CoBank presents its 2012 Pacific West Customer Meeting

 In conjunction with the Agricultural Council of California

Challenge and Opportunity for Rural America

An Outstanding Program

CoBank’s 2012 Pacific West Customer Meeting will feature presentations from leading experts on the economy, public policy and business management. Our program is designed to give directors and managers valuable knowledge, insight and information they can use every day in both their business and personal lives.

Speakers

Bob Engel ~ President & Chief Executive Officer, CoBank
Charles Fishman ~ Award-winning Journalist and Author
Doug Lipp ~ Former Head of Training, Walt Disney Company
Marci Rossell ~ Former Chief Economist, CNBC
Bill Walton ~ Retired NBA Player and Sportscaster

What you will learn

• Key trends and dynamics that are shaping the U.S. and global economies
• Lessons on character and leadership from an NBA legend
• An examination of public water policy
• Tips on leadership, teamwork and service from a top Disney executive
• Updates on CoBank’s business and financial performance

Who will benefit

We welcome managers and directors of all CoBank customer and partner organizations, including:

• Agricultural cooperatives and other agribusiness enterprises
• Rural electric cooperatives
• Rural water companies
• Rural communications service providers
• Farm Credit System banks and associations

Additional Information

We are pleased to hold this meeting in conjunction with the Agricultural Council of California (ACC) Annual Meeting. There is no charge to attend CoBank’s conference beyond your travel and hotel expenses; however, registration fees are required to attend the ACC meeting. Please click on the registration tab to access the joint ACC and CoBank online registration site.

Be sure to make your hotel reservation as soon as possible to ensure availability. Please click on the hotel tab for additional information on making your hotel reservation.

For further information, contact CoBank’s Corporate Communications Division at 303-740-6456 or by email at corp.comm@cobank.com.

Dress code for this meeting is business casual. You may wish to wear a jacket for dinner, but ties are not required.

Registration

Because space is limited, we encourage invitees to register as soon as possible for CoBank's 2012 Pacific West Customer Meeting and ACC Annual Meeting. To register, please use this link to the CoBank and ACC joint Online Registration Form. Simply fill in the requested personal information and complete the agenda page by selecting the events in which you plan to participate.

There are no charges to attend CoBank’s meeting or meals beyond your travel and hotel expenses; however, registration fees are required to attend the ACC meeting. The system will tally the registration and event fees based on your selections and will request payment by check at the end of the process.

If you are registering on behalf of another individual, please make sure to use their email address when completing the form so that their registration information will be unique. There will be an opportunity for you to add your information in as well so that you will receive copies of the confirmation details.

If you plan to bring a guest or spouse, or if you are registering more than one person from your organization, click on “Add Another Person” and complete their information and agenda as well.

Once you have completed the information for all registrants, be sure to click on “Finish my Registration” in order to finalize your attendance at the meeting. Once you have completed this process, you will receive a confirmation email. If you do not receive a confirmation email, your registration is incomplete. Please contact CoBank’s Corporate Communications Department at 303-740-6456 or by email at corp.comm@cobank.com or the ACC at 916-443-4887 or by email at admin@agcouncil.org for assistance.

Golf

Torrey Pines Golf Course – North Course
11480 North Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037

Monday, March 5, 2012
Golfer’s Breakfast – 6:30 am
Tournament Begins – 7:35 a.m.

The Ag Council's golf tournament this year will be held as a fundraiser for their Political Action Committee (PAC). As a political fundraiser, it is required that payment to the PAC be made SEPARATELY from other funds received for the Annual Meeting. Contributions are not deductible for federal or state income tax purposes and are subject to Proposition 34 limits.

If you plan to participate in the golf tournament, please send a separate check for $225 to the address below. This amount will NOT be included in the registration total at the end of this registration process.

SEND PAYMENT TO:
Agricultural Council of California
Political Action Committee -- ID #761092
1000 G Street, Suite 230
Sacramento, CA 95814

If, for legal reasons, your organization is unable to contribute to a PAC, please contact Rebecca Osumi at the ACC at (916) 443-4887 or rebecca@agcouncil.org for payment instructions.

The deadline to register for the golf tournament is February 24th.

For additional information about the course, please visit the course website at www.torreypinesgolfcourse.com.

Hotel

Estancia La Jolla Hotel and Spa
9700 N. Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037
877-437-8262 or 858-550-1000

The meeting will be held at Estancia La Jolla Hotel and Spa, located at 9700 N. Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA 92037.

To make your hotel reservation, call the Estancia La Jolla at 877-437-8262 or 858-550-1000. Mention your CoBank affiliation to receive the preferred room rate of $199. The number of rooms available at this rate is limited, so please make your reservation as soon as possible. After the reservation deadline of February 10, 2012, the group rate will no longer be available.

