We’re already hard at work planning the 2013 Conference.  For now, take a look at the 2012 Conference Overview to see the high-caliber education you'll get at this conference.

Pre-Conference Symposium
Workers’ Compensation Essentials for Executives and Risk Professionals
Shannon Gardner, Senior Manager, Risk Management, Chick-fil-A, Inc., Atlanta
Denise Gillen-Algire, RN, Practice Leader, Integrated Health & Productivity, Risk Navigation Group,      Albuquerque, N.M
Jim Pocius, Shareholder, Marshall, Dennehey, Warner, Coleman & Goggin, Philadelphia
Treasa Turnbeaugh, Chief Operating Officer, Board of Certified Safety Professionals, Urbana-Champaign,      Illinois
Moderator: Mark Noonan, Managing Principal, Casualty Practice, Integro Insurance Brokers, Boston

Economic realities have forced many high-level executives to take on workers’ comp responsibilities for their organizations. CFOs, general counsels, and risk professionals with purchasing authority are suddenly tasked with overseeing a system they may understand only peripherally. This half-day program is designed to provide these high-level professionals a core understanding of workers’ compensation and the tools needed to design, price and manage a successful workers’ compensation program. Among the topics covered by our faculty of leading workers’ compensation experts will be:

     •     Workers’ compensation’s origins, current status and challenges.
     •    Pre-loss programs and how to build them.
     •    How to price a program, including the impact of losses on experience modifications.
     •    Medical components of an effective workers’ compensation program.
     •    Claims management and vendor management tips.
     •    Management information sharing — what to share with whom, when and how.
     •    The challenges of litigation.

Pre-conference symposium requires separate registration and fee.

Opening General Session
Intriguing Insights: Leaders Debate Solutions to Industry’s Top Challenges
Dr. Jennifer Christian, Founder and Lead Maze-Masters Guide, Maze-Masters Program; President, Webility      Corporation, Wayland, Mass.
Jill Dulich, Senior Director, Marriott Claims Services, Los Angeles
Maureen Gallagher, Managing Director, Neace Lukens, Southfield, Mich.
John Leonard, President and CEO, Maine Employers’ Mutual Insurance Company, Portland, Maine
Dave North, CEO, Sedgwick CMS, Memphis, Tenn.
William Zachry, VP Risk Management, Safeway Inc., San Francisco
Moderator: Mark Walls, Vice President, Claims, Safety National, St. Louis

Wednesday, Nov. 7 | 8:30 - 10 a.m.

Wednesday, Nov. 7 | 12 - 1:45 p.m.

Meet the winners of Risk & Insurance® magazine's 2012 Theodore Roosevelt Workers’ Compensation and Disability Management Awards, honoring organizations that are setting the bar for the industry.
Awards Luncheon & Entertainment	Sponsored by:
Also meet this year’s PreVent Award winners, being honored for their devotion of significant time and resources to develop and implement proactive strategies to prevent workplace injuries.

Experience the Extraordinary! Craig Karges Tables float, minds are read and metal bends. Craig Karges takes mystery entertainment to a whole new level to prove that nothing is impossible! Claiming to be an entertainer not a psychic, he challenges the imagination by combining the art of magic with the science of psychology and the power of intuition – and leaves audiences mystified.

Regional Conflicts: Drilling Down to Unique Issues
Thursday, Nov. 8 | 10:45 a.m. - 12 p.m.

The industry’s greatest challenges vary widely depending on the region of the country. While California struggles with liens, the Northeast deals with the shift from a manufacturing to a technology-based workforce – creating return-to-work nightmares. Many Midwestern states are focused on reforms to attract business; Western states are questioning the dominance of quasi-state insurers; and the Southeast battles opioid trafficking. In concurrent breakout sessions, thought leaders representing the employer, carrier and third-party administrator communities will discuss the most challenging issues (to be chosen closer to the conference) from each region and provide you with strategies to overcome them.

California
Moderator: Martin Brady, Executive Director, Schools Insurance Authority, Sacramento, Calif.
Carrier: Vern Steiner, SVP of Claims, Zenith, Los Angeles
Employer: Kevin Confetti, Risk Manager, Workers' Compensation, University of California, Oakland
TPA: Ralph Matthews, Vice President, Workers’ Compensation, Acclamation Insurance Management      Services, Sacramento, Calif. 

Midwest (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska,
North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Wisconsin)
Moderator: Pat Venditti, Director, BJC Healthcare, St Louis
Carrier: Stephan Cooper, President, United Heartland, New Berlin, Wisc.
Employer: Michael Chmielewski, Corporate Risk & Insurance Manager, Ace Hardware, Chicago
TPA: Ed Reasoner, Risk Management Department Manager, Thomas McGee L.C., Kansas City, Mo.

Northeast (Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire,      New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont)
Moderator:Maureen McCarthy, Senior Vice President, Liberty Mutual, Boston
Carrier: John Leonard, President and CEO, Maine Employers’ Mutual Insurance Company, Portland,      Maine
Employer:Richard Graham, Corporate Director, Insurance & Risk Control, Crozer - Keystone Health System,      Chester, Pa.
TPA:Steve Gidwitz, COO, NCA Comp, Buffalo, N.Y.

Southeast (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi,
North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia)
Moderator: Michele Adams, Director, Claims Management, Risk Management Services, Walt Disney World      Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
Carrier:Troy Prevot, Senior Vice President, LUBA Workers' Comp, Baton Rouge, La.
Employer: TBA
TPA:Gary Gilmour, Senior Vice President, Claims, Underwriters Safety & Claims, Louisville, Ky

West (Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming)
Moderator: Denise Gillen-Algire, Practice Leader, Integrated Health and Productivity Management,
     Risk Navigation Group, Albuquerque, N.M.
Carrier:Donald Smith, Jr., President & CEO, SCF Arizona, Phoenix
Employer: Diane Askwyth, Vice President, Risk and Insurance, Caesars Entertainment, Las Vegas
TPA:Tom Veale, President, Tristar Group, Long Beach, Calif.