CCIM & IREM SuccessSeries to be held Oct. 17-18

The CCIM and IREM Success Series 2008, to be held Oct. 17-18 at the Hilton Chicago, will provide attendees with compelling education programs, plus time to interact with industry colleagues and negotiate new business deals. The event designed to appeal to a broad spectrum of commercial real estate practitioners and to give real estate managers and commercial brokers the opportunity to network, share best practices and learn from each other. Success Series attendees will benefit from 30 sessions - presented by some 50 industry and professional speakers - on many of today's most popular and critical topics. Surviving market cycles, negotiation, capital markets, new management techniques and prevailing technology are among the many subjects to be covered. A networking lunch will feature a presentation on geographic information system (GIS) technology, which is predicted to become one of the world's most universal and important technologies. Jack Dangermond, founder and president of ESRI will discuss the critical advantages of GIS technology and how real estate professionals can leverage it to generate major business benefits. Motivational speaker Alison Levine will keynote the opening general session, with humorist Dave Barry slated to keynote the closing program. Levine has survived various weather-driven disasters and pursued a career on Wall St. Born with a life-threatening heart condition that precluded most demanding physical activities, surgery changed her life - giving way to climbing mountains - and becoming the first female to lead an expedition on Mt. Everest. Levine's 20-year business career encompasses healthcare, technology and finance. Pulitzer Prize winner Dave Barry will share his thoughts about politics, the media and the absurdities of everyday life from his light-hearted perspective. His critically acclaimed weekly column ran in several hundred newspapers for over 15 years and his best-selling books are known for presenting fresh and humorous insights into serious issues. SuccessSeries 2008 is open to all commercial real estate and allied professionals, with more than 1,200 expected to attend.