Keynotes 
Simultaneously Maximizing Consumer Value and Company Profit from Beginning to End
Tuesday, Oct. 6
9-9:45 a.m.
Today’s sophisticated consumers are looking for better tasting and more nutritious products at a fair price, driving new and unprecedented complexity in Coca-Cola’s growing Global Juice business. As Vice President of Business Acceleration, one of Doug Bippert’s responsibilities is to transform systems and processes to improve the speed and impact of decision-making for all juice products. Learn how Coke is managing complexity by building a knowledge platform to link, optimize and synchronize managerial decisions from Grove to Glass.
Doug Bippert
VP of Business Acceleration
The Coca-Cola Company
Rebounding Tips: The Best (and Worst) Practices in Pricing and Revenue Management
Tuesday, Oct. 6
9:45-10:30 a.m.
It’s been said that Good Judgment comes from Experience and that Experience comes from Bad Judgment. In over thirty years of Pricing and Revenue Management practice in multiple industries, Robert Cross has seen it all. In this talk, he will share an insider’s look at the best and the brightest as well as the most misguided practices in the field. Gain insight from the experience of others so that you can play at the top of your game.
Robert G. Cross
Chairman & CEO
Revenue Analytics
Mobilizing Global Resources to Transform the Revenue Management Discipline
Tuesday, Oct. 6
4-4:45 p.m.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts is undertaking a four year journey to transform its global Revenue Management capabilities. Rather than focus on specific strategies for forecasting, pricing, and inventory management, this presentation will address the way in which Starwood has approached the challenge of a major transformation in a key discipline: forming and managing a virtual, global team; gathering the voice of customer input; constructing the case for change; achieving buy-in and consensus on a common agenda from four autonomous global divisions; and developing a balanced blueprint that addresses process, systems, strategy, people, and tools.
John Peyton
SVP, North American Operations
Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Panels
Playing to Win --Educating Senior Management and Converting Skeptics Panel Session A
Tuesday, Oct. 6
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
Sometimes the greatest challenges to innovation come from within. There are often players with an inordinate aversion to risk or a vested interest in the status quo, as well as those who lack an understanding of the power of Revenue Management & Price Optimization. Experts from a variety of industries will discuss proven methods to overcome obstacles and create winning strategies.
Chair: Matt Busch
Director, Pricing Strategy, Global Revenue Management
InterContinental Hotels Group
David Baran
Vice President, Marketing Strategy & Initiatives
Time Warner Cable
Bill Dudziak
Director, Pricing Analytics
The Home Depot
Sharon Hormby
Senior Director, Total Yield Systems
Marriott International
Sheryl Richards
Senior Director, Pricing & Revenue Management
Amtrak
Inside Out and Outside In – Winning Negotiated Deals at the Highest Margin
Panel Session B
Tuesday, Oct. 6
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
Working internally to align corporate objectives when structuring negotiated deals is often as difficult as negotiating with the customer. How do you strike the balance between volume and profitability? Why is it that the “Best Customers” seem to get the cheapest price? Our panel of experts explores strategies for assuring transactions that are win-win-win.
Chair: Mark Ferguson
Steven A. Denning Professor of Technology and Management
Georgia Institute of Technology
Jack Easdale
Corporate Director of Revenue Management
Gaylord Hotels & Resorts
Jim Perry
Director of Pricing
AGCO
Mark Rudel
Director of Marketing
UPS
Robert Smith
Director of Corporate Pricing
Eastman Chemical Company
Keeping Score --Measuring and Proving Success
Panel Session C
Tuesday, Oct. 6
2:15-3:30 p.m.
Quantifying and proving the success of targeted revenue generating efforts can be a tricky exercise. What is the best way to build a business case for investment or isolate the positive impact of specific initiatives… especially when the overall market is stagnant or in decline? Our panel of experts explores insights, techniques and metrics that make this possible.
Chair: Dax Cross
President
Revenue Analytics
Robert Buckley
Global Director, Revenue Management Systems
Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Phil Haan
Executive Vice President
Northwest Airlines (Retired)
Doug Santoni
Senior Vice President, Revenue Management
Royal Caribbean Cruises
Balancing Offense and Defense –Exploring the Art & Science of Revenue Growth
Panel Session D
Tuesday, Oct. 6
2:15-3:30 p.m.
Most practitioners know that years of experience are no substitute for rigorous analysis… and vice-versa! The best practices in Pricing and Revenue Management elegantly combine the know-how of individuals with data-driven analytical techniques. This panel of experts will address how human judgment and experience are integrated into a systematic approach to problem solving.
