POUGHKEEPSIE--The Dutchess County Economic Development Corporation announces its spring webinar series to help businesses grow. The seminars begin Thursday May 5th from 10:30am to noon, and run the following three consecutive Thursdays, May 12, 19, and 26 during the same time frame. On June 9, from 4 pm to 6 pm the DCEDC will be holding a live presentation to conclude the educational series with a presentation by Andi Gray on Managing in a Changing Environment. This live presentation will be held at Santo Stefano Winemaking Club at 44 St. Nicholas Rd, Wappingers Falls. At this event you will be able to network with other local businesses and hors d'oeurves will be served. There is a fee for the June 9 event.

Feature speakers and topics include:

May 5, 2011 Developing goals into an overall marketing and sales plan with Andi Gray. Most business owners say they struggle to achieve short and long term growth goals on a consistent basis. Exiting from a long tough recession, now is the time to get your business on track with a consistent, predictable growth plan. Log in to hear practical , real world suggestions on how to accomplish exactly that.

May 12, 2011 Using Social Media, which is best for you with Josh Sommers Sommers will present the use of Social Media as a tool for Business to Business (B2B) communication. He will introduce best practices, creating top of mind awareness and how to develop great Public Relations channels. Sommers will describe the right and wrong ways of using: Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to maximize your online efforts. Join in this interesting presentation and pick up a few tips.

May 19, 2011 Workforce Intelligence for Businesses – Workforce Intelligence for Businesses – Dutchess County and the Hudson Valley Region with Frank Surdey



Surdey will focus on human capital – the people and jobs of the region. Human capital is important to the business community – it represents their workers and their customers. We will briefly look at the recently released 2010 Census data and recent trends/projections in labor market conditions locally. He will also talk about workforce services that are available to businesses from the Labor Department and the One Stop System locally.

May 26, 2011 Succession Planning with Larry Holfelder Have you taken the time to consider planning for exiting your business and transferring ownership to family or outside individuals or entities? Holfelder will examine the issues you must consider in making the proper decisions:

What are your goals?

What are your risks?

What are your options?

Implementing a plan and when?

Ways to mitigate risk.

With over 32 years experience, Larry will take the mystery out of the process and help you make informed decisions about what you can do with your business and its' impact on your financial future.

June 9, 2011 4pm - 6pm Managing in a Changing Environment with Andi Gray Join us for a live wrap up to the five part series on growing successful businesses. Meet the presenters, ask questions, share information, network. Expect a lively evening of learning and sharing, in a beautiful setting, with hors d'oeuvres and beverages

Andi Gray will kick off the free seminar series discussing developing goals into an overall marketing and sales plan. Andi Gray, President of Strategy Leaders, Inc., a management and business consulting firm has shared the path to profit and growth with owners of established, privately held businesses for 20 plus years. In 1995, Gray founded Strategy Leaders, Inc. focusing on the “Six Sisters” of a well run business: Sales, Finance, Marketing, Operations, Human Resources, Leadership. Gray has helped scores of business leaders “grow to the next level” in diverse industries including information technology, real estate, construction, manufacturing, marketing communications, military, engineering, professional services and more.

Josh Sommers, a veteran radio broadcaster and Times Herald-Record columnist, founded Focus Media, Inc. in 2002 will discuss on May 12, "Using Social Media, which is best for you." His firm Focus Media is a multi-faceted communications organization specializing in public relations, crisis management, market research, advertising, design and Web development.

On May 19, Frank Surdey will discuss "Workforce development, understanding trends and needs." Frank Surdey serves as a Managing Labor Economist for the New York State Department of Labor. He currently has statewide responsibility for economic development research, business service strategies, and is the Department’s lead economist on clean energy workforce issues. Surdey was the primary researcher and co-authored the Department’s May 2009 report ‘New York State’s Clean Energy Industry: Labor Market and Workforce Intelligence’. He also serves on the national Workforce Information Council’s Green Jobs Study Group.

Larry Holfelder will discuss "Succession Planning" on May 26. Holfelder has been a CPA since 1979 and has advised individuals and business owners for over 30 years in the areas of planning for minimizing income and estate tax, effectively managing their financial risk, growing their assets for retirement, maintaining their desired lifestyle through retirement and maximizing assets transferred to future generations . He has been a manager at Ernst & Young as well as a partner in his own CPA firm for 17 years.

To wrap up the series on June 9th the DCEDC will hold a networking event with Andi Gray and she will discuss "Managing in a Changing Environment." The cost for this event is $35.00 and will be held at Santo Stefano Winemaking, 44 St Nicholas Rd. Wappingers Falls.

Catherine Maloney, director of Business Development, says she hopes this free webinar series will benefit local business, as it is in keeping with DCEDC’s mission to provide educational and informational events and programs in Dutchess County.

The DCEDC is the central point of contact for business development needs and activities in Dutchess County. It is a business-led, nationally recognized economic development corporation, whose mission is to attract, retain, and expand for-profit and not-for-profit businesses for the benefit of Dutchess County. DCEDC's organizational structure includes programs in:

Business retention and expansion, Dutchess County Data and Business Resources

Empire Zone administrationIndustrial Development Agency (DCIDA) liaison

Local Development Corporation (DCLDC) liaison

Financial counseling and deal structuring

External marketing

Commercial Real Estate Listings

Dutchess County Tourism

TechnologyMunicipal advocacy

To register for these seminars and the concluding networking event please follow the corresponding links below.

Register May 5, 2011 Developing goals into an overall marketing and sales plan with Andi Gray

Register May 12, 2011Using Social Media, which is best for you with Josh Sommers

Register May 19, 2011 Workforce Intelligence for Business - Dutchess Country and the Hudson VAlley Region with Frank Surdey

Register May 26, 2011 Succession Planning with Larry Holfelder

Register June 9, 2001 Networking Event with seminar by Andi Gray "Managing in a Changing Environment.

Sponsors for this event are New York Business Development Corporation (NYBDC), Mid-Hudson Valley Federal Credit Union (MHVFCU), Strategy Leaders Inc., HVBiz and Debbie Gioquindo Emerging Media, Marketing & PR