2010 LPA Spring Meeting

May 3-4, 2010
Hyatt at Penn's Landing, Philadelphia, PA 

Winning at New Products:
Get Maximum Productivity from Your R&D Spending
Dr. Robert Cooper
Some new products are big winners, far exceeding expectations in terms of sales, profits and market share. Discover their winning secrets. Robert Cooper outlines the 10 keys to success – the ten most important factors that lead to new product profitability, based his extensive research investigations. From his keynote talk, members found out how to: develop unique superior products with a compelling customer proposition; consistently pick winning new product projects for development; build in the voice-of-the customer and do the right front-end homework; plan the launch effectively; get sharp, early fact-based product definition to avoid scope creep and unstable specs;build in the global dimension through “glocal” product development; measure performance – use the right metrics; Cooper then pulls all these and other success drivers together with a quick outline of his Stage-Gate process, a game-plan or playbook for driving new product projects from idea to successful launch.

Dr. Robert G. Cooper is one of the most influential innovation thought leaders in the business world today. He pioneered the original research that led to many groundbreaking discoveries including the Stage-Gate® Idea-to-Launch process. Now implemented by almost 80% of North American companies, it is considered to be one of the most important discoveries in the field of innovation management. Cooper is also a noted author and consultant to Fortune 500 companies and Professor Emeritus, President of the Product Development Institute, Distinguished Research Fellow, Penn State University. Click HERE to see a video of Robert Cooper.

                    STAND OUT! Selling from a Position of POWER
Larry Mersereau, CTC
Why should I buy from you? It’s the unspoken question on every prospective customer’s mind. You’d better answer it in a few succinct, well-chosen words or you’re not even going to be in the game. (Hey, you think the prospect is going to come up with a good answer on their own?) From now on, your marketing strategies and sales conversations will position you as the ideal supplier for your prime prospects. Whether you’re a young gun, a road veteran, or a seasoned executive, you have to differentiate your company, your products and yourself from the other options (live and online) that your prospects have to choose from. This program gave members strategies and tactics they could use immediately to make it happen. Smart sales and marketing leaders know who to turn to for the information and ideas they need to grow their organizations: Larry Mersereau, CTC. Niched as a business growth expert, he has authored four books on the topic and addresses dozens of business audiences every year. Click HERE  to see a video of Larry Mersereau.
 

2010 North American Survey of Laboratory Purchasing Trends Survey Review
K.C. Warawa, KC Associates

The North American Survey of Laboratory Purchasing Trends Survey has been conducted seven times for the LPA since 2002 by K.C. Associates.  This year’s survey was co-sponsored by the Association for Laboratory Automation.    

The detailed survey covers nine product categories (laboratory automation was added this year) and covers capital & non-capital equipment budgets, workload & personnel changes, outsourcing of specific functions, and other key questions on future spending. The 2010 survey also contains detailed and insightful information on the impact of the economy and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) on the lab.  With the downturn in the economy and markets, it is important for the manufacturers and distributors of laboratory products to understand what is happening in the laboratory.  The survey results from the U.S. and Canada were discussed concerning spending in all product categories compared to previous years’ results.  In addition KC Warawa shared the results of several other surveys that they have conducted regarding the lab industry.
 
Motivational Ethics: Positive Choices for Business Success
Chuck Gallagher
Have you ever been caught up in the vicious cycle of wanting more? If you have ever thought that what you have is not good enough, that you want more, that you are insatiable, then this speech was the eye opener that would stop you in your tracks and change your life forever. In an unusually authentic style, Chuck Gallagher brought home the consequences of the unethical decisions he has made in his attempts to build the great American dream for him and his family. It was a dramatic story filled with success and failure, ethics and illusions, and consequences and choices. Participants learned about: life's illusions and how to gain greater awareness of these illusions; what success really is, and how they can gain real success in their lives; the impact of life's choices, and how that affects your performance, both personally and professionally.

Chuck Gallagher is a sales and marketing business executive, author, and professional speaker from humble beginnings.  From being raised by a single parent in "the projects" to leading a $40+ million sales region with 125 sales representatives, Gallagher understands the power of choice and how to create success.  In the middle of a rising career, Gallagher lost everything because he made some bad choices. He shares with his audiences his life journey, the consequences of his unethical choices, and how life gives you second chances when you make the right choices.  Click HERE to see a video of Chuck Gallagher.