GENERAL SESSIONS Sunday, October 26 5:00pm - 6:30pm Keynote Making Fish Fly - Inspiring Leadership Greatness John Yokoyama, Founder Pike Place Fish Market   John Yokoyama purchased Pike Place Fish in 1965. At that time, John was one of several employees of the quiet, unassuming little fish stand. After numerous unsuccessful attempts to sell the business, John’s employer offered him the opportunity to purchase Pike Place Fish. As a young man of 25, John was at first hesitant to buy the business. However, the monthly payments on his new 1965 Buick Riviera were taking most of his pay. He decided he could do better on an owner’s salary and went ahead and bought the company...so… originally, John purchased Pike Place Fish so he could make his car payments…amazing how things have turned out! Over the years humble little Pike Place FishImagine a workplace where everyone chooses to bring energy, passion and a positive attitude with them each day. An environment in which people are truly connected to their work, to their colleagues, and to their customers. Impossible? Not at all. Since 1986, Pike Place Fish has been engaged in a process that has helped lead them to become World Famous Pike Place Fish. In 1986, John Yokoyama, owner of Pike Place Fish, and his crew took a stand on a vision of becoming "world famous”.  As a result of his work with Jim Bergquist, founder of Business Futures Consulting Company. Jim has been working closely with John and the fishmongers to transform their work culture. This transformation is now reflected in every aspect of the business. Over the years almost bankrupt Pike Place Fish has transformed into "World Famous" Pike Place Fish, a dynamic, fast-paced retail fish market that’s fun for both customers and employees! The antics of the fish-flinging staff have become a highlight of the Pike Place Market, and have been featured in Spike Lee’s Levi commercial, NBC’s "Frasier", MTV’s "Real World", Jay Leno, David Letterman, Oprah and ABC’s "Good Morning America". The "low-flying fish" have been captured on film and immortalized in print by filmmakers and journalists from all over the world. In 1996 an award winning corporate training film, FiSH! was produced. It has become the best selling training film for all time… in the world. It is now available in 39 languages. This video documents the amazing culture of Pike Place Fish. In a CNN Special Report on January 26, 2001, CNN identified the three most fun places to work in the United States. The World Famous Pike Place Fish Market was #1! Since then, out of the top ten fish markets in the United States, Pike Place has been rated #1 by the CNN – Travel Program. The Team now travels to company conventions and special events where John and The Fishmongers deliver their Fish Wisdom in a way that is fun, educational and inspiring. Tuesday, October 28 11:15 – 12:30pm General Session Global Technology Outlook: Vision for the Future of IT in Retail Francoise LeGoues, PhD Vice President and Chief Technology Officer Distribution Sector, Sales and Distribution IBM Corporation GTO, the Global Technology Outlook, is IBM Research’s vision of the future for information technology (IT) and its impact on Retail. It will highlight emerging software, hardware and services technology trends that are expected to significantly impact the Retail sector in the next 5-8 years. In particular, the GTO identifies technologies that may be disruptive to an existing business, have the potential to create new opportunity and can provide new business value to customers. In this general session, LeGoues will describe the development of GTO and share insights for the future of IT. Françoise LeGoues is a Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for the Distribution Sector in IBM’s Sales and Distribution organization. She joined the IBM Research Division after obtaining a PhD in Material Sciences from Carnegie-Mellon University. As a Research Staff Member and then as the manager of the “Materials Characterization” group, LeGoues authored over 150 scientific publications and obtained four patents. As manager of the Industry Solutions Lab, she then became the main interface between the Research Division and IBM customers. As such, she managed three solutions labs worldwide, where customer can see, touch and play with the new technologies that IBM scientists are inventing, and where they can discuss and mold the use of these technologies in their own businesses. LeGoues also ran the First-of-a-kind Program, which seeds the deployment of emerging technologies to create innovation in the marketplace through join research/customer engagements. In her most recent role prior to the current one, she was the Director of Innovation in the Applications Management Services business unit, where she built a team of senior IT architects to help grow the AMS business through technical leadership. LeGoues is an IBM Distinguished Engineer and a member of the IBM Academy. Featuring leading speakers – both from the industry and from outside of the industry the TechPoint’s General Sessions bring you the latest insights into trends of today and opportunities for the future, providing you with the means to inspire innovation, leadership and growth within your own organization. For content from the 2007 General Sessions, click here.