Please note that there will also be a $12 per room per night resort fee.

If you need to cancel your reservation at either hotel please do so a minimum of 48 hours in advance to avoid cancellation charges.

Speakers

Our speaker program is designed to provide managers and directors from CoBank customer organization with valuable insight and information they can use in their business and personal lives. Bios of speakers for the 2012 Pacific West Customer Meeting are listed below. Following the meeting, the speaker presentations that we have permission to distribute will also be available on this page.

Expand All

Bob Engel

President & Chief Executive Officer, CoBank

As CoBank’s president and chief executive officer, Bob Engel is responsible for implementing the bank’s strategic and business direction as set by the Board of Directors. Previously, he served as CoBank’s president and chief operating officer for six years. Mr. Engel is a member of CoBank’s Senior Leadership Team and the Management Executive Committee.

Prior to joining CoBank in 2000, Mr. Engel was chief banking officer at HSBC Bank USA in New York. He has 24 years of banking experience, primarily with HSBC Bank USA, and eight years of accounting experience, including an agribusiness specialization, with the firms of KPMG and Deloitte & Touche. During his 14-year tenure at HSBC, he served in a variety of management and credit positions, including chief credit officer, before being named chief banking officer.

Mr. Engel earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Niagara University in Niagara Falls, New York, where he was designated Magna Cum Laude and later received an honorary doctorate. He is a member of the board of directors for the Federal Farm Credit Banks Funding Corporation (Vice Chairman) and Farm Credit Leasing (Chairman). Mr. Engel is also a member of the Farm Credit System Presidents Planning Committee (Chairman). In addition, he serves on the board of trustees for Regis University, the board of directors of New Ventures in Higher Education, Inc., the Graduate Institute of Cooperative Leadership, Mile High United Way, Buffalo Sabres Alumni Association and as trustee emeritus at Niagara University. He also serves on the Executive Council of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives. He is a recipient of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.

Charles Fishman

Award-winning Journalist and Author

Charles Fishman is an author and award-winning business journalist. His book The Wal-Mart Effect was a New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Business Week best-seller, as well as a finalist for the Goldman Sachs-Financial Times Business Book of the Year award in 2006. Mr. Fishman’s most recent book, The Big Thirst, was released in April 2011.

Mr. Fishman is a former metro and national reporter for The Washington Post. Since 1996, he has worked for the business magazine Fast Company. He has won numerous awards, including twice winning UCLA’s Gerald Loeb Award for outstanding business writing, the most prestigious award in business journalism.

Doug Lipp

Former Head of Training, Walt Disney Company

As the former head of training for Walt Disney Company, Doug Lipp takes audiences behind the scenes of the Magic Kingdom and provides insight into the iconic company’s secrets to success. Mr. Lipp spent more than 25 years with Disney, where he was head of the world-famous Disney University. He also was a member of the start-up team for Tokyo Disneyland, Disney’s first international theme park.

After leaving Disney, Mr. Lipp co-founded the Intercultural Relations Institute, a consulting firm that focuses on helping international teams overcome cross-cultural barriers to form more effective business partnerships. He is the author of numerous articles and seven books on leadership, customer service and international business, including The Changing Face of Today’s Customer: How to Attract and Retain a Diverse Customer and Employee Base.

Mr. Lipp earned a bachelor’s degree in Japanese and recreation from California State University-Long Beach and a master’s degree in international business communication from California State University-Sacramento.

Download Presentation

Marci Rossell

Former Chief Economist, CNBC

Economist Marci Rossell has a unique ability to take complex financial issues and make them relevant to people’s lives, families and careers.

Ms. Rossell is best known for the time she spent in broadcast television as as chief economist for CNBC. She has also served as a corporate economist and investment spokesperson for Oppenheimer Funds, one of the nation’s largest mutual fund companies. She began her career as an economist for the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.

Ms. Rossell earned a Ph.D. in economics from Southern Methodist University, where she was also named Young Alumni of the Year in 2002.

Bill Walton

Retired NBA Player and Sportscaster

Bill Walton is an NBA Hall of Fame basketball player who since his retirement has become an Emmy-award winning sports broadcaster. He was worked for every major network covering the Olympics, the NCAA Final Four and other events in basketball.

In college, Mr. Walton helped UCLA and legendary coach John Wooden win two NCAA championships in the early 1970s as the Bruins racked up a record-setting 88 consecutive wins. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history and earned Academic All-American honors.

The top pick in the 1974 NBA draft, Mr. Walton went on to win championships with the Portland Trailblazers and Boston Celtics. He was named the league’s MVP in 1978.

Mr. Walton also is the executive chairman of SD Sport Innovators, an organization aimed at growing southern California’s sports economy.

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