International Council for Small Business
2010 World Conference
Entrepreneurship: Bridging Global Boundaries
June 24 – 27, Cincinnati, Ohio

The University of Cincinnati and the International Council for Small Business (ICSB) presented the 55th Anniversary ICSB 2010 World Conference at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza Hotel.  This year's World Conference theme was “Entrepreneurship: Bridging Global Boundaries.”  For more information, including conference photos, the official conference Proceedings (featuring full length papers), 2010 conference program and session abstracts and selected keynote speakers' PowerPoint presentations please visit www.icsb2010.org.

Educators, researchers, policy makers, practitioners and professionals from around the world took time to share in the exchange of ideas and experiences dealing with the development of small, entrepreneurial and family business. An indication of the importance of small business and entrepreneurship, this year's conference was attended by over 350 participants from over 50 countries.  Over 260 papers and workshops were presented by delegates during 13 parallel tracks, in addition to several plenary sessions featuring internationally recognized keynote speakers.
The ICSB is comprised of 13 Affiliates, with over 2,000 members representing over 70 countries from around the world.  The U.S. Affiliate, the United States Association for Small Business & Entrepreneurship (USASBE), used the opportunity of the ICSB World Conference to convene a strategic planning meeting with its Executive Committee on Saturday, June 26.  As a past president of both USASBE and ICSB, Dr. Charles Matthews noted that having the ICSB World Conference in Cincinnati was well received by all the Affiliates.  “Cincinnati is the perfect venue for providing outstanding meeting facilities as well as big city entertainment with a small town feel,” commented Matthews.

Prior to the main conference commencing, two outstanding pre-conference activities took place – a Pre-conference on Small Business Policy and a Doctoral Student Consortium.  The Small Business Policy pre-conference is now an annual event hosted by the ICSB and this year's summit was focused on the “Effects of the Global Recession on SME's.”  It was expertly chaired by William J.“Denny” Dennis, Senior Research Fellow for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).  Topics included the process of developing a record of the impact of the Great Recession on new and small businesses and the policy response of government's from around the world.

The Doctoral Student Consortium included fifteen doctoral candidates from 11 countries and was organized by Co-Chairs Dr. Helle Neergaard and Dr. Sharon Alvarez.  Neergaard and Alvarez brought their expertise and experience to some of the up-and-coming researchers in entrepreneurship.  One of the highlights was the opportunity to hear from and meet the Interim Editor of the Journal of Small Business Management, Dr. George Solomon.  Solomon shared with the students his wisdom on what it takes to publish in one of the field's leading journals.
Thursday evening, delegates gathered to greet each other at the Opening Reception, where ICSB President, Annette St-Onge offered a welcoming toast.  Professor Tsugio Ide, Honorary Secretary General of the International Small Business Congress (ISBC), provided an inspiring toast to welcome the delegates and set the stage for the next two and half days.

The Opening Ceremony of the 2010 ICSB World Conference began with a procession led by a Highland Regimental Bagpiper and continued with a warm welcome from Mayor Mark Mallory, Mayor of the City of Cincinnati and Dr. Gregory Williams, President of the University of Cincinnati.  President Williams invited the delegations to visit campus and see what Forbes magazine meant when they voted UC one of the world's most beautiful campuses.  Dr. Charles Matthews, Past President of the ICSB, served as master of ceremonies, and Annette St. 0nge, President of the ICSB, continued the greetings, recognizing all the delegations from around the world and representatives of the ICSB affiliates. 

Mr. Stephen Boord, Managing Director, Neyer Holdings, Corp., introduced the opening keynote speaker, Ms. Amy Wilkinson, Senior Fellow at Harvard University's Center for Business and Government, and Public Policy Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.  Ms. Wilkinson's talk entitled, “Global Pioneers: Shaping Change in the Entrepreneurial World,” built on several themes developed over her extensive interviews with literally dozens of entrepreneurs. 

The theme for this year's ICSB World Conference, “Entrepreneurship: Bridging Global Boundaries,” focused the importance of bringing together individuals to foster growth in the industry of small business and entrepreneurship. As a key driver of entrepreneurship and growth, innovation is a hot topic that was discussed on Friday during the luncheon keynote address and parallel workshop sessions. Mr. Doug Hall, professional inventor, researcher, author, and Founder of Eureka Ranch, highlighted the topic during his luncheon keynote address, “Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Creativity: Creating Smart Choices for Growth.”

Friday evening, the ICSB delegates took advantage of the opportunity to attend major league baseball at its finest in the hometown of professional baseball, as over 100 delegates attended to watch the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians vie for the Ohio Cup.  “A special thanks to Cincinnati Bell Technology Solutions for hosting the reception at Great American Ballpark,” noted Dr. Charles Matthews, ICSB Past-President.  “It was a perfect night at the ballpark, Irish Heritage night, fireworks, and the Reds won!”

