2014 Chamber Minority Business Conference 9/16/14

ONLINE REGISTRATION FOR THIS EVENT IS NOW CLOSED. THERE WILL BE ONSITE REGISTRATION. MEMBERS $60, NONMEMBERS $70, LUNCH ONLY $25.



Join us for the 2014 Chamber Minority Business Conference. The annual theme of our conference is Business Growth Through Connections. We believe this event serves as a catalyst in growing viable, sustainable businesses in the greater Charlottesville community.

WE THANK THE FOLLOWING SPONSORS FOR THEIR SUPPORT:
GOLD: Branch Banking & Trust (BB&T)
SILVER: Allison Partners, Blue Ridge Bank, Community Investment Collaborative
BRONZE: JF Bell Funeral Home, MichieHamlett
MEDIA PARTNERS: Charlottesville Newsplex, The Daily Progress

The conference agenda:

Gregory Fairchild is the E. Thayer Bigelow Associate Professor of Business Administration at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business. Fairchild serves as an academic director for Darden's Institute for Business in Society (IBiS). He teaches strategic management, entrepreneurship and ethics in Darden’s MBA and Executive Education programs. He has received a number of awards for teaching excellence at the Darden School. 

His research is likewise renowned, as he was recently the lead investigator studying business models and public policy issues in the field of community development finance, an initiative supported by a three-year $850,000 grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Fairchild was named one of five high impact research professors, and the sole scholar focused in entrepreneurship by the Financial Times in 2010. In 2009, he received a faculty Pioneer Award presented by the Aspen Institute’s Center for Business Education for his leadership and risk taking in integrating ethical, environmental and social issues into the MBA curriculum. In 2011, he was the only academic named as one of "25 Virginians to watch" by Virginia Business Magazine. In 2012, Fairchild was named one of the Top Ten Business School Professors in the World by CNN/Fortune and one of the 50 Best Business School Professors by Poets & Quants. His multidisciplinary work has been cited by Inc. Magazine, The Economist, National Public Radio (NPR), USA Today, New York Times and the Washington Post, among others. 

Fairchild worked in marketing positions for such industry leaders as Kraft General Foods, Procter & Gamble and Saks Fifth Avenue before embarking on his doctoral studies. Fairchild serves on the Virginia Retirement Service (VRS), the Commonwealth's public pension fund. In addition to his teaching and research, he is a consultant to corporations, nonprofits and governmental agencies. 

Fairchild and his wife, Tierney Temple Fairchild (D '94) are the founders of Resilience Education, an organization committed to providing high quality Socratic education to those that might not otherwise afford it (www.Resilience-Education.org).  This is the conduit through which the Darden Prison Program is administered, among other initiatives. 

1. The Importance of Failure in Success
2. Selling to the Government (City, County. Will also include University of Virginia)
3. Referring Your Way to Success
4. Where Do We Go From Here? And What Does It Take To Get There?
5. So, You're Ready to Start a Business?

SPEED NETWORKING: 
Bring lots of business cards to exchange with other conference attendees as you share your 1-minute elevator pitch at the ever-popular speed networking event.

GOING UP! ELEVATOR PITCH COMPETITION:
Bring your best business pitch and go head-to-head with fellow attendees in this exhilarating, high-stakes competition. Only 10 slots are available so you must register to participate. Prizes will be awarded.

EXHIBITORS:
Attendees will have an opportunity to visit with businesses/organizations showcasing their products and services.

A continental breakfast and lunch is included in your registration.

To view photos from our 2013 conference, click here.