Starks tabbed to keynote Utah opex conference

Steve Starks, president of Larry H. Miller Sports & Entertainment and president of the Utah Jazz, will be the keynote speaker at the State of Utah and Goldratt Consulting’s Operational Excellence Conference Sept. 27-28 at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City.

Starks will talk about what it takes to lead a company that encompasses everything from sports teams to theaters to radio stations, according to a release from conference organizers. {mprestriction ids="1,3"}He will also share insights about the inner workings of the Jazz organization and his unconventional path to professional success.

The theme for the 2018 conference is “Building on Success 2018: Intense Focus, Extreme Results.” The annual conference is centered on how to apply theory of constraints (TOC) principles to the public or private sector. Theory of constraints, often referred to as constraints management, helps organizations get breakthrough results by focusing on the one or two constraints limiting performance. 

More than 1,100 people attended the conference last year, making it the largest TOC gathering in the world, organizers said. In addition to Starks, other notable speakers include Utah Lt. Gov. Spencer J. Cox; Noelle Cockett, president of Utah State University; Gil West, executive senior vice president of Delta Air Lines; Kristen Cox, executive director of the Utah Governor’s Office of Management and Budget; Ajai Kapoor, partner at Goldratt Consulting; and Keith Squires, commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety.

The conference is produced by the Utah Governor’s Office of Management and Budget and Goldratt Consulting. It will include two tracks, one for government and the other for the private sector.{/mprestriction}