Recognized as a leading executive and consulting expert, Martha’s background includes over 25 years in real estate. She has held numerous executive level positions including Division President of a Fortune 500 Home-building Division, National Vice President of Sales and Marketing, and Vice President of National Accounts and Purchasing. Martha’s background includes a high performance management style leading companies to success in demanding situations resulting in dramatic P&L growth.

Six years ago Martha opened a management consulting firm and now divides her time between professional speaking and consulting with builders and manufacturers.

Last year, Martha published a book entitled” The Two Minute Drill”, How to be Unique, Different From, or Better than the competition. She has spoken in over 30 states on this topic.

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Joseph Beaudette is a co-founder of BEST Institute and the firm's Chief Operating Officer. This latest venture is the culmination of more than 30 years in the construction industry, where Mr. Beaudette has worked at positions spanning simple carpentry to comprehensive construction management. Prior to forming BEST Institute, Mr. Beaudette was a project manager for Austin Commercial headquartered in Dallas, Texas. One of his key accomplishments there was the 18-story Bank of Dallas office tower that was completed ahead of schedule and under budget. Mr. Beaudette also worked in a supervisor training role at Austin Commercial and was the leader of the company's "Careers in Construction" program that introduced individuals from traditionally underemployed areas to the construction trades.

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Randy Birdwell is the 54th President of the Texas Association of Builders (TAB) and is President and CEO of Emerald Builders, a full service private homebuilding enterprise. Emerald employs over 200 with $180 million in revenues in four markets. Emerald was named “Outstanding Volume Builder” by the Texas Association of Realtors in 1993 and 1994. Professional Builder and Remodeler named Emerald Homes the “Outstanding Builder in the Southwest”. Randy has been involved in the development of over 30 large scale master planned communities across Texas and Arizona. Through his involvement with TAB, Birdwell has become the industry’s leading expert on residential construction liability. At the National Association of Home Builders, Randy has served on various committees and has been a director since 1990.

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Robert L. Russell Bush began practicing law in Arlington in 1975 and founded the law firm, Bush & Motes, P.C., in 1985. He concentrates his practice in real estate, residential and commercial construction, title insurance, and the defense of litigation relating to these areas, including residential construction liability, deceptive trade practices, business torts and insurance bad faith cases. Mr. Bush was actively involved in the passage of the Residential Construction Liability Act (Texas Property Code §27.001 et. seq.) in 1989 and has worked on all of the subsequent amendments to that statute.

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As COO of Dean Williams Technology, and formerly with Internet Home Construction Group, Erik brings 16 years of experience in consulting with Builders and Clients on leveraging technology to solve business challenges, and experience with Builders completing the project line from concept to reality.

Erik Cofield’s industry specific summary includes:
Speaker:
Sunbelt Builder Show Managing Options on line 2002

Commentary in Publications:
Texas Association of Builders, Builder/Architect Magazine,
DBA Houston Magazine, LA Weekly, Houston Business Journal (2x)
Regular Column:
Texas Association of Builders, Michigan Assoc. of HB
Affiliations:
Cahners, Hanley-Wood and several other organizations, including state
and local (Texas) builder associations

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C. Kent Conine, First Vice President of the 205,000-member National Association of Home Builders, is President of Conine Residential Group in Dallas, which specializes in single-family home building, single-family subdivision development, and multifamily development.
Conine began his career in 1976 as a commercial loan officer with Lomas and Nettleton. Subsequently, he returned to his hometown of Dallas to join Metroplex Associates as Vice President. Since 1981, he has been responsible for the construction, management, and development of more than 3,000 apartment units and the development of several residential communities with a total of more than 1,500 single-family lots. Conine’s company has recently expanded into the development of golf course communities and lake resort communities.
Conine is involved in numerous community and professional activities. He is a board member of the Home Builders Association of Great Dallas where he served as President in 1997. He is also a board member of the Texas Association of Builders and served as president of the organization in 1996.

Texas Governor Rick Perry has appointed Conine to a two-year term as a board member of Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs where Conine serves as the Vice Chairman of the Board. He also sits on the Board of the National Council of State Housing Agencies, the National Association of Realtors, and a two-year term on the Fannie Mae Advisory Board.
Conine is a member of the Dallas All Sports Association where he was President in 1994 and a board member of the Center for Housing Resources; a non-profit group that focuses on low-income housing needs for the city of Dallas. In addition, he is a member of Big Brothers and Sisters of Dallas, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the Cotton Bowl Classic Club, the Greater Dallas Crime Commission, and the Dallas Symphony Association.
Conine is a licensed real estate broker in Texas and has a degree in Finance from Texas Tech University. Conine and his wife, Meg, have three children.

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Known for never “doing things the usual way”, Phyllis DeWitt has developed innovative, unique and successful campaigns, promotions and sales events targeted to bring results. She is a recipient of numerous MIRM, Texas Star and McSam awards for her efforts. She is a member of the Sales and Marketing Council of the Home and Apartment Builders Association of Dallas, a member of the National Sales & Marketing Council, and was co-chairperson for the Builder/Realtor® Committee of the Collin County Board of Realtors®. She has also served as the chairperson on the board for SMC and was a member of the board of directors for the North Dallas/Collin County Division of the Dallas HAB. Also an MIRM candidate, Ms. DeWitt has been a team leader for the National Association of Home Builders Convention Housing tour and the marketing chair for the Dallas HAB Parade of Homes®.

