April 24-27, 2002
Orlando Renaissance Resort
Orlando, Florida
Program Chairman: William L. Wright, CCE
Program Schedule
Prices
Continuing Education Credits
Cancellation Policy
Speakers
Sponsors
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EXHIBITORS: View 2002 Exposition Prospectus
Convention Program
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24
8:30 - 11:30 a.m.
Board of Directors Meeting
5:30 - 6:00 p.m.
First Timers Reception with Suppliers
6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Grand Opening Reception
THURSDAY, APRIL 25
8:00 - 8:30 a.m.
Coffee
8:30 - 9:30 a.m.
Annual Meeting of Members
9:30 - 10:30 a.m.
General Session: Marketing Through Personalization
Daniel E. Buchanan
We’ll take a fresh look at consumer attitudes toward the funeral, how those attitudes have changed, and how these changing attitudes should be addressed as you market your position for the future. Learn how to create personal, unique and meaningful funeral experiences for the families you serve.
10:30 - 11:00 a.m.
General Session Hot Topics/New Products
11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Lunch in the Exposition
2:00 - 5:00 p.m.
BREAKOUT WORKSHOP I: Maintenance and Magic Tom Van Buskirk, CCE, Tom Smith, Andrea Vittum, CCE
Long-time veterans of cemetery management will share a wide variety of grounds maintenance and operational issues. You will learn:
- Why change is an important component of continuous improvement within our parks.
- How "Horticulture Magic" can help beautify your cemetery, cut your costs, get the most of your employees and make your visitors want to stay forever.
- How to buy it right the first time - lessons learned when purchasing equipment.
2:00 - 5:00 p.m.
BREAKOUT WORKSHOP II
2:00 - 2:30 p.m.
II-A: Financing Funeral Homes
Hank Nelly
In the market for a new funeral home? Ready to invest in some expansions or improvements to your existing property? We’ll address:
- Loan underwriting based upon historical operating cash flow, not value of assets.
- Review of historical financial statements and market share/funeral volume trends.
- Acceptable "adjustments" to historical income statements.
- "Normalized" EBITDA and its relationship to annual debt service.
- EBITDA to debt service ratios and acquisition/refinancing multiples.
2:30 - 3:15 p.m.
II-B: How Do You Find Them and Where Do You Look?
Gregg Williamson, Ben Coleman, Arlie Davenport
Recruiting talented staff is one of our industry’s biggest challenges. This session will be packed with tried-and-true basics as well as new techniques that produce results.
3:15 - 4:15 p.m.
II-C: Meeting the Challenge of Today's Information-Minded Cremation Culture
B. David Daly, CCFE
Cremation offers many challenges and rewards for those who embrace the opportunity to service this market. Join Dave Daly as he shares some of his personal experiences and best practices in reaching these information-seeking consumers.
4:15 - 5:00 p.m.
II-D: Survivors: The Weakest Links - Dealing with Dysfunctional Families
Bob Fells, John Welshons, Donna Campbell
This innovative role play will feature a "dysfunctional family" along with various advocates explaining how to handle the legal and emotional issues surrounding them. How do you deal with family members who disagree on disposition options? What do you do when broken families refuse to communicate and work together? Come find out!
5:00 - 7:30 p.m.
Reception in the Exposition
FRIDAY, APRIL 26
7:00 - 8:00 a.m.
Prayer Breakfast: God, Inc.: Incorporating Spiritual Values Into Your Job (ticket required)
Join Gary O'Sullivan and other industry speakers for breakfast and a lively discussion on how to apply Sunday school lessons to your work week and prosper professionally.
8:00 - 8:30 a.m.
Coffee
8:30 - 9:30 a.m.
General Session: The Great Debate II Paul Elvig vs. Thomas Lynch
Great Debate I got rave reviews, and this year’s debate is sure to prove even more entertaining and informative as ICFA Secretary Paul Elvig squares off with well-known funeral director and author Thomas Lynch on the Pros and Cons of Preneed.
9:30 - 10:20 a.m.
General Session: Who’s in Charge of Your Reputation? Darin B. Drabing
The adage, "People are your most important asset" is wrong. The right people are your most important asset. Discover the secrets to recruiting, hiring, training and motivating employees who will build your organization’s reputation and fulfill its mission of service.
10:20 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Brunch in the Exposition
1:15 - 3:15 p.m.
General Session: Consumer Trends in Marketing
Alan Creedy
We’ll examine current consumer trends and how they impact the quality and styles of the cemetery and funeral industry. We’ll look at case studies from other industries that parallel ours. You are guaranteed to walk away with ideas you can use now in your own operation.
3:15 - 4:15 p.m.
General Session: Increasing Revenue Through Alternative Distribution Channels Moderator: Robert A. Gordon Jr., CCE. Speakers: Douglas Gober and Jeff Kidwiler, CCE
We've all heard "If you do the same thing you've always done, you'll get the same results you've always gotten." In this fast-paced session, our panel will review the highs and lows of new distribution channels for reaching customers. Their insights will help you make better decisions when deciding if or how to open a storefront of bricks and mortar or bits and bytes.
4:15 - 5:30 p.m.
Organizational Board of Directors Meeting
SATURDAY, APRIL 27
8:00 a.m.
Coffee
8:30 - 10:00 a.m.
General Session: The Regulatory Uproar - Are You Ready?
Don't miss this panel discussion on how to handle the regulatory and public relations challenges facing our industry following recent scandals. Among our featured guests will be FTC Attorney Myra Howard speaking on "Using Funeral Rule Test Shoppers: Fair Play or Sting?" and Florida Bureau of Funeral and Cemetery Services Bureau Chief Diana Evans offering a state regulator's perspective on "Lessons Learned From the Recent Scandals."
10:00 - 10:15 a.m.
Break
10:15 - 11:15 a.m.
General Session: The Power of an Internal Partnership Mentality Gary O’Sullivan, CCE
The power of a Partnership Mentality can help a company gain tremendous synergy while becoming more effective and efficient. During this dynamic presentation you will learn how to create, promote and drive this invisible force.
11:15am - 12:15 p.m.
General Session: How to Gain and Retain Market Share William B. Robinson
We’ll address why market share is important in this industry and review techniques for growing and retaining market share. In addition, we’ll look at emerging trends seen from Fortis Family’s perspective that will affect the independent funeral director and your business plans in the future.
6:00 p.m.
Closing Reception and Dinner
Prices
Registration fees are as follows:
- ICFA Member: $375 before March 20
- ICFA Member: $425 after March 20
- Non-Member: $520
- One-Day: $130
- Spouse: $240
Continuing Education Credits
Funeral directors may earn up to 13 continuing education credits at the conference, pending state credit awards. CE Attendance Certificates will be available at the ICFA on-site registration desk.
Cancellation Policy
Registrants who cancel their registration by March 20, 2002, will receive refunds. All cancellations must be in writing and will be subject to a $50 per peson processing fee. Cancellations made after March 20, 2002, will not be refunded.
Refunds for ticketed events will be offered if the cancellation request is received in writing at ICFA headquarters by March 20, 2002, less a $5 processing fee per ticket. No refunds will be offered after this date.
For more information, call the ICFA Meetings Department at 1-800-645-7700
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