Chair: Molham Aref
CEO
Predictix
Amit Aggarwal
Vice President, Revenue Strategy & Analytics
Clear Channel Radio
Krishna Arangode
Manager, US Region Order to Cash
Johnson & Johnson
Steve Sieracki
Vice President, Product Marketing
Shaw Industries
Breakout Sessions
Inside the Box -- A Pricing and Revenue Management Journey from B2C to B2B
Breakout A
Tuesday, Oct. 6
1:30-2:15 pm
Managing price and inventory in a B2B environment is just like B2C ... only different! Bill Kotrba has successfully managed the transition from dealing with millions of customers to dealing with a handful of intermediaries that control access to the end customers. In moving from Passenger Revenue Management at Northwest Airlines to Cargo (now at Delta), he had to assess the differences in business models and how he could leverage his knowledge in B2C to identify where the opportunities lie in B2B. Mr. Kotrba will share experiences along his personal journey--what has worked, lessoned learned and where to go from here.
Bill Kotrba
Director, Revenue Management & Network Planning
Delta Cargo
Disciplined Pricing in the Face of Uncertainty
Breakout B
Tuesday, Oct. 6
1:30-2:15 pm
In the current economic environment, when there is a risk of budget shortfalls, price discounts are seen as a tempting way to meet short-term budget goals. More effective is the use of customer segmentation to develop targeted price increases and disciplined account management strategies. At Equifax, we’ve demonstrated that our Strategic Pricing groups add significant value by creating a fact-based pricing discipline within the organization. This session will highlight some tangible examples used at Equifax to generate incremental revenue.
Greg Creel
Senior Director of Strategic Pricing
Equifax
Workshops
Principles for Revenue Management and Price Optimization Success
Workshop A: The Basics
Wednesday, Oct. 7
9 a.m. to Noon
For some, Revenue Management and Price Optimization have generated millions of dollars. For others, the gains have been elusive.
This “Back to Basics” workshop is taken from a series of MBA lectures and is intended as an introduction of Revenue Management and Price Optimization as well as a fresh survey of the principles which help companies drive profitable growth.
The workshop will be an interactive session which examines the fundamentals of using rigorous analysis and advanced technology to increase revenue productivity from existing assets. It is intended to review and reinforce the secrets to success in a wide variety of industries and challenge conventional thinking.
Using case studies and practical examples, the workshop will explore:
- A Stepwise Approach to Revenue Management and Price Optimization
- The Respective Roles of People and Technology
- How to Think like a Customer
- What CEOs Want
- Ah-ha Moments in the Evolution of Pricing and Revenue Management
- Creating a Revenue Driven Organization
Robert G. Cross
Chairman and CEO
Revenue Analytics
Open Source Analytics: Fact or Fiction
Workshop B: Advanced Topics
Wednesday, Oct. 7
9 a.m. to Noon
The right to exclude and the right to distribute are the software development concepts that have evolved into competing alternatives for Pricing and Revenue Management professionals. By looking at the specifics of each concept, this workshop will provide participants with an understanding of the role open source plays in today’s business environment. Explore open source initiatives intended to provide companies competitive advantage through the creation of advanced computing environments.
In this workshop, participants will:
- Learn how open source could help organizations compete on analytics
- Use R, an open source language and environment for statistical computing, to solve complex analytical problems related to Revenue Management and Price Optimization
- Explore the links between R and other open source environments (e.g., GLPK, LaTeX)
A Windows-based PC is required for attendees to complete the exercises. Familiarity with basic analytical concepts is a plus but not a prerequisite.
Dev Koushik
Manager, Operations Research
InterContinental Hotels Group
Tudor Bodea
Analyst, Operations Research
InterContinental Hotels Group
Advanced Revenue Management Research Topics at Georgia Tech
Workshop C: Experimental Thought
Wednesday, Oct. 7
9 a.m.–noon
In this workshop, doctoral students and faculty from the management and engineering schools at Georgia Tech will explain and demonstrate how some of the latest research in the field can help improve profitability. As one of the leading research universities in the world, Georgia Tech’s faculty and students are at the cutting edge of Price Optimization and Revenue Management.
Participants in this workshop will receive hands-on training and personal Q&A time with scientists who are developing and testing new techniques and practices that will lead the discipline over the next ten years. Attendees of this workshop will have a glimpse into the future with the unique opportunity to become early adopters and reap a first mover advantage in their industry.
