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How to survive and thrive in hard times
LONDON,
ON, April 13, 2009 –
When times
are tough, consumers tend to cut back,
yet some companies manage to remain
unscathed or even prosper despite such
challenges.
Take men's
luxury retailer Harry Rosen, for
instance. While many high-end retailers
are taking a major hit, Harry Rosen's
CEO, Larry Rosen, said the global
economic crisis hasn't been catastrophic
for business, regardless of some
setbacks.
Or there's
Spin Master Ltd. At a time when many
companies are struggling, Spin Master is
achieving record growth and has become
the largest toy company in Canadian
history.
At an
upcoming Ivey Idea Forum on April 16,
Anton Rabie, President, Co-CEO and
Co-Founder of Spin Master Ltd., and
Larry Rosen will share their experiences
and insights on leading organizations
through tough times.
"Driving
Growth in Turbulent Times", will begin
at 8 a.m. at Ivey's ING Leadership
Centre in Toronto. Simon Parker, MBA '80
Professor in Entrepreneurship and
Director of the Driving Growth Through
Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Cross-Enterprise Leadership Research
Centre at the Richard Ivey School of
Business, will introduce the session.
Carol Stephenson, Dean of Ivey Business
School, will provide opening remarks.
Discussion
topics will include challenges unique to
the present economic downturn and what
that means for small- to medium-sized
enterprises, positive and creative
strategies to optimize performance and
how to approach growth in a recession
and how small enterprises like Harry
Rosen and Spin Master Ltd. identify and
capitalize on opportunities to drive
growth.
"The
success of some companies in challenging
times can't just be chalked up to good
luck," said Parker. "Downturns are
notorious for being hard on companies,
but they also offer opportunities to
reinvigorate a company. Companies that
are resourceful, innovative and focused
on their vision have greater chances of
winning when there is an uphill battle."
For
instance, Rosen attributes some of his
company's success to the fact that it
has found ways to reduce costs without
cutting back on quality or compromising
the brand.
"It's about
staying true to who you are," he said.
The event
is part of the Ivey Idea Forum: A
Cross-Enterprise Leadership Series,
which provides executives, Ivey alumni,
business students and prospective
students with guest speakers and events
to develop cross-enterprise leadership
thinking on key business issues.
Event:
"Driving Growth in Turbulent Times" with
Larry Rosen, Anton Rabie and Simon
Parker
Date:
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Time:
8-9:30 a.m. (Breakfast at 7:30 a.m.)
Location: Ivey ING Leadership
Centre, The Exchange Tower, 130 King
Street West, Toronto, Ontario
To purchase tickets, please contact
Ashleigh Nimigan at 519-850-2999,
animigan@ivey.uwo.ca or
purchase online.
Media interested in attending, please
contact Dawn Milne at 519-850-2536,
dmilne@ivey.uwo.ca
About the Richard Ivey School of
Business, The University of Western
Ontario
The Richard Ivey School of Business at
The University of Western Ontario (www.ivey.ca)
offers undergraduate (HBA)
and graduate degree programs (MBA,
Executive MBA and
PhD) in addition to non-degree
Executive Development programs. Ivey has
campuses in London (Ontario),
Toronto, and Hong Kong. Ivey
recently redesigned its curriculum to
focus on
Cross-Enterprise Leadership – a
holistic issues-based approach to
management education that meets the
demands of today's complex global
business world.
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For more
information, please contact:
Dawn Milne, Communications Specialist,
Richard Ivey School of Business,
519-850-2536,
dmilne@ivey.ca
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