SYNERGY kicked off with the State of the GPO address to bring members up-to-date on Corporate United’s status and initiatives. Since last year’s SYNERGY conference, Corporate United has added 27 new member companies. Today, more than half of its membership includes companies based outside of Minnesota and Ohio. Furthermore, the increase in membership has also led to much higher participation on agreements, which provides the group with increasingly powerful leverage.

In addition to new members, Corporate United also announced agreements that have been added since last May managed staffing program (TAPFIN Process Solutions), electrical supplies (VANTAGE GROUP) and material handling management (Total Fleet Solutions) – as well as several renegotiated agreements and expanded category offerings, including a global offering for office products.

The first day of the conference also included an update from the Corporate United Member Advisory Board, presented by Donald Seward, director of indirect procurement for CH2M HILL, as well as Corporate United member feedback sessions and, as a new addition to SYNERGY,a speed networking session.

The second day of the conference began with breakout sessions, giving attendees the opportunity to learn about timely and relevant procurement topics, including: how industry leaders are saving in the current economy, adapting your negotiation approach in the current economic environment, trading carbon credits and more. The day ended with a change of venue for networking and relaxation – cocktails and dinner at Navy Pier’s Crystal Gardens, featuring carnival-themed entertainment complete with games, a magician and a fortune teller.

The conference came to a close on Thursday with the event’s final presentations. The first to speak was Geraint John, editor-in-chief of CPO Agenda. His presentation entitled "How procurement can move upward in a downturn" was full of timely statistics and information on the procurement industry. The second presentation, new to SYNERGY in 2009, was a CFO Q&A Panel. The panel, moderatedby Geraint John, featured Brad Dickerson, CFOof Under Armour, Brad Wilson CAO of Grant Thornton LLP and Ron DiNella, CFO of Morton’s Restaurants. The CFOs addressed the increased importance of procurement departments in the current economy, as well as questions from the audience on their views of the procurement department within their organizations.

SYNERGY 2009’s closing keynote presentation was given by Jim Donald, former CEO of Starbucks and Pathmark. His presentation entitled "There’s never been a better time to start stealing…market share" kept conference attendees on the edges of their seats. Mr. Donald’s eloquent and powerfully spellbinding presentation elicited enormously positive feedback from everyone present. Those lucky enough to meet him can certainly attest to his kind and genuine demeanor.

For those who attended SYNERGY 2009, thank you. If you were not able to attend the conference this year, we hope to see you next year. In the meantime, please feel free to view all of the presentations at www.corporateunited.com by clicking the SYNERGY link on the homepage. Additionally, we are pleased to offer audio recordings of the presentations by Geraint John, the CFO Panel and the closing keynote by Jim Donald; all are available on our website.