“Innovation is doing something in a NEW way
To make life BETTER
For the PEOPLE who matter.”

Phoenix, Arizona (August 16, 2004)— Noted speaker, author and advisor to business, Joan Koerber-Walker, will present the 12:30 PM session at the Arizona Technology Expo on August 18, 2004. The topic of the presentation – Growth Through Innovation.

As the Arizona technology community continues to grow creating a culture of successful innovation will be a key factor in our success. In this session, Ms. Koerber-Walker will explore –

 The difference between invention and innovation
 How to create a culture of innovation in your organization
 Highlight 3 hot Arizona innovators

“Having spent two decades in the electronic distribution industry, I saw a lot of great products come and go. Some were wildly successful while others faded away” explained Joan Koerber-Walker. “The companies that succeeded long term understood that invention alone was not enough to create true innovation and business success. In this session, we will explore how to create a culture and environment to foster successful innovation.”

About the Insight Arizona Technology Expo:
The Insight Arizona Technology Expo is a gathering that supports the growth of the Arizona Technology Community by highlighting te strength and breadth of our technology community. The conference is being held Wednesday, August 18, 2004 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM at the Phoenix Civic Plaza – Hall D – Admission is free of charge.

About the Speaker:
As Founder and Executive Director of CorePurpose, Inc., Joan delivers sustainable results by combining the experience, skills and talents within teams to create focused business environments that maximize innovation, growth, profitability and return on investment. With over 20 years of experience in technology distribution, Joan has held a wide range of positions in Management, Marketing, Sales, and Operations. Having a track record for delivering substantial results, she develops and implements solutions to business challenges within smaller, focused organizations and within Fortune 500 multi-national corporations. She was instrumental in the development of Avnet’s ASIC/FPGA business and the launch of Avnet’s first Telesales operation. While directing the Global Supplier Contracts process for Avnet’s three operating groups (Electronics Marketing, Applied Computing and Computer Marketing), Joan worked closely with over 700 technology partners worldwide and is experienced in the challenges and the joys of working in the global business arena from cultural, operational and legal perspectives.

With a focus on matching service expectations to operational processes, Joan brings expertise in the area of industry best practices in business strategy, market development, channel design/optimization, and supply chain solutions. An accomplished speaker and member of the National Speakers Association and on the Board of Directors of NSA-Arizona, she has guest lectured at Arizona State University and Texas A&M as well as within the professional community. She is author of Working: a Management Tale of Changing Relationships in Changing Times, and co-author of the first text on electronics distribution, Connecting Resources, A Primer for Electronics Distribution, for use in advanced undergraduate courses and at the graduate level. She is currently working on her next book, Impact – Changing Challenge to Success, scheduled for publication in late 2004.

Joan holds an MBA from Arizona State University (2000) and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Delaware (1981).

About CorePurpose® :
Headquartered in Arizona, CorePurpose, Inc., a consulting and solutions company specializing in focusing companies for greater success through high impact activities that link directly to results. Together with members of the CoreAllianceSM, CorePurpose® works with companies and organizations to align internal resources to their areas focus while offering resources for mentoring, implementation and outsourcing in non-core areas or areas where additional support is required including: HR, Sales and Marketing, Operations, IT, and Finance. For more information about CorePurpose, Inc., and to view other offerings from CorePurpose Publishing visit www.CorePurpose.com.

CorePurpose® is a registered service mark of CorePurpose, Inc.

CONTACT: CorePurpose, Inc.
Joan Koerber-Walker, 480/921-3933
jkw@corepurpose.net
© CorePurpose, Inc.

Spend a day with the Workings -all three generations – as they explore what it takes to create lasting partnerships in the ever changing world of technology.

Phoenix, Arizona (August 2, 2004)— Having a great technology is not enough. In today’s world of competing technologies – the company with the best partners in taking a product to market win. But how do you create partnerships that last? Partnerships that take your product and build it into solutions that make customers want to buy?

In Working: A Management Tale of Changing Relationships in Changing Times (2004, CorePurpose Publishing, ISBN: 0-9747056-0-8, $19.95), author Joan Koerber-Walker introduces us to the Workings, their family, friends, partners, and co-workers. Everyone has gathered to celebrate the 95th birthday of patriarch and company founder Kyle C. Working. As they come together, they explore change, relationships, and what it takes to build partnerships that last generations.

