FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

   
IS THERE A REAL RECOVERY TAKING HOLD IN THE TECH SECTOR?  

NEW ENGLAND'S TECHNOLOGY INNOVATORS TO EXPLORE 
DYNAMICS AFFECTING TECH WORLD TODAY AND TOMORROW AT 
FUTURE FORWARD 2003

BOSTON, September 8, 2003 - Is there a real recovery taking place in the tech sector? And what are the innovations behind it? This November, tech executives, entrepreneurs, and investors from around New England will gather to address those vital questions at Future Forward: The New England Technology Summit. The event takes place on November 6^th and 7^th in Portsmouth, NH.   "Future Forward exists," explains conference co-chair Shayne Gilbert, "to bring together people from around the region who are building important companies, and using technology in new ways. This year, everyone will be looking for signs that momentum is building." Participating in the conference as a speaker this year will be Governor Craig Benson of New Hampshire, the first technology entrepreneur elected to that office. Governor Benson also spoke at Future Forward in 2001, before his election.

Future Forward is an invitation-only event that brings together “forward thinkers” from throughout New England to build successful business relationships and support the region's reputation as a center of technological and business innovation. Now in its third year, the event will be held at the Sheraton Harborside in Portsmouth. Key speakers at the conference will include:

• John Abele, founder and chairman of Boston Scientific

• Governor Craig Benson of New Hampshire

• George Colony, CEO and founder, Forrester Research

• Nicholas Carr, Author of “Why IT Doesn’t Matter”; former editor, Harvard Business Review

• Maria Cirino, CEO, Guardent

• Terry Connor, CIO, Liberty Mutual

• Justin Lindsay, CTO, Federal Bureau of Investigation

• Peter Burrows, CTO, Reebok

• Doug Schwinn, CIO, Hasbro

• Bill Warner, President, Warner Research; Founder, Avid Technology and Wildfire Communications

Highlights of the agenda for Future Forward 2003 include the following panel discussion topics:

• Does IT Still Matter? A Debate

• The State of the Tech Sector in New England

• Tech Users and Tech Vendors – Can This Marriage Be Saved?

• The New Breed of Technology Leader: Creative, Collaborative, and Close to Customers

• CIO (and CTO) All-Stars Discuss Investing in the Right Projects, Forging Constructive Vendor Relationships, and Measuring Success

• What’s Brewing? Innovations from Corporate R&D Labs

• Raising Money in the Current Markets

A complete Future Forward agenda and speaker list is available at http://www.futureforward.com/agenda.html. All speaker and agenda items are subject to change.

 

Additionally, new at this year's conference is the opportunity for companies with a new product or service to exhibit at Future Forward.  Exhibitors will be able to demonstrate and present their innovative technologies and products to an exclusive audience of technology buyers, investors and potential partners.

 

About Future Forward

Now entering its third year, Future Forward brings together New England’s technology visionaries to hash out what’s next in hardware, software, and life sciences. It’s a two-day conversation among movers and shakers about forces transforming the technology world.

 

Future Forward is designed for entrepreneurs, investors, IT executives, and technology innovators. It presents unparalleled opportunities to share ideas and do business with your peers from around New England to sharpen your vision of the future and accelerate your organization’s forward motion. Conference sponsors include Nixon Peabody LLP, MIT's Technology Review and Boston.com.

 

For more information visit http://www.futureforward.com.

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Contact:

Brenda Menard Horn Group, Inc. 781.356.7133 bmenard@horngroup.com

Alyssa Stern Future Forward Events 617.367.1400 astern@futureforward.com