> 2020 ERA Conference Committee Announces Monday General Session Topics and Speakers
Oct. 25, 2019
Source: Electronic Representatives Association
The Electronics Representatives Association (ERA) Conference Committee has announced the two Monday, Feb. 24, General Sessions topics and speakers at the upcoming 2020 Conference, slated Feb. 23-25, 2020, at the AT&T Conference Center in Austin, Texas. The topics and speakers were carefully selected to reflect the event theme — “Takin’ it to the Streets: Succeeding in a Dynamic Market.”
Dr. Robert Genetski, one of the nation’s leading classical economists who is known for using humor and anecdotes to make complex economic issues easily understandable, will present the Monday morning General Session, “How Tariffs, China & the 2020 Election Will Impact the Economy.” Genetski will assess the major threats to the economy leading up to the election and how these threats are likely to shape the business environment and financial markets. Takeaways from the session will include business strategies for dealing with China and tariffs as well with the consequences of the 2020 election.
For five consecutive years speaking.com has named Genetski one of the top-five speakers in the field of economics and finance. He has written five books on classical economic principles. His latest book, “Rich Nation, Poor Nation,” provides detailed evidence showing why some nations prosper while others fail. For the past 25 years, Genetski has provided economic and financial advice through his consulting firm — ClassicalPrinciples.com. He has appeared on CNN and Fox News and in nationally syndicated radio and TV programs. His articles have appeared in Fortune Magazine, the Wall Street Journal and Investors’ Business Daily.
2020 Conference Committee Co-Chair Craig Anderson, CPMR, President, Sumer Inc., said, “We are extremely fortunate to have Dr. Robert Genetski as our economic speaker at the 2020 ERA Conference. Recognized as one of the top five economic speakers in the nation, Genetski delivers his message in a dynamic, entertaining manner. I’ve been fortunate to attend his annual economic presentations for the past 10 years and look forward to hearing his message in February.”
The Monday afternoon General Session, “The Disruption of IoT: How the Forces of AI and Blockchain are Changing IoT and the New Opportunities that are Being Created,” will be presented by high-tech industry leader and IoT Consultant Ali Sebt.
Sebt’s session will provide insight into how the struggle of semiconductor companies to achieve organic growth on a holistic basis has resulted in M&As, and why the emergence of IoT was greeted with great fanfare as the “killer App” everyone was waiting for. However, before IoT was able to reach mass scale and bail out the industry, two disruptive forces — AI and Blockchain — have emerged as disruptors to IoT itself. Today, a new breed of suppliers and applications are feeding the all new embedded world. This session will take a peek at the fundamental changes that are upon us, their effect on the supplier base and the opportunities for our customers.
Sebt has more than 30 years of experience in the high-tech industry where he held various roles in engineering, marketing, business development and global executive leadership, including President & CEO of Renesas Electronics America. His experience at Renesas includes leading the microcontroller business with dramatic market share growth in the Americas, and as Renesas’ Executive Vice President, Sebt led the strategy and successful global launch of Renesas’ next generation embedded solution, the Synergy Platform. After Renesas, Ali Sebt joined VIMOC Technologies as President and CMO, where he established VIMOC’s strategy for an artificial intelligence enabled software platform addressing smart infrastructures, and most recently he held the position of Chief Corporate Development officer at IAR Systems with a focus on establishing IAR’s IoT strategies. Earlier in his career, Sebt held engineering and management positions at Quickturn Design Systems, AMD and Monolithic Memories Inc.
2020 Conference Committee Chair Mike Swenson, CMPR, President, Mel Foster Company, said, “We are thrilled to have Ali Sebt at the 2020 ERA Conference to discuss how AI, Blockchain and IoT intersect for Embedded Applications. He has tremendous insight on where the market is heading and how we can educate ourselves to be prepared for the future.”
Anderson added, “As a technologist and former President & CEO of Renesas Electronics America, Ali has great insight to the evolution in these two fields that will impact our lives in the very near future.”
For further information on the conference schedule or to register, visit
https://era.org/era-events/era-conference/.
About ERA
The 84-year-old Electronics Representatives Association (ERA) is the international trade organization for professional field sales companies in the global electronics industries, manufacturers who go to market through representative firms and global distributors. It is the mission of ERA to support the professional field sales function through programs and activities that educate, inform and advocate for manufacturers’ representatives, the principals they represent and the distributors who are reps’ partners in local territories. For more information about ERA, visit era.org.