Smells Like Teen Spirit: Marketing to the Millennial Generation
Moderated by Chris Gunnarson, President, Snow Park Technologies, Truckee, CA

The future of snowsports will be dictated by today’s tech-savvy youth, with most teen trends moving west to east in this country. There is no better place to explore this critical consumer segment than in California, the cradle for action sports and teen culture. From the X Games to energy drinks, the smart marketing dollar truly comprehends what drives today’s youth market. From omnipresent technology, social media platforms, promotional events, and resort branding and “vibe” — our California panelists will sift through the fickle demands of the Millenial Generation, the largest demographic bulge since the Baby Boomers, to better grasp how we can attract and retain young people — and their buying power — to snowsports.

Summer Activities on Trial
Pat Kelly, Partner, Wilson Elser, Los Angeles, CA
John Fagan, Partner, Duane Morris, Truckee, CA
John Murphy, Claims Specialist, Wells Fargo Special Risks

As ski areas increasingly shift to a four-season business model, summer and year-round activities become a growing risk management challenge. This mock trial spotlights exposure and liability concerns in the non-winter realm, in the absence of the benefits and protections afforded by a traditional ski safety act. This summertime guest incident — compounded by resort operational errors — will leave our jury (impaneled from the audience) weighing tough choices. Two of ASDA’s best lawyers square off in our court room, raising critical questions about releases, signage, employee training, patrol response, and ill-conceived resort policies. Both thought-provoking and entertaining, this mock trial will provide invaluable risk management take-aways that will apply to any resort activity, summer or winter.

Financing for Mid-Level Resort Acquisitions: Capitalizing on Huge Savings in the New Tax Bill
Moderated by Dave Riley, CEO, Telluride Ski & Golf Resort, CO

Let the government pay for your new mountain equipment – no joke. Under recent changes to the tax code, ski areas (as well as suppliers) can capitalize on some amazing benefits arising out of tax changes signed by President Obama in December. Geared toward financing mid-level mountain purchases – chair lifts, groomers, snowmaking equipment, zip rides, mountain coasters, and so on – this panel discussion will address these critical tax law changes, including the 100 percent bonus depreciation for investments made in 2011, the 50 percent bonus depreciation for 2012, and hundreds of thousands of dollars available in new tax write-offs for such levels of investment. Moderated by Dave Riley, an accountant and CEO of Telluride, our panel will also focus on financing options available to resorts for such mid-tiered investments. A win-win for ski areas and suppliers alike, resorts need to act now to take advantage of these tax law changes and the improving capital markets.

Strategies for Future Real Estate Development
Harry Frampton, Managing Partner, East West Partners, Vail Valley, CO
Mark Smith, Partner, East West Partners, Denver and Vail Valley, CO

How does a substantially improving economy impact resort real estate development planning? While commercial vacancy rates are a challenge and new commercial development remains weak in many markets, the real estate market recovery continues to gain positive momentum. Real estate capital markets have improved remarkably over the past year and investor interest is on the rise. With these improving fundamentals, resorts should be looking to the future and analyzing the potential for real estate development and growth. Harry Frampton and his long-time partner, Mark Smith — both who have spent years developing and living in resort communities — team up to provide their outlook on building, selling, managing and supporting high-quality real estate in resort communities.

Strength in Numbers: Encouraging Kottke End-of-Season Results
Nolan Rosall and Dave Belin, RRC Associates, Boulder, CO

Great snow and a sharp increase in consumer confidence combine for a tantalizing recipe for a potentially record-setting ski season. RRC Associates’ Nolan Rosall and Dave Belin survey the industry’s season-ending data, with insights and analysis on skier visits, pricing, pass sales, lodging, snowfall, retail sales, and region-by-region performance. Even with strong economic growth this season, are we experiencing fundamental shifts in our economy and regional demographics, with implications for disposable income levels? And what does this all mean for the resort industry? Our Kottke Survey not only tells the story from this past season, but lays the critical groundwork and direction for tomorrow’s resort planning.

Fundamental Shifts in Leisure Time: The Convergence of How Americans Live, Play, and Travel
James Chung, President, Reach Advisors, Slingerlands, NY

In light of the economic recalibration experienced over the last few years, emerging macro-trends for the next decade will be of particular importance for the ski industry and tourism in general. How will income dynamics and demographic shifts in this post-recession era impact the consumer landscape? What trends will impact outdoor recreation, vacation spending, and the luxury market? James Chung, a marketing expert and research consultant with vast experience in the resort field, will provide data-driven insights on changing consumer attitudes — arming resorts with smarter tools for the escalating competition for the consumer’s leisure time and money.

Financial Considerations for Health Care Compliance
Liliana Salazar, Vice President of Employee Benefits Compliance, Wells Fargo, Torrance, CA

With the unlikely repeal of health care reform, ski areas need to prepare now to finance the costs associated with providing employee health care. The so-called “employer mandate” begins in 2014, but given the nature of the ski industry, resorts will need to have a business plan to fund health care in place by 2013. While most regulations remain unwritten, and uncertainty looms, this much is clear — ski areas will either have to provide health insurance coverage to a sizable portion of their workforce, or face significant tax-like assessments. We’ll examine strategies for minimizing the impact both from an operational and financial perspective — including the seasonal worker exemption, foreign visa workers, automation, wage compression, overtime, competition for labor, and even rural employment realities. From soup to nuts, this session will explore the new compliance hurdles under health care reform.

