FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 3, 2006
Contact: Michael Corby
904.632.3310

Florida Community College sponsoring “Excellence Edge” teleconference
Global business leaders Tom Peters, Ken Blanchard and Marcus Buckingham provide strategies for creating extraordinary results April 26

Florida Community College at Jacksonville is sponsoring a coast-to-coast teleconference featuring three internationally renowned business authors and experts. The live teleconference will be held at the Radisson Riverwalk on April 26, from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. (EDT).

“The Excellence Edge: New Strategies for Creating Extraordinary Results” features live satellite presentations by international best-selling business writers and innovators Tom Peters (In Search of Excellence), Ken Blanchard (The One Minute Manager) and Marcus Buckingham (First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Best Managers Do Differently).

The speakers will present to a live audience in a separate location, offering their best advice on turning companies, leaders and employees into models of excellence, in talent, creativity and productivity. The program qualifies for CEU credits through the International Association for Continuing Education Training.

The teleconference is part of the LumaCore Luminary Series, presenters of the most highly regarded business leaders, in conjunction with 100 colleges and universities across the nation. Registration starts at $249 per attendee (up to eight) with discounts for larger groups. To register and arrange for CEU credits, call 800.289.0051.

Speaker biographies

Tom Peters, Ph.D.

Tom Peters has spent the majority of his life dissecting and studying economic successes and failures. He’s found that everything takes a back seat to innovation and has authored many of the most widely read business books on the subject in the world, including In Search of Excellence, A Passion for Excellence, Thriving on Chaos, Liberation Management and now, Re-imagine! Business Excellence in a Disruptive Age. Fortune magazine likens Tom Peters to Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman and H.L. Mencken. The 2004 Bloomsbury Press book Movers and Shakers said, “Tom has probably done more than anyone else to shift the debate on management from the confines of the boardroom and academia.”

Ken Blanchard, Ph.D.

Few leadership figures have impacted the day-to-day management of people and organizations more than Ken Blanchard. A prominent, sought-after author, speaker, and business consultant, Blanchard is universally characterized as one of the most insightful, powerful and compassionate people in business today. Blanchard is the only author to have four books on BusinessWeek magazine’s Best-Seller List at one time (The One Minute Manager, Raving Fans, Empowerment Takes More Than a Minute and Everyone’s a Coach ). Blanchard has written many other best-sellers including Gung Ho! and High Five! As chairman of The Ken Blanchard Companies, a full-service management consulting and training company, his principles have helped businesses around the world improve customer service, raise employee morale and boost the bottom line.

Marcus Buckingham

During his 17 years with The Gallup Organization, Marcus Buckingham helped lead research on the world’s best leaders, managers and workplaces. That research led to a unique understanding of how to engage today’s workforce. It was also the basis for two bestselling books: First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Best Managers Do Differently and Now, Discover Your Strengths. His latest book, The One Thing You Need to Know, offers solid insights into innovative thinking and real leadership, the hallmarks of his expertise. Buckingham is considered one of the world’s leading authorities on employee productivity and the practices of leading and managing with excellence. Buckingham was appointed as a member of the U.S. Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on Leadership and Management.