Successful business owners attribute their growth to strategic thinking, planning, and identifying opportunities for advancement. In addition to developing a growth plan, successful business owners leverage their opportunities and their network to expedite their growth. There are many tools and resources to support you as you take your business to the next level of success.
JEDCO and the Jefferson Chamber have teamed up to bring you a Prosper Jefferson seminar on Growing a Business in Jefferson Parish. We’ve invited three experts from a variety of industries to share their insight and advice on how to grow with intelligence, support, and vision. Topics include:
- Planning & Executing your Growth Plan
- Using Community Involvement to Enhance your Business
- Leveraging Technology to Grow your Business
The event will take place Wednesday, April 24th, at the JEDCO Conference Center from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. The cost to attend is $5, which will cover a hot breakfast. Online registration is encouraged, but we also accept walk-ins and credit card payment at the door. Register to attend here.
MEET OUR EXPERTS
Bernard “Bernie” Morvant, MBA, Sparkhound
With over 30 years of experience leveraging technology solutions to overcome business problems and improve processes, Bernie is passionate about helping companies large and small find opportunities to implement technology solutions to grow their business. Bernie began this work in the late 80’s in the US Navy. He was part of the team that deployed state-of-the-art technology to improve intelligence briefings for the Commander Pacific Fleet. From there, he watched massive productivity improvements as restaurants moved from handwritten order systems to POS systems that improved profitability by facilitating better inventory tracking and customer experience by reducing mistakes. Bernie also spent years working with enterprise customers to deploy the latest telecommunications and networking solutions to improve the way companies share information across multiple business units across a vast geography.
Now, Bernie continues to assist enterprise customers to better leverage technology solutions as part of the team at SPARKHOUND. Sparkhound is a technology consulting company with a semi-serious name and a dead-serious mission: to make a meaningful impact on every Sparkhound client’s business. Sparkhound provides comprehensive business consulting services that help change the way your business works. As part of the Sparkhound team, Bernie continues to work with business leaders to identify critical business processes and leverage the latest business applications and technology to improve key performance indicators vital to growing the business.
Gene Sausse, BooKoo Bounce
Gene Sausse is the founder and owner of BooKoo Bounce, New Orleans’ first indoor inflatable playground and party place. A native New Orleanian, Gene has developed strong media, business, civic and social relationships over a 25-year career in entrepreneurship as well as the tourism, television, advertising, sales & marketing, and event planning industries.
Gene has won multiple awards over the years, including: US Chamber of Commerce Small Business of the Year Award (2013), New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau Hats off Award (2007), and the New Orleans CityBusiness Innovator of the Year Award (September 2009). BooKoo bounce was also the winner of the GROWCO “Enrich Your Pitch” competition by Inc. Magazine in 2013. Gene is a graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program and Leadership Jefferson. He serves on multiple boards, including the Jefferson Chamber of Commerce, the Medical Center of Louisiana Foundation, the French Quarter Business Association, the Jefferson Parish Litter Advisory Board, and many others.
Christine Vinson, Vinson Guard Service
As President of a 55-year-old company, some might say the job of growing the business and increasing it’s value has already been done – but Christine Vinson knows otherwise. As the leader of Vinson Guard Service, Inc., Christine Vinson has worked feverishly to continuously educate herself regarding security industry best practices and trends – VINSON wasn’t just the company her grandfather founded and father continued to build upon, but instead a family passion. She joined VINSON’s Baton Rouge office while attending Louisiana State University, and acquired over 20 years of private security experience (including becoming a licensed security officer and security officer classroom instructor) before being named President in 2015.
Her accomplishments include both local and international awards, including Crimestoppers GNO’s James J. Coleman, Sr. Corporate Partner Award, World Association of Detectives Vinson–Holmes Memorial Security Professional of the Year Award, and serving as a former member of the Louisiana State Board of Private Security Examiners. She is an active member of the New Orleans metro area community serving on the board of Junior League of New Orleans and Crimestoppers GNO, as well as a proud member of Krewe of Iris.
