Educational Breakout Session 1 (November 4 at 11:30am)
Profits and Social Justice: Yes, you can have both.
Speakers:
Julie Rhodes, Not Your Hobby Marketing Solutions
Gay Gilmore, Optimism Brewing
Description:
Did you know that inclusive, equitable and justice-focused companies are consistently more profitable than those that are not? Placing importance and putting effort towards creating safer and more respectful workplaces is not only good for your employees, but also a wise investment for the business side of your organization. These challenges are not only overwhelming, but can also be expensive, so in this workshop you will learn why inclusion, equity and social justice efforts are vital for the health of your business, as well as your team, the financial and indirect benefits of incorporating IEJ principles into your company culture, how you can adopt IEJ efforts on a tight budget, and affordable and easily accessible resources for breweries that want to make an IEJ commitment.
Barley Past, Present, and Future Crop
Speakers:
Adam Hieronymus, CMG NW Territory Manager
Description:
CMG will deliberate on the barley crop. We will dive into the crop from the past, to help brewers understand what they were dealing with. Present crop will explain what they will be brewing with. Then the future crop to see the direction malting companies are going.
WSLCB – Events, Permits and SOL’s
Speaker:
Beth Lehman, Customer Service and Support Manager
Description:
Come learn about the right way to show your products at events both public and private! From working with nonprofit organizations to learning what permit or endorsement you need to do all types of events in WA State.
Avoiding Legal Pitfalls When Building Brand Loyalty
Speakers:
Alexis Hartwell Gobeske, Dynamic Law Group
Representative from Western Red Brewing
Description:
This presentation will discuss various mechanisms breweries utilize to develop brand loyalty in an increasingly digital world and how to ensure legal compliance – specifically regarding standards for non-deceptive and fair advertising, and legal issues with the use of influencers and loyalty programs.
Educational Breakout Session 2 (November 4th at 1:45pm)
Industry INSIGHTS: tracking Trends in U.S. Craft
Speakers:
Christopher Shepard, Beer Marketer’s Insights
Description:
Beverage producers of all types are chasing consumers to every available niche with innovative new releases, branding partnerships and licensing agreements, and good old-fashioned M&A. As these movements blur and obliterate traditional category lines, where does that leave craft beer? During this up-tempo industry overview, we’ll dig into the most up-to-date data, break down recent headlines and add crucial context to the latest legal and legislative shifts. Learn which trends and news developments move the needle in the U.S. craft beer industry and walk away with a treasure trove of data points.
10 Steps of Successful Project Management
Speakers:
Pulkit K. Agrawal, Beer30 by The 5th Ingredient
Description:
When a team member is passionate about their day-to-day workflow, they are usually very excited by the opportunity to take an idea, turn it into a project, execute on the game plan, and then drive it to the finish line. However, project management can become very daunting, as there are many pieces that go into taking an idea over to the finish line. In this presentation, I will take the viewer on a journey explaining what the 10 key steps and areas of consideration are for implementing a project at a brewery. Then, in order to solidify these details, we will then go over a case study of using those 10 key steps to implement a brewery management software successfully at a brewery. This will be entirely software agnostic and will not be a promotional content for one software over another – but will instead focus on aspects like executive buy-in, onboarding timelines, feature sets based on problems you are trying to solve, and more! We’ve done over 300 successful onboardings, and a few unsuccessful, and we’ll troubleshoot and explain what went well and what went wrong.
Till Death Do Us Pilsner- The Distribution Relationship
Speakers:
Mike Drumm, Attorney – BeerAttorney.com
Description:
This presentation will cover the ins and outs of working with a distributor. From self-distribution to selecting the right distributor, the distribution agreement, working with the distributor, and terminating the distributor. This presentation answers the following questions:
- Is distribution right for you?
- Which distributor is right for you?
- What to do before you sign the contract?
- How to have a successful relationship with your distributor?
- This isn’t working -can you get out of that contract?
Don’t Go Broke Building Your Business
Speaker:
Stephanie Artino, Artino Business Advisors
Description:
The constant cash juggle of what needs to go out versus what’s coming in can be exhausting! Especially now with rising costs, increasing demands, changing business models and government regulation. This session is geared for everyone to help offer new insights regardless of your role in the business. Why? Because it’s not always a numbers game, it’s so much more. The more people understand, the more people can work together collaboratively for a common goal.
