Sessions Address Using GIS to Prepare the Next Generation of Business Leaders

Redlands, California—June 17, 2009—New alumni of graduate and undergraduate business programs are entering one of the most competitive environments in recent history. But those who know how to use geographic information system (GIS) technology to advance business have an advantage in today's climate. To support GIS education in colleges and universities, ESRI and the University of Redlands, in Redlands, California, will host the Business Educators Track on Tuesday, July 14, at the ESRI Business GIS Summit in San Diego, California. The track will highlight real-world GIS applications and offer ideas on integrating GIS into business courses.

Session topics include using GIS in small business, education, and public policy; understanding data through spatial analysis; and addressing issues such as extending successful initial public offerings (IPOs) and navigating the housing foreclosure market with geospatial technology. Attendees will learn how GIS is currently being taught at the university level as well as how academics and business practitioners are implementing GIS solutions. Additionally, the University of Redlands will unveil an online business-focused GIS data repository that will be available for academic research and teaching.

Diana Sinton, director of Spatial Curriculum and Research at the University of Redlands, notes, "The Business Educators Track blends academic understanding with real-world experience and exposes educators to the most current and effective methods of teaching GIS in a business setting."

The ESRI Business GIS Summit will take place July 12–15 at the San Diego Convention Center and is held in conjunction with the ESRI International User Conference. The summit is open to everyone. Special pricing for educators is available. Visit www.esri.com/bet for more information and to register.

About ESRI

Since 1969, ESRI has been giving customers around the world the power to think and plan geographically. The market leader in GIS, ESRI software is used in more than 300,000 organizations worldwide including each of the 200 largest cities in the United States, most national governments, more than two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. ESRI applications, running on more than one million desktops and thousands of Web and enterprise servers, provide the backbone for the world's mapping and spatial analysis. ESRI is the only vendor that provides complete technical solutions for desktop, mobile, server, and Internet platforms. Visit us at http://www.esri.com.



Contact:

Karen Richardson, ESRI
Tel.: 909-793-2853, extension 1-3491
E-mail: Email Contact