Unlike more traditional business books, Working is a story. Fictional characters share their experiences and lessons with the youngest of the Working family, the third Kyle C. Working. Companionable dialogue and repartee between the characters delivers the tale’s messages about the secrets of lasting partnership and long term success.

“Having spent two decades in the electronic distribution industry, I saw a lot of great products come and go. Some were wildly successful while others faded away” explained author Joan Koerber-Walker. “The companies that succeeded long term understood that making their product accessible took partnerships with a broader network like distribution. At the same time, distributors with staying power understood that to build a lasting partnership, they had to add value to what the manufacturer had to offer. How they did it is what Working is all about.”

Working has three key messages:

1) To build a business that lasts generations you need to recognize opportunity and change. This applies both the to the company and the leaders who steer its course. One of the patriarch’s favorite sayings “when fate throws you a tow rope, grab on and enjoy the ride.” is a theme that recurs throughout the story. Each generation is given the opportunity to take the company in a new direction. In generation one – its creation. For the second generation – its expansion. As we look to the third generation – what new opportunities are on the horizon?

2) Successful business partnerships are a lot like getting married. You look around for the most attractive partner you can find. In the courting phase, you check each other out to determine the right fit. By the time you make it legal, you are setting expectations, making promises, setting goals. Over the life of your relationship, you learn to work with each other, to compromise, and to adjust so that each person is getting what they need. Like a marriage – lasting business partnerships are personal and they take thought, effort and personal attention to make them work.

3) We negotiate with people, not companies. Partnerships that last are built through a continuing series of negotiations. Companies don’t negotiate – people do. Traditional styles of win-lose or win-win negotiation tend to focus on the tally sheet between the contracting parties. Working’s message of relationship based negotiations looks at a longer horizon, providing for conflict and compromise but always placing the health of the overall relationship as the highest priority.

These are big messages but the best part is they are all wrapped up in one little book. Working is only 88 pages and you can read it cover-to-cover on a short hop from Phoenix to LA. The messages come through the characters as they share their memories and experiences with each other. It’s not just another lesson – it’s a good story. When was the last time you enjoyed reading a business book?

###

About the Book:

Working: A Management Tale of Changing Relationships in Changing Times (2004, CorePurpose Publishing, ISBN: 0-9747056-0-8, $15.95) is available at Amazon.com, Borders.com, and CorePurpose.com or by calling 480.921.3933.

About the Author:

As Founder and Executive Director of CorePurpose, Inc., Joan delivers sustainable results by combining the experience, skills and talents within teams to create focused business environments that maximize innovation, growth, profitability and return on investment. With over 20 years of experience in technology distribution, Joan has held a wide range of positions in Management, Marketing, Sales, and Operations. Having a track record for delivering substantial results, she develops and implements solutions to business challenges within smaller, focused organizations and within Fortune 500 multi-national corporations. She was instrumental in the development of Avnet’s ASIC/FPGA business and the launch of Avnet’s first Telesales operation. While directing the Global Supplier Contracts process for Avnet’s three operating groups (Electronics Marketing, Applied Computing and Computer Marketing), Joan worked closely with over 700 technology partners worldwide and is experienced in the challenges and the joys of working in the global business arena from cultural, operational and legal perspectives.

With a focus on matching service expectations to operational processes, Joan brings expertise in the area of industry best practices in business strategy, market development, channel design/optimization, and supply chain solutions. An accomplished speaker and member of the National Speakers Association and on the Board of Directors of NSA-Arizona, she has guest lectured at Arizona State University and Texas A&M as well as within the professional community. She is author of Working, and co-author of the first text on electronics distribution, Connecting Resources, A Primer for Electronics Distribution, for use in advanced undergraduate courses and at the graduate level. She is currently working on her next book, Impact – Changing Challenge to Success, scheduled for publication in late 2004.

Joan holds an MBA from Arizona State University (2000) and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Delaware (1981).

About CorePurpose Publishing:

Headquartered in Arizona, CorePurpose Publishing is a division of CorePurpose, Inc., a consulting and solutions company specializing in focusing companies for greater success through high impact activities that link directly to results. Together with members of the CoreAllianceSM, CorePurpose® works with companies and organizations to align internal resources to their areas focus while offering resources for mentoring, implementation and outsourcing in non-core areas or areas where additional support is required including: HR, Sales and Marketing, Operations, IT, and Finance. For more information about CorePurpose, Inc., and to view other offerings from CorePurpose Publishing visit www.CorePurpose.com.