Lessons in Crisis Management from the CEO Perspective
Moderated by Bo Adams, Senior VP, MountainGuard Insurance, Portsmouth, NH

There, but for the Grace of God, go all of us. Resorts are not immune to all manner of crises and tragic occurrences that can plague any business – but the best managed resorts are ready to respond proactively, with grace, on a moment’s notice. We’ve asked some of the top industry CEOs and general managers to share their insights and the challenges they’ve experienced in the face of crisis. From lift accidents to fatality clusters, this panel of industry executives has done a particularly masterful job of managing their own crises – including the sophisticated management of the media, sensitivity toward grieving families, and the mitigation of potential exposure for resorts.

Emerge and Enhance: Reinventing the Customer Experience with New Technologies
Moderated by Eric Simon, Director of Product Sales & Services, Vail Resorts, CO
Todd Bennett, Manager of Experience Development, The Walt Disney Company, Burbank, CA

We have teamed up tech gurus from innovative companies — both from within and outside the ski industry — who are taking advantage of emerging technologies to enhance the guest experience and reach out to the younger, tech-savvy generation. Moderated by Eric Simon — part of Vail Resort’s Senior Leadership Team and guest experience technology guru — this panel will highlight what the resort, recreation, and amusement industries are doing to utilize emerging technologies to improve guest service and loyalty, as well as overall operations and analyze how Vail Resorts “Epic Mix” technology performed in its inaugural year.

Preparing for the New Sheriff in Town: OSHA Inspections and Compliance
Michael Greear, Aon Risk Services, Denver, CO

Make no mistake, OSHA is back in the “enforcement business” — and the ski industry is increasingly on its radar. This informative OSHA session will prepare resort operators for the inevitable inspection, provide an overview of the OSHA inspection and citation process, and identify current compliance areas and what you may expect in the future. With dramatically larger OSHA budgets, a vastly growing number of enforcement officers, and increased citations and related fines, resorts need to ensure their workplace safety protocols and programs will stand up to increased OSHA scrutiny. In addition, this session will review recent OSHA investigations in the ski industry and highlight recent ski resort OSHA violations. We will explore recent OSHA regulatory changes and proposed changes that have the potential to dramatically increase the regulation of our industry, from ski helmets as potential PPE to vastly expanded requirements for injury and illness prevention programs.

The Industry’s Biggest Loser: Bragging Rights and Cost Savings through NSAA’s New Climate Challenge
Judy Dorsey, President, Brendle Group, Fort Collins, CO
Seth Jansen, Project Engineer, Brendle Group, Fort Collins, CO

While policy makers continue to debate how to regulate climate or carbon, ski area managers are making measurable differences now by implementing emissions reduction strategies in their operations. This session — lead by Judy Dorsey, sustainability consultant and recognized leader on business-based climate mitigation – will shift the climate discussion from science and policy to communication and action. Resorts who have accepted the challenge will receive the first phase of technical training on the “Inventory-Target-Reduce” elements of NSAA’s New Climate Challenge. This three-step process — “weighing” your greenhouse gas emissions, setting a meaningful weight-reduction target, and taking annual steps to reduce emissions — will encourage participating resorts to be “the biggest loser.” Even resorts not yet participating are welcome to monitor this technical training to better inform their decision to join NSAA’s Climate Challenge down the road.

Reinventing your Resort Brand: Lessons Learned from the Re-Creation of Canyons Resort
Todd Burnette, VP of Marketing, Canyons Resort, UT

This past season, Canyons Resort completed its first phase of an ambitious rebranding effort and capital investment plan designed to enhance the resort’s image. This session will be a candid assessment — warts and all — of the hurdles and challenges involved with rebranding, marketing, and the public relations inherent with such an enormous project — everything from a new logo, new lifts, new restaurants, a name change and redesigned base area. Could it all get finished in time? How could Canyons influence consumer purchase decisions before the projects were completed, and what strategies were effective (and those that were ineffective) at repositioning the resort to the local audience versus destination visitors? Canyons Resort’s Vice President of Marketing, Todd Burnette, shares the lessons learned by the resort as part of its broader, three-year expansion and rebranding initiative.

New Strategies and Applications for Utilizing Freestyle Terrain
John Rice, General Manager, Sierra-at-Tahoe, CA
Jeff Boliba, Global Resort Director, Burton Snowboards, Burlington, VT
Clayton Shoemaker, Terrain Park Development Manager, Bear Mountain, CA

Resorts continue to grow in their sophistication and innovation with regard to the way they are utilizing freestyle terrain. This session will introduce new strategies and programs for terrain education, including using terrain for teaching new riders, the use of terrain parks, expanded guest outreach, improvements in terrain park safety, and efforts to minimize resort exposure and liability. In addition, we will unveil the new Smart Style DVD and explore how resorts — using their own personalized media in conjunction with the new Smart Style media — can incorporate guest education into their own mountain programs.

Thirty One Days: Building on the Successes of Learn to Ski & Snowboard Month
Tom Kelly, United States Ski Association, Park City, Utah
Raelene Davis, LSSM Director, Ski Utah Marketing Director, Utah
Jon Rucker, National Sales & Marketing Manager, Head USA

We launch this session with a lively recap profiling the huge successes of Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month 2011. Only in its fourth year, this grass-roots initiative drives tens of thousands of lesson-takers to resorts nationwide during the month of January, and we’re just getting started. Head Ski Company signed on as a partner of LSSM, so we invited National Sales and Marketing Director Jon Rucker to share his insights on how this initiative aligns with Head’s strategic marketing plans for growing skiing and snowboarding. USSA’s Tom Kelly will highlight the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Team’s commitment to Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month that will help propel the initiative into next year and beyond. If you’re seeking creative strategies on how resorts and the industry are growing snowsports – while driving resort exposure – you’ll find plenty of answers here.