In this workshop, participants will be exposed to the latest research in:
- Discrete choice models for capacity-based revenue management – breakthroughs addressing the “no purchase” option
- Unlocking the potential of on-line data – New ways to leverage online customer search and purchase data for revenue management and pricing applications
- Revenue Management for durable goods – optimizing alternatives for returned and off-lease products: harvest for spare parts versus refurbishing for potential resell
Participants are encouraged to bring a Window-based PC.
Laurie Garrow
Assistant Professor
Georgia Tech
Introduction to the Science of Revenue Management and Price Analytics
Workshop D: The Basics
Wednesday, Oct. 7
1:30–4:30 p.m.
Do you ever wonder what the mathematical algorithms are that play such an important role in determining your companies’ revenue performance? The purpose of this workshop is to take a step behind the curtains of the Pricing and Revenue Management software solutions and examine the fundamental modeling concepts that make them work.
This workshop will provide “hands-on” practice with using some of most common Price Optimization models which are typically treated as a “black box” solution by the leading software providers. By gaining a better understanding of the science behind these solutions, you will be better positioned to make a knowledgeable selection between software providers, or, if you already own a software solution, to gain the full benefit of its capabilities.
In this workshop, you will learn:
- The basics of forecasting historical sales data and measuring price effects
- What to do when you do not have a full history of customer demand
- What the fundamental trade-offs are in Revenue Management capacity allocation decisions and the science behind how they are made
- How to use price elasticity measures to optimize prices
- What is the science behind markdown management and customized bid responses
Participants are encouraged to bring a Window-based PC.
Mark Ferguson
Professor
Georgia Tech
Pricing Power: Accelerating through the Curve
Workshop E: Advanced Topics
Wednesday, Oct. 7
1:30–4:30 p.m.
Most companies and business leaders acknowledge the necessity of a sound pricing strategy. Standard processes and best practices are developed and implemented to guide pricing decisions and enforce this strategy. During good economic times, many of these strategies are maintained and the best practices supporting them followed.
But, during times of economic uncertainty (and particularly during a down economy), these best practices and strategic pricing are some of the first to be abandoned. Ironically, these are the very times when a sound pricing strategy is at its most critical, and failure to maintain one can result in a significant and long-lasting impact to revenues.
This workshop will provide real world examples and hands-on exercises to help participants identify and avoid common pricing mistakes in a down economy, and develop analytically-based pricing strategies and best practices that can help them not only survive, but thrive, in the current recession.
Using case studies and practical examples, the workshop will explore:
-
Avoiding lockup: Proceed with caution, but don’t slam on the brakes.
- Avoiding strategic missteps in a down economy
- Identifying opportunities, even in challenging times
- Transitioning from competitive response to proactive pricing strategies
- Forecasting in times of economic uncertainty
- Improving market position with pricing best practices
- Positioning yourself to emerge as a price leader
A PC with Microsoft Excel (or equivalent spreadsheet software) is required to complete the exercises.
Zach Cross
VP, Revenue Management Strategy
Revenue Analytics
Michael Bentley
Director, Revenue Management Strategy
Revenue Analytics
Does My Forecast Really Suck? Measuring Forecast Accuracy as a Sustainable Process
Workshop F: Experimental Thinking
Wednesday, Oct. 7
1:30-4:30 p.m.
Demand forecasting is the cornerstone of all business planning, and is critically important in Pricing and Revenue Management. Often demand planners and revenue managers say, “Our forecast sucks.” But many reach that conclusion based on anecdotal evidence or on forecast accuracy metrics that they may not understand. For example, a demand planner might think, “One product forecast has a MAPE of 20%, the other of 50%! My forecast model is broken.” The truth is he cannot conclude that his forecast model is broken or even that he can improve the accuracy of these forecasts based on these metrics. In fact it may be that the 50% MAPE product is a better forecast than the 20% MAPE forecast.
As part of this workshop, you will be given hands-on exercises in Excel where you will implement various forecast metrics. You will leave with a deep understanding of how to measure forecast accuracy, evaluate forecast models, and monitor your forecasting processes to ensure a successful, sustainable pricing and revenue management program.
In this workshop, you will:
- Explore common and more advanced forecast accuracy metrics, their advantages and disadvantages
- Calculate different forecast accuracy measures using sample data
- Interpret forecast accuracy measures and use them in identifying forecasting/data problems
- Compare different forecasting techniques using forecast accuracy measures
- Learn to identify the quality of forecasts for different products so you can find the forecasts that need to be fixed
A PC with Microsoft Excel (or equivalent spreadsheet software) is required to complete the exercises.
Jon Higbie
Chief Scientist
Revenue Analytics
Seonah Lee
Operations Research Consultant
Revenue Analytics