Press Release



Contact: Cassandra Cranston
Sr. Manager, Marketing & Communications
ccranston@cednc.org

Phone: (919) 549-7500
FAX: (919) 549-7405
www.cednc.org


Globalization 2008: Story Tips - Lenovo, Red Hat, Global Business, Technology Piracy

TIP SHEET
The Council for Entrepreneurial Development is hosting the inaugural Globalization 2008 conference, an event featuring international thought leaders and expert panelists discussing global models for businesses at all stages in high-growth industries. The event will be held on Friday, February 14, 2008, from 8A to 5P at the Embassy Suites RTP East in Cary, N.C. We’ve developed a few story ideas to aid in your coverage of globalization and Triangle-area businesses. For more information on the conference, or to arrange interviews, please contact Cassandra Cranston at ccranston@cednc.org or 919 226 0460.

Capturing Global Opportunity
The global economy is creating opportunity in North Carolina. High-tech workers in our state enjoy higher wages and more job opportunities because of international trade. Consider Lenovo. Though the ThinkPad is now manufactured in China, most of Lenovo’s R&D occurs right here in the Triangle. Deepak M. Advani, Lenovo’s chief marketing officer and senior vice president global e-commerce, will discuss Lenovo’s global strategy and how they have overcome the barriers that a global company faces.  Advani will also talk market entry strategies and address cultural differences/managing global workforce. as the featured speaker of the Council for Entrepreneurial Development’s Globalization 2008 Conference at 9A on February 14, 2008, at the Embassy Suites RTP East hotel in Cary, N.C. For more information on this topic, or to schedule an interview at the event with Mr. Advani, please contact Cassandra Cranston at ccranston@cednc.org or 919 226 0460.

Piracy V. Privacy
The Fourth Annual Business Software Alliance and IDC Global Software Piracy Study revealed that more than one-third (35 percent) of the software installed in 2006 on PCs worldwide was obtained illegally. That software piracy alone resulted in almost $40 billion in global losses. Attorneys and entrepreneurs discuss strategies for respecting privacy while protecting against piracy during a presentation called Key to Global Success: Executing an IP Strategy at the Council for Entrepreneurial Development’s Globalization 2008 Conference at from 1:15-2:30P on February 14, 2008, at the Embassy Suites RTP East hotel in Cary, N.C. Panelists include Neil Bagchi, corporate associate, with the Kennedy Covington law firm; Marshall Phelps, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel, intellectual property, for Microsoft Corp.; Chris Price, president and CEO at LaamScience; and Arti Rai, professor of law at Duke University. For more information on this topic, or to schedule an interview at the event with a panelist, please contact Cassandra Cranston at ccranston@cednc.org or 919 226 0460.

Driving Global Investment
With trade barriers falling and investment opportunities growing in developing nations and more traditional international markets, more American entrepreneurs are looking beyond America’s borders for solid business deals. In the cleantech sector alone, global venture investments rose to $1.1 billion in the first half of last year, according to a report by Ernst & Young and Dow Jones VentureOne. How can enterprising Americans take advantage of global investment opportunities? A panel of experts will offer strategies and advice for developing a framework for building great companies through international investment. Panelists include Mark Rostick, managing director of Intel Capital; Oren Cohen, chief medical and scientific officer for Quintiles Transnational Corp.; Art Pappas, managing partner at Pappas Ventures; and Terrance Philips, vice president of SVB Global. The presentation will be from 10:15-11:30A at the Council for Entrepreneurial Development’s Globalization 2008 Conference on February 14, 2008, at the Embassy Suites RTP East hotel in Cary, N.C. For more information on this topic, or to schedule an interview at the event with a panelist, please contact Cassandra Cranston at ccranston@cednc.org or 919 226 0460.

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