NAMA Fall Conference takes place October 7-9 at the Ritz Carlton in St. Louis.  Keynote speakers and schedule are confirmed.  Details will be on the web site by August 5.

Innovation Through Culture—Stories From a Decade at Google
Steve Lerch 

Innovative thinking is changing the modern world faster than at any point in human history. But now more than ever, innovation is not resigned to only the inventors, engineers and scientists. The greatest innovators of our time are men like Steve Jobs—a man who didn’t invent the first Apple computer (Steve Wozniak) nor the iPod or iPhone (Tony Fadell). Instead, he established a culture of innovation that catalyzed and nurtured new ideas and new ways of thinking.

Steve Lerch will share stories from a decade at Google, where he worked with the world’s most innovative brands like GoPro, FitBit and Nest. Dive into the history of some of Google’s most iconic projects like self-driving cars and augmented reality glasses. More importantly, understand the simple, underlying cultural principles that allowed for these innovations.  Steve will also present a breakout session entitled Parallels Between B2B and B2C Strategies.

Knockout Customer Experience: A Service Design Approach
Sarah Weise

Gain insights for better understanding customer behaviors and drivers, real-world service blueprinting, and bottom-line success stories. Sarah Weise will teach you to deeply understand your customers and their omnichannel experiences in order to create a cohesive customer experience and spot new opportunities to break the mold, experiment and see what happens.

Sarah is the founder and CEO of award-winning market research firm Bixa, and author of the bestselling book InstaBrain: The New Rules of Marketing to Generation Z. She has been at the forefront of historical website launches, has boosted e-commerce sales no one thought possible and been put to the test at a time when tragedy struck and America needed to know. Sarah has leveraged customer research to craft incredible experiences for over 100 major brands including Capital One and PBS.

Sarah will also present a breakout session entitled InstaBrain: Marketing to a New Generation of Customers.

Bonus Breakout: 
Storytelling Secrets from an Unlikely YouTube Star
Nicole Jolly 

Nicole Jolly is recognized as a leading voice in agricultural literacy. She is the creator, host and head writer of True Food TV (TFTV), YouTube’s most watched channel dedicated to knowing where our food comes from. TFTV partners with some of the biggest brand names in food such as Campbell’s, Sabra and Ocean Spray. From wading waist-high in cranberry bogs to driving monster-sized combines, Nicole has brought millions of viewers inside the unseen origins of their favorite foods.

Nicole will share her experiences working as a journalist for The New York Times and other publications and offer insights on how to turn detailed information into engaging stories that grab people through authenticity.

Schedule-At-A-Glance

Sponsorship opportunities are available and are a great way to get your company noticed. Contact Jenny Pickett, [email protected] for more details.