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CASE STUDY: A Real Eye-Opening Breakfast: The Economy & Nevada: A Roundtable Discussion
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Date:
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March 24, 2010
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Time:
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7:30am to 9:00am
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Location:
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 Ruth's Chris Steakhouse
3900 Paradise Road
Las Vegas, NV 89101
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Political columnist Jon Ralston and strategic consultant John Restrepo will lead an engaging and insightful conversation about Nevada's economy at TMA's March event. Topics on the agenda include short-term budget issues, the role of government in economic recovery, the long-term implications of Nevada's budget shortfall and its implications for future growth. Nevada's economy is known for being reliant on a few key industries. Ralston and Restrepo will also talk about the need for economic diversity and the key indicators Nevada needs to see to make progress on this important issue.
Both Ralston and Restrepo bring highly relevant backgrounds to the discussion. Ralston hosts "Face to Face," on KVBC, which is must-see TV for Nevada's business community. He also writes a political column for the Las Vegas Sun and In Business Las Vegas and comments daily on politics and business developments with his "Ralston Flash" electronic newsletter. Restrepo is the founder of Restrepo Consulting Group LLC, one of the dominant and most authoritative sources of information, research and strategic advice related to the economic, demographic, and real estate development of Nevada and the Southwest.
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TMA Nevada Gets an Inside Look at Harrah's Entertainment, Inc.
TMA Nevada members got a rare inside look at the decisions Harrah's Entertainment, Inc., took to dodge bankruptcy court as the economy declined in 2008 and the current recession began. As the second installment of TMA"s series, "Nevada's Turnaround Grit," Harrah's senior executives Jan Jones and Jonathan Halkyard talked about how they leveraged Harrah's strengths and managed its weaknesses to become a better company in 2010.
Jan Jones. Harrah's senior vice president of communications and government relations, talked about the expectation of growth that was built in to business models in Nevada. With credit readily available and the balance sheet strong, Harrah's private equity deal seemed to position the company for continued expansion. When the recession began, Jones said, the reality suddenly was very different. With revenues declining, Harrah's looked to cutting expenses, getting back to operational basics and using its human and physical diversity to develop uniform new best practices.
Chief Financial Officer Jonathan Halkyard talked about how Harrah's developed an overall strategy for financial stability in an environment where none of the formerly reliable predictive tools was working. The first priority had to be cutting costs, but Halkyard also used sophisticated customer service measures to determine what needed to be retained and improved. Once a better cost structure was in place, Harrah's was in a position to restructure its debt and take advantage of the down market.
While the challenges are ongoing, both Jones and Halkyard are optimistic about the future for Harrah's and for Nevada. For TMA, this exceptionally interesting, exclusive and well-attended event was a great kick-off for the 2010 program year.
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Mona Burton (top left): Mona Burton is a partner at Holland and Hart LLP and practices in the area of bankruptcy law. She has over 25 years of experience representing creditors, debtors, committees, and trustees in all types of cases under the Bankruptcy Code. She has particularly extensive experience in chapter 11 reorganizations, but also has a wealth of experience in cases under chapters 7, 12 and 13. Burton has participated in a number of the larger bankruptcy cases in Utah and Nevada and is licensed to practice law in Utah and Texas, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. She has been nominated to the 21st class of Fellows in the American College of Bankruptcy, an exclusive honorary association of bankruptcy and insolvency professionals. To learn more about Mona, view her profile.
Mark Cenicola (top right): Before founding BannerView.com, Mark graduated Summa Cum Laude with an Associates of Applied Science degree in Computer Information Systems from Snow College. At Snow College he worked as a Certified Novell Administrator for the CIS department and helped develop the networking program previously in place at the college. After Graduation, Mark worked as a Certified Novell Engineer for the City of North Las Vegas responsible for helping with the design, layout and maintenance of a new multi-million dollar computer network. Mark was a shareware computer software author with titles written for both the Macintosh and PC which have been featured in magazines and CD-ROMs across the globe in places like Japan, France, and the US. Mark currently serves on the board of the Turnaround Management Association of Nevada. The Nevada Chapter is a member of the nationally chartered, TMA. Mark has been actively responsible in making the Nevada chapter one of the fastest growing chapters in the entire organization. Mark also serves of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce's Business Council. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce is the third largest chamber in the nation with over 6,000 members. The Business Council provides oversight for some of the Chamber's most established and most popular events. To learn more about Mark, view his profile or website.
Frederick Chin (bottom right): Frederick Chin, founder of the Atalon Group, LLC, combines diverse operational and restructuring experience with broad-based real estate advisory expertise. Over the course of his 30 year career, he has advised public and private real estate companies, wealthy individuals, estates, pension funds and insurance companies on a variety of real estate matters involving judicial and non-judicial restructurings, transaction structuring, capital formation, strategic planning, operations and portfolio valuation and feasibility. He has also served as Chief Restructuring Officer, representing all stakeholders, including debtors, creditors and equity interests. Frederick earned his Bachelor of Science in Business with a concentration in Real Estate from the University of Arizona, and is a Member of the Appraisal Institute and a Counselor of Real Estate. To learn more about Frederick, view his profile.
James Coyne (bottom left): James Coyne is a principal with the Atalon Group, LLC, and has more than 25 years of experience in commercial and residential real estate development. He has played a critical role in the turnaround operations of diverse assets spanning land, homebuilding, food and beverage, office, apartments, condominiums, golf, hospitality, and resorts. Prior to the formation of the Atalon Group, Coyne provided strategic and operational planning as vice president of operations for Rhodes Homes. He also has provided executive leadership to assist companies through corporate restructuring and bankruptcy operations. Coyne holds both an MBA and a Bachelor of Science in Business from the University of Arizona and is a licensed real estate broker in both Arizona and Nevada. To learn more about James, view his profile.
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K.I.S.S: A GOOD TOOL TO USE
IN AVOIDING BEING TURNED AROUND
By Pamela Joy Ring, president
There are all kinds of demonstrations of human emotion. There are hugs, pats on the back, holding hands and then there is a kiss. Well, in the world of business "kissing" has proven to be key to keeping a company focused and moving in a positive direction. This "kissing" does not require lips, but requires knowledge, and experience in applying good business fundamentals. KISS means, "keep it simple, stupid".
We are in the midst of weathering the Great Recession. Nevada, because it is so inextricably tied to the discretionary consumer, will most likely be one of the last states to rebound from this economy. But, it will be better for the experience. As painful and tough as it sounds, it's true. A resounding reality that businesses here are accepting, is that they floundered away from employing good old fashion business fundamentals in the face of high growth and easy money. They had rolled the dice with a cavalier throw.
On February 24, TMA Nevada, as part of its Nevada Turnaround Grit Series, was honored to have two top senior executives from Harrah's Entertainment speak on its strategy in restructuring in order to avoid bankruptcy: Jonathan Halkyard, CFO and Jan Jones, SVP of communications and government relations. They shared sobering lessons learned as a company and as executives. Harrah's dodged the proverbial bullet by strategically returning to good old business fundamentals...it had soul-searched. It examined what it did well with a view to how to leverage its advantages, and it took a hard look at its weaknesses, employing solutions that made sense for the present and long term. By so doing, it created a roadmap for its present and future built upon fundamental business thinking...
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