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Ramon Flores is Community Development Manager for Fannie Mae’s Southwestern Regional Office in Dallas, TX. In that capacity, he represents Fannie Mae’s American Communities Fund (ACF), which makes debt and equity investments in real estate developments that increase affordable housing. Mr. Flores is responsible for sourcing investments throughout the state of Texas. He has been with Fannie Mae for 7 years and has held various positions within the company.

Mr. Flores received his Bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and his MBA from the Cox School of Business at SMU.

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Jim Frankel is one of the most active and respected forces in the fast-moving redevelopment market of the Memorial Villages where his dynamic design work and talent for blending large new houses into established neighborhoods is receiving great acclaim. Jim has achieved the status of Graduate Master Builder (approximately 320 in the United States). He is an experienced builder of quality, custom single family homes in the Memorial Villages, Sandalwood/Lakeview, Tanglewood, River Oaks and Cinco Ranch. Jim Frankel, President of Jim Frankel Custom Homes was selected as the Greater Houston Builders Association, 1996 Custom Builder of the Year. Jim’s most recent accomplishment was to be the winner of two coveted PRISIM awards - the local product design awards given by the Greater Houston Builders Association - for Best Custom Home for 2001, $2.5 million and up and for Best Specialty Product/Townhouse for 2001.

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As Founder and Principal of Builder Technology Associates, Ms. Hart brings 20 years of experience to the housing industry, providing Home Builders technology strategy, leveraging technology to solve business issues, especially with lead generation and management.

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Author, Marketer and Corporate Anarchist Marc Marsan is the founder of the nationally renowned think tank Marco Polo Explorers and one of America’s most inventive minds. His radical ideation techniques have helped create successful new products for Fortune 200 companies, including Gatorade, Nike, Proctor & Gamble and AT&T. Since 1990, Marc has initiated more than 500 BIG IDEA sessions and spoken to tens of thousands of people on the power of innovation and creativity with his “Think Naked” speeches. A consumer trends expert and member of the World Future Society, Marc holds several design patents.

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David Jarvis, director of consulting in Houston for American Metro/Study Corporation, has been admitted to the Institute of Residential Marketing of the National Association of Home Builders. Founded in Houston over 25 years ago, Metro/Study is one of the nation’s leading market advisory firms serving home builders, lenders and developers.

Jarvis’s designation as a Member of the Institute of Residential Marketing (MIRM) is based on a combination of professional education and experience in the real estate industry. With over 20 years of experience in the sale, marketing, management and development of residential real estate, Jarvis is respected for his real-world experience as well as the extensive primary research he brings to the table.

Jarvis assists clients in the development and implementation of marketing and sales management strategies and model home development and merchandising.

He has received numerous marketing and sales awards, including Sales and Marketing Director of the Year for the Greater Houston Builders Association. Sales Manager of the Year, also for the Greater Houston Builders Association; Sales Manager of the Year for the Dallas Homebuilders Association; and Regional Marketing Director of the Year for the National Association of Home Builders. In addition, Jarvis speaks frequently on sales and marketing techniques to industry trade organizations such as the Southern Builders Exhibition and Conference and the National Association of Home Builders International Builders Show.

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Ron Jones is owner of Sierra Custom Builders which he founded in 1983. A design/build company located in Placitas New Mexico, the company specializes in challenging site projects and environmentally appropriate construction. Primarily serving Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado, his firm also offers design, construction management and consulting services throughout North America and the Caribbean.

His award winning projects have been featured in numerous national and regional publications and on HGTV’s “DREAM BUILDERS” where they were cited for innovation in all aspects of sustainable building practices. A recent project was selected as the pilot for the upcoming television series “NEW FOUNDATIONS”.

Mr. Jones is Area 13 National Vice President for the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) for the term 2001 and 2002. One of only twenty elected officers of NAHB, he represents all association members in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming.

Having served as a member of the NAHB Board of Directors since 1994 and as a member of the NAHB Executive Committee since 1998, his list of committee experience includes multi year terms in Environmental Issues, Design, Public Affairs, Research, Custom Home Builders, and Construction Codes and Standards.

He served as charter chairman of the NAHB Green Building Subcommittee for two years as well as chairman of the Steering Committee for the inaugural National Green Building Conference. He also enjoys a distinguished record of industry service at the state and local levels.

Under his U.S. registered trademark “GREEN BUILDER”, Ron writes a column for “PROFESSIONAL BUILDER” magazine and is becoming a recognized authority in areas of environmentally appropriate building.

He has served as a speaker and consultant to a variety of organizations ranging from the American Solar Energy Society, National Recycling Association, Sustainable Buildings Industry Council and U.S. Green Building Council… to the County of St. Louis (Missouri), the Fannie Mae Partnership Foundation and the National Arbor Day Foundation, and many more...

In addition to speaking, writing and television production on a variety of building and environmental issues, as well as topics of ethics and quality, he continues to earn his living as a hands on designer and builder.

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Lucy Katz and "The Katz Team" is celebrating twenty years of home building and is committed to quality and customer satisfaction. The company received a most coveted award in the home building industry, “The 1999 Custom Home Magazine Pacesetter Award for Customer Service”. The companies philosophy is “Customer Service has to come first.” As home owner consumer advocates, Joel and Lucy Katz have authored “Making the Sale, Getting Great Clients to Choose You”, published by the National Association of Home Builders which is available through NAHB bookstore.

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