Dr. George Solomon, Wilford White Fellow and Past President of the ICSB, introduced the Keynote Panel for the Saturday morning plenary session.  The panel included Mr. Peter Shea, Chairman and CEO, Entrepreneur Media, Inc.; Dr. Robert Lai, Director-General of Small and Medium Enterprise Administration, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Taiwan; Ms. Elizabeth Edwards, Founder, Metro Innovation; and Mr. Guy Philips, Head of Small Business North America, VISA.  The illustrious panel shared insights on the importance of entrepreneurship in the 21st Century, building effective SME policy, and the role of innovation in investment and growth.  Philips showed and engaging video clip, entitled, “VISA: The Currency of Progress” highlighting the important role that global credit and currency play.

Dr. Ayman El Tarabishy, Executive Director of the ICSB, introduced the Saturday luncheon keynote speaker, Dr. Christopher Thoen, Managing Director, Global Open Innovation, P&G.  Dr. Thoen's remarks were of great interest to the audience as he outlined the importance of how P&G is setting the world stage to connect and develop, creating more value together than we ever could alone. 
Saturday evening, the annual ICSB Gala Dinner and Reception was held in the historic and beautiful Hall of Mirrors at the Hilton Netherland Plaza Hotel.  The assembled guests and dignitaries were entertained by the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music Student Orchestra under the direction of Antoine Francois Lopez.  Selections played included Franz Joseph Haydn's Cello Concerto No. 2 in D and Benjamin Britten's Simple Symphony.

Following dinner was the investiture of the newest ICSB Wilford White Fellows.  Being named a Wilford White Fellow is the highest honor of ICSB and in the field of Entrepreneurship and is bestowed on only those who have made the highest contribution to the field.  This year's honorees were Dr. Pierre-André Julien, Professeur Emérite, Institut de Recherche sur les PME, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivièr; and Mr. Rob van der Horst, Executive Director, European Network for Social and Economic Research, and Director, Brussels Office EIM Business & Policy Research.

Another highlight of the evening included the inaugural presentation of the ICSB Global Small Business Ambassador Award which was presented by Dr. Gregory Williams, President, University of Cincinnati, to Oscar Robertson, Entrepreneur, Humanitarian and Olympian.  In presenting the award to Robertson, Dr. Williams stated “Oscar always had his eye on a career beyond basketball.  He brought the same determination, perseverance, and collaboration he used in sports to his business and entrepreneurial endeavors.  Life is not always easy for a small independent business owner who wants to control his or her own destiny. But Oscar was always in control on the basketball court, and he was determined to be in control in his business ventures.”  The award is presented to a worthy recipient in recognition of significant global impact of small business and/or entrepreneurial pursuits and achievement, including educational, social, and corporate venturing.  Eligibility extends to both those who have pursued either successful venture creation or whose life's pursuits have supported and advocated small business, entrepreneurial, and citizen ambassador ideals and actions.

The ICSB Board of Directors meets each year during the World Conference to discuss the successes and actions in the past fiscal year.  The Board is comprised of 31 members from 15 different countries.  Board positions include six elected officers, five Directors-At-Large, eleven Affiliate Presidents, as well as various non-elected board members and officers.  During the morning session, the Board received updates from the President, Past President and President Elect on the initiatives they completed throughout their terms.  Also discussed were developments for the upcoming 2011 Conference in Stockholm, Sweden.  www.icsb2011.org 

A special thank you to our conference sponsors:

Marquee
Sponsors:   

• Dell
• P&G
• University of Cincinnati
• Visa

Silver Sponsors:

• Cat Creatives LLC
• CBTS (Cincinnati Bell Technology Solutions for Business)
• Direct Selling Education Foundation
• Entrepreneur Media Inc.
• NFIB (National Federation of Independent Business)
• Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP

University Platinum
Sponsor:  

• UC Center for Entrepreneurship Education & Research

University Silver
Sponsors: 

• The George Washington University
• Kansas State University Center for the Advancement of Entrepreneurship
• Northern Kentucky University

University Bronze
Sponsor:

• University of Illinois at Chicago – Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies

We would also like to thank our conference exhibitors:

• Emerald Group Publishing Limited
• Entrepreneurs Organization
• ICSB
• ICSB 2011
• Innovative Learning Solutions, Inc.
• National Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, R.O.C
• Routledge/Psychology Press, Taylor & Francis Group
• U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)
• USASBE
• Wiley Blackwell