chicago's event included: Bill Clinton, Rudolph Guiliani, Colin Powell, Michael Porter, Malcolm Gladwell, Michelle Peluso, Kenichi Ohmae, Liu Jiren, Bruce Chizen, Dennis Nally and Marcus Buckingham.

Forum participants gained critical insights into global financial markets, organizational transformation, strategy, management and the role of creativity in leadership, among other topics. In addition to the main presentations, participants were able to learn, share and discuss ideas on theory and practice in different areas of expertise by attending special lunches designed as unique networking opportunities. The World Business Forum combines a learning experience with outstanding opportunities for networking with top executives, thinkers, and business decision makers from all sectors of industry.

Of the 2,000 plus participants of Chicago Forum, 80% are either CEO's, presidents and/or business owners from North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific and represent the financial, communications, consumer goods, healthcare, pharmaceutical, manufacturing and consulting industries amongst others.

The World Business Forum is produced by HSM Group, an international multimedia company specializing in executive education. Founded in 1989, HSM Group has an integrated approach to executive education through the organization of forums such as the World Business Forum and Expo-Management; seminars and conferences; the publication of a business and management review called HSM Management; and the production and distribution of online management courses through HSM-education. Over the past 14 years, HSM has organized over 150 events in more than 10 countries across Europe and the Americas and is planning to expand its operations in 2004/2005.

Some of the topics covered included: peace and global prosperity, global security, strategy, marketing and innovation, crisis management and personal development. Here are brief biographies of the keynote speakers and key points of their presentations:

William Jefferson Clinton was elected President of the United States in 1992, and again in 1996-the first Democratic president to be awarded a second term in six decades. Under his leadership, the United States enjoyed the strongest economy in a generation and the longest economic expansion in U.S. history. President Clinton's core values of building community, creating opportunity, and demanding responsibility resulted in unprecedented progress for America.

Currently, President Clinton serves as Honorary Co-Chair of the Club of Madrid; as Advisory Board Co-Chair with President Nelson Mandela of the International AIDS Trust; and as Co-Chair with Senator Dole of the Families of Freedom Scholarship Fund, which was created to provide educational assistance for postsecondary study to children and spouses of those killed or permanently disabled as a result of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Most recently, President Clinton accepted the role of UN Special Envoy for Tsunami Relief.

Like other former American presidents, Clinton has engaged in a career as a public speaker on a variety of issues. In his speaking in WBF, he continued to comment on aspects of contemporary politics. One notable theme was his advocacy of multilateral solutions to problems facing the world.

Colin Powell is one of the most revered and admired men in America. He is considered one of the most respected statesmen in U.S. history. A fervent purveyor of democratic values, Powell stressed that fighting the war on terrorism is not just a military but also a diplomatic task.

Before becoming the 65th Secretary of State in 2001, General Powell served as a key aide to the Secretary of Defense and as National Security Advisor to President Reagan. He also served 35 years in the United States Army, rising to the rank of Four-Star General and serving as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. During this time he oversaw 28 crises including the Panama intervention of 1989 and Operation Desert Storm in the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

Powell is the recipient of numerous U.S. military awards, two Presidential Medals of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal. He has also received a French Legion of Honor and an honorary knighthood bestowed by H.M. Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain, among others

The New Global Environment

. National security and foreign policy:
a global or a domestic concern?
. Global Strategy: Terrorism, Energy Crisis, Poverty,
Development on the centre of the scene
. How to get from crisis and conflict to understanding
and partnering
. The power of diplomacy and how it works
. Building peace and strengthening democracy in a turbulent
world: Prospects in the Middle East
. The new role of the United States and its implications
for business

Michael Porter is considered the world greatest authority on competitive strategy and international competitiveness. He is a Harvard Business School Professor and currently heads the Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness. He has been voted the most influential, living strategist by the Strategic Management Society.

He's been a counselor and advisor to the U. S. government, numerous foreign nations, and leading U.S. and international companies, including DuPont, Procter & Gamble, Royal Dutch Shell. Porter has led the Clusters for Innovation Project and currently co-chairs the Global Competitiveness Report. Professor Porter is the author of 16 books. His books Competitive Strategy -now in its 58th printing and translated into 17 languages-, The Competitive Advantage, The Competitive Advantage of Nations and On Competition are worldwide best-sellers among executives. He has also published influential work on philanthropy, the environment, and the economic role of the inner city.

