McCormick Place

Matt Steinmetz is the publisher and brand director of Publishing Executive.

Where is the book industry going, what will my workplace and career opportunities be like, what do I need to know to keep up with the times? Or, in a more cosmic vein, what does the future hold?

In an effort to answer these questions, publishers have settled each year into a series of industry meetings of general interest. Each has a unique theme, as noted below. They make the effort to bring together a cross section of publishers, associations, service providers and media professionals to connect with audiences ranging from first-time aspirants to seasoned managers and executives in every channel and of every level of responsibility.

Following is my own overview of the events with which I have become familiar through the years. I would say that a judicious choice of BEA or ALA and any one of the others whose focus comes closest to your own would provide a more than satisfying menu. If I had to attend only one: (a) I would pick BEA or ALA if my interest was in authors, reading, content and publishing as an enterprise, and (b) if my primary concerns were business development and operating management, I would choose any of the others from whose quality of attendee profiles and lists of presenters, speakers, sponsors and exhibitors I would expect to learn the most.

When Shona Burns first entered college, she was unsure of what she wanted to study. “I started out doing a business studies degree,” she recalls. “I was bored rigid. … I had met a couple of fellow students who were getting a publishing degree and found what they were talking about a lot more interesting than what I was doing myself.”

Now in its 21st year, the Gold Ink Awards call attention to the print industry’s finest projects. 2008 was no exception, as North American Publishing Co. (NAPCO; parent company of both the Gold Ink Awards and Book Business) received more than 1,400 entries for this year’s competition. As always, a talented team of judges hailing from diverse backgrounds across the industry poured through the submissions, awarding Gold, Silver, Bronze and Pewter honors in 46 categories. In all, 488 entries were selected for awards. Nearly two-dozen judges sorted and sifted through the finest print pieces, submitted by publishers and printers alike, over the course of

Francine Colaneri, this year’s inductee in book publishing, joins the following inductees in magazine publishing into the 2008 Publishing Executive Hall of Fame. Bob Wiemers, operations director, Boy Scouts of America Rich Zweiback, executive director of manufacturing, Lebhar-Friedman Inc. They will be recognized for their significant achievements at the Gold Ink Awards/Hall of Fame Banquet at McCormick Place in Chicago on Monday, Oct. 27, during Graph Expo.

Nominations for the Publishing Executive Hall of Fame are now being accepted. Each year, exceptional professionals from the production industry are inducted into the Publishing Executive Hall of Fame (formerly PrintMedia Hall of Fame). The inductees represent the best of the best, and are honored for their outstanding achievements and contributions to the publishing industry. Last year’s inductees included Michael Weinstein, vice president, EDP and manufacturing, Oxford University Press; Louis Milani, senior director, publishing operations and business affairs, Consumers Union; and Marie Myers, senior vice president of manufacturing, CMP Technology. Nominations for the 2008 Hall of Fame are due July 1. Inductees will be

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