CorePurpose® is a registered service mark of CorePurpose, Inc.

CONTACT: CorePurpose, Inc.
Joan Koerber-Walker, 480/921-3933 jkw@corepurpose.net

CorePurpose® is a registered service mark of CorePurpose, Inc. © CorePurpose, Inc.

“In today’s competitive business environment, few companies can afford to reach every customer on their own. Channel Partnerships— direct sales, representatives, distributors, and resellers.- are a great strategy for growing your customer base IF you pick your partners wisely” stated Joan Koerber-Walker, executive director of CorePurpose, Inc. which produces the Ready Set Grow series. “Unfortunately many companies get out of mix and miss out on growth opportunities or pay too much for the ones they have.”

On August 17, 2004, Laurie Kane Sellers of Texas A&M University will lead an interactive 4 hour workshop with local business leaders to explore:

 How to choose the right channels for your business

 What it takes to form successful channel partnerships

 And how to keep them energized and productive.

The session will be held from 7:30 AM to 12:00 noon at the Business and Industry Institute in downtown Mesa.

Laurie Kane-Sellers, MA, MBA, is a faculty member at Texas A&M University teaching Electronics Distribution Networks in the Industrial Distribution program in the College of Engineering. She combines twenty years experience at Texas Instruments, Inc in the areas of sales, marketing, management, and operations with her current responsibilities of Education Foundation Director of the National Electronic Distributors Association (NEDA). She is staff co-editor of the Review of the Electronics and Industrial Distribution Industries, the journal focused on advancing the electronic and industrial distribution industries. Holding an M.A. in Speech Communications from Texas Tech University and an MBA from Southern Methodist University (SMU), she is currently pursuing a PhD. in Human Resource Development from Texas A&M University. Her areas of research and publications include Change Theory, Adult Education, Services Models, and the Challenges of Globalization in the Distribution Industry.

Ready Set Grow, is a 12 month program bringing 12 nationally known business growth experts to the valley. The series continues throughout 2004 and is held the third Tuesday morning of the month. Attendees will have the opportunity to listen to executive experts share insights and then participate in workshops designed to apply the same concepts to their own companies. Subscriptions are offered as a series and on a single session basis.

Each program looks at a different facet of business growth strategy ranging from strategic execution to product design, customer focus and service, operations, sales, and globalization.

The program has gained support from a number of business and community sponsors including The Business Journal, the Arizona Technology Council, AZ SNAP, ASBA, The Downtown Phoenix Partnership – Copper Square, and The Business and Industry Institute at Mesa Community College.

“Workforce development is key to Arizona’s economic recovery”, said Koerber-Walker. “Ready Set Grow is designed to support workforce development at multiple levels in an organization from senior leadership to the organizations key managers and next generation leaders. It is an opportunity for employees to step up and become part of the solution and an opportunity for employers to energize and endorse key team members through investing in their professional development.”

Program details and information:

When, Where and How Much? Dates: August 17, 2004 – December 21th, 2004
Forums: 3rd Tuesday of every month
“Focus on Channels: Selling Your Product or Service”.
August 17, 2004
Time:
7:30 – 8:00 AM – Continental Breakfast
8:00—12:00PM – Forum Session
Location: Business and Industry Institute
Mesa Community College
145 North Centennial Way
Mesa, Arizona 85201

Costs

Single Sessions Pricing
Individual participant: $129 per session
Groups of 3 or more: $117 per person per session
for the Balance of the Ready/Set/Grow Series

Individual participant:
$500.00 for the balance of 2004
Groups of 3 or more: $450.00 per person

For more details and registration – visit www.CorePurpose.com

About CorePurpose, Inc.

Headquartered in Arizona, CorePurpose, Inc., is a consulting and solutions company specializing in focusing companies for greater success through high impact activities that link directly to results. Together with members of the CoreAllianceSM, CorePurpose, Inc. works with companies and organizations to align internal resources to their areas focus while offering resources for mentoring, implementation and outsourcing in non-core areas or areas where additional support is required including: HR, Sales and Marketing, Operations, IT, and Finance. For more information about CorePurpose, Inc., and to view the listing and experience of CoreAlliance Members visit: www.CorePurpose.com.

CONTACT: CorePurpose, Inc.
Joan Koerber-Walker, 480/921-3933 jkw@corepurpose.net

CorePurpose® is a registered service mark of CorePurpose, Inc.

© CorePurpose, Inc.