He has received several awards including the 2003 Scholarly Contributions to Management Award and the 2005 John Kenneth Galbraith Medal

How to compete through strategic leadership

. Economic foundations of competition: strategy
and superior profitability
. Understanding what business a company is
actually competing in
. Why most companies do not have a strategy
. Strategy for what? How to discover the right strategy
. The five tests of a good strategy
. Communicating, implementing and measuring a strategy:
the essential steps

Malcolm Gladwell is the author of two New York Times #1 bestsellers -first, The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make A Big Difference, and then Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking. A prolific writer, analytical thinker and business advisor, Gladwell gives audiences a perspective that is both valuable and truly unique.

In The Tipping Point, he describes how trends work and he helps companies apply this knowledge to their own business strategies. He helps organizations identify the people who are crucial to the trend process and deploy their talents strategically. Blink analyzes intuition -the kinds of judgments that are made unconsciously and instinctively -and explores how we can learn to be better at mastering the kind of instantaneous thinking that lies at the heart of successful decision-making.

An articulate and insightful speaker, he is currently a staff writer for the New Yorker magazine. More than once on the cover of important magazines, he is Number 27 on Accenture's ranking of "The Top 50 Business Gurus".

Marketing "epidemiology": how ideas, products and behavior become contagious

. Let epidemics speak: how the trend process works
and the best way to make it part of your business strategy
. The word-of-mouth life cycle: from the starting
point to sheer acceleration
. The roles of "connectors", "maven" and "salesmen"
. The stickiness factor: building memorable experiences
. How to make decisions correctly on the blink of an eye:
the intuitive manager's profile
. The power of context and the rule of 150:
how to make the most of these and other levers of change

Michelle Peluso is the CEO of Travelocity. She founded and ran the leading last-minute travel web site in North America, Site59.com, until it was acquired by Travelocity in March 2002. She was named president and chief executive officer of Travelocity in December 2003. Peluso served as senior vice president of product strategy and distribution. Here, she launched the company's fast-growing and innovative merchant hotel product and has overseen the build-out of the company's dynamic packaging engine, TotalTripSM.

Spontaneous by nature and with a distinctive entrepreneurial spirit, she was ranked #4 on The Wall Street Journal's "50 Women to Watch" list in 2004. She has been selected by Travel Agent magazine as the "2001 Technology Person of the Year" and, on several occasions, one of the "Most Powerful Women in Travel." She was also named to Fast Company's "Fast 50," an annual survey that recognizes 50 leaders, innovators, and technology pioneers.

Peluso received her master's degree in economics, philosophy, and politics from Pembroke College at Oxford University, and her bachelor's from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business.


Women in Leadership: How their strengths can apply to all business leaders

. What are women's greatest strengths and how
do they help in the workplace?
. Leading in a turnaround situation
. Instilling cultural passion in an organization
and translating it into business success
. Intelligent risk-taking to accelerate growth
. Case studies of extraordinary women leaders

Internationally known as "Mr. Strategy", Kenichi Ohmae was voted one of the world's top five Management gurus by The Economist. He has taught corporations to look beyond borders for success in globalised markets and now he warns that national governments are obsolete, more likely to stifle prosperity than to nurture it.

Born in Japan, Ohmae earned a B.S. at Waseda University, an M.S. at the Tokyo Institute of Technology and a doctorate in Nuclear Engineering at MIT. He was a partner at McKinsey & Company for 23 years. Today he is chairman of Ohmae & Associates, a strategic consulting firm that advises highly respected Japanese companies, as well as many others organizations in several countries.

He is the author of over 100 books, including the bestselling The Mind of the Strategist: The Art of Japanese Business - which he wrote before turning 30-, Triad Power, Beyond National Borders, The End of the Nation State: The Rise of Regional Economies, The Invisible Continent and The next Global Challenge.

Jiren Liu . A passionate entrepreneur, Dr. Liu founded Neusoft Group thirteen years ago and transformed it into today's leading software company and medical electronics manufacturer in the Chinese market. From the hard beginnings of the company, he learned how to face difficulty and challenges. At present Neusoft is a firm with 7,000 staff and four software parks.

Dr. Liu is a Professor and concurrently Vice President of Northeastern University and Deputy Director-General of the China Software Industry Association (CSIA). He was born in China and graduated from Northeastern University with a major in computer applications in 1980. Two years later, he received a Masters Degree and in 1987 was awarded a Ph.D.

Asia

Asia on the spot: The power of economic growth

. Understanding the rules of the new global stage:
challenges and opportunities in a borderless world
. Why wealth and power are migrating to the East
. Global economic forces, regional strength,
technological progress, and the changing role of government
. Understanding the new political architecture of Eastern Asia: China, India, Japan, and beyond
. The regional future: The emergence of region-states
as the building blocks for economic growth

Bruce Chizen is chief executive officer of Adobe Systems Inc., one of the world's largest software companies. His customer-focused vision is transforming Adobe from a desktop software business to a technology platform provider for consumers, creative professionals, and enterprises. With the recent acquisition of Macromedia, Inc., Chizen continues to evolve Adobe's market strategy while infusing it with the entrepreneurial spirit for which Macromedia was renowned. In 2005, Adobe ranked 13th in Fortune Magazine's annual report on the "100 Best Companies to Work For," and best in its industry.

Chizen started his career during the first wave of growth in the video game market. He worked in Mattel Electronics' merchandising group, helping grow it to a $500 million business until 1983, when he joined Microsoft. Four years later he became a founding senior manager at Claris Corporation. At Adobe since 1994, Chizen became CEO in December 2000. Since then Adobe's revenues have increased 70% to $2 billion, stock has grown nearly 40% and the company is #28 on the BusinessWeek 50 list of top corporate performers.

Growth & Innovation

. What Does it Take to Maintain Double Digit Growth
in a Stagnant Economy
. When, Where, and How to Innovate: Creating
a Company Vision
. How to Compete with an Industry Leader by Being a Leader
. Adobe's Global AND Community Approach to Business
. The Future Ahead: Why You Must Leverage
Digital Content and Digital Literacy Now

Rudolph Giuliani , former 107th Mayor of New York City, became an American icon in the aftermath of September 11th, 2001. Widely hailed for his calm and effective leadership in the crisis, he was named Time Magazine's Person of the Year for 2001 and was given an honorary knighthood of the British Empire by Elizabeth II in 2002. Controversial at times, he was one of the most successful mayors of New York City since Fiorello LaGuardia. In eight years, he reduced crime by 57 percent, reduced taxes by 2.3 billion and created a record 450,000 new private sector jobs.

In 1970, two years after graduating magna cum laude from New York University Law School, Giuliani joined the office of the United States Attorney. In 1981 he was named Associate Attorney General, and later appointed US Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

Limited by New York City Law to two terms as mayor, in January 2002 he founded Giuliani Partners, quickly establishing it as a leader in emergency and crisis management. His best selling book Leadership sums up the principles he champions: preparation, accountability and strong self-definition.

. The real meaning of crisis management: a crisis
as an opportunity for change
. How to manage the unexpected: from visioning
to decision making under stress
. September 11th, 2001 as a crisis management experience
. Six lessons from the field on response and preparedness
. From the immediate aftermath to recovery:
how to address the human side
. A challenge for leaders:
transforming a critical situation into an occasion of improvement

Marcus Buckingham . A subject of in-depth profiles in The New York Times, Fortune, and Fast Company, Marcus Buckingham is considered one of the world's leading authorities on employee productivity and the practices of leading and managing. Now an independent consultant, author, and speaker, during his seventeen years with The Gallup Organization, he helped lead research into the world's best leaders, managers, and workplaces. He drew on this research and used it as the basis for two bestselling books: First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Best Managers Do Differently (co-authored with Curt Coffman) and Now, Discover Your Strengths (co-authored with Donald O. Clifton). His new book, The One Thing You Need to Know focuses on what can be learned from the very few leaders who truly excelled.

Buckingham graduated from Cambridge University in 1987, with a master's degree in social and political science. He is amember of the Secretary of State's Advisory Committee on Leadership and Management.

Unleashing the talents great leaders and managers need

. What separates the great manager from the great leader
. How to create and lead high performance teams
. The two talents and the three skills you need to excel
. Driving performance towards success
. The power of scores: what gets measured gets managed
. Some insights on "the one thing you need to know"

Dennis M. Nally is the Chairman and Senior Partner of the US Firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, having been recently re-elected to serve a second term in this role. He is also a member of PwC's US Board of Partners and Principals and US Management Committee. Since joining the Firm in 1974, Mr. Nally has had extensive experience serving large multinational clients in a variety of industries, principally focusing on the technology market, including computers and life sciences.

A frequent speaker and guest lecturer on issues affecting the accounting profession and the US capital markets, he is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the New York State Society of CPAs, the US Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, The Carnegie Hall Society Board of Trustees, and the Partnership for New York City Board of Directors. Mr. Nally is a graduate of Western Michigan University.

. The value of integrity, trust, and vision
. How do you ensure that people do the right thing?
. Do we need stronger rules or stronger principles?
. How can you encourage appropriate risk-taking and business judgments that allow an organization to grow and create
. How do we confront a world that didn't exist before?