This session will focus on 4 things:
- A Case study of what owners, managers and employees typically focus on & the effects of small shifts in changing focus.
- Cash Flow – let’s redefine what it is, how you manage and improve it across roles
- Mindset & reasoning – Why do things REALLY happen in business? How are recent trends in fraud & expectations by generations affecting cash?
- Managing more effectively
Educational Breakout Session 3 (November 4th at 3:00pm)
Hiring and Retention through Culture, Inspiration, and Development
Speakers:
Nikki Koth: GM Stoup Kenmore
Mike Mackley: GM Old Stove Brewing
Adam Lazowska: Taproom Manager Stoup Brewing
Description:
We are 3 GMs and Taproom Managers with different scopes, experiences and business scales, but a shared focus on
surrounding ourselves with outstanding people and giving them the tools to thrive.
We’ll be discussing the importance of setting and maintaining a positive culture with a “we” mantra, inspiring the team
around you by hiring for diversity and encouraging individuality, and giving teams the room to grow, learn, and develop
through consistent mission focused feedback.
Culture:
• Sell it from the start, and back it up every day.
• Attach Symbolism: what ties the team together?
Inspiration:
• Let each individual contribute who they are to make the whole greater.
• Customer > Company > Self. We always support an action that is focused on the customer first.
• Being inclusive while bringing people with you.
Development:
• Benefits go beyond cash in hand and a 401k – it can be as simple as a team specific piece of swag, or as
complicated as new skills or knowledge that is developed over time.
• Consistent feedback that is focused on the brewery’s vision and mission.
• Give individuals room to grow as they learn and leverage their interests and talents.
Knowing Your Brand Inside and Out: Understanding the differences in how your brand is communicated on shelves vs. in your taproom
Speakers:
Oceania Eagan, Founder + Creative Director – Blindtiger Design
Jason Harper, Founder – Stemma Brewing Company
Andrew Pogue, Owner – Fair Isle Brewing
Dane Williams, Sales and Marketing Director – Iron Horse Brewery
Description:
Your brand is more complicated than ever. As your brewery grows, so does your list of consumer touchpoints. You have very different ways to tell your story across your taproom, retail and online. Things that work well in-house don’t necessarily on shelf and vice versa. Maybe you’re adding taprooms and struggling to keep them on brand without feeling like a restaurant chain. You may be shifting from taproom focus to grocery/retail and your brand has new needs. This panel will discuss a range of business models and approaches to help guide through these small, big, and in-between brand decisions.
Enhancing Thiol Biotransformation to Increase Tropical Flavors in Beer
Speakers:
Laura Burns, Omega Yeast
Zach Turner, Single Hill Brewing
Description:
Brewing yeast with enhanced carbon sulfur lyase activity biotransform thiol precursors from malt and hops into free thiols with guava and passion fruit aromas. Because traditional brewing strains exhibit little to no carbon sulfur lyase activity, these engineered brewing yeasts are changing the way brewers think about recipe design and hop aroma. In the first half of this talk, Omega Yeast will cover thiol basics, sources of thiol precursors, and how brewing yeast are engineered to release thiols. The second half of the presentation will be with Zach Turner at Single Hill who has had first-hand experience using these new thiol enhancing strains and will discuss his approach to recipe design and overall impressions of the finished beers.
Employer Guide to Workers’ Rights and Upcoming Changes
Speakers:
Luz Gonzalez-Virgen, Employment Standards Access Coordinator
Brenda Fay, Employment Standards Outreach Specialist
Description:
Are you confident that you know your responsibilities as an employer? –And of the new ones coming in 2023?
The Department of Labor and Industries will provide you with an overview of workplace rules and regulations enforced by the Employment Standards program at L&I. The Employment Standards Outreach team will provide a 50-minute presentation on topics such as:
• Wage requirements
• Tracking hours of work & recordkeeping requirements
• Minimum wage, overtime and tips
• Paid sick leave and other protected leave requirements
• Employee protections from retaliation and discrimination
• Agricultural employment
• Youth employment
• Workplace rights complaint process
• Additional resources
• Upcoming changes to take effect 1/1/2023
Educational Breakout Session 4 (November 4th at 4:15pm)
No Lift Brewery: Saving Money by Working Less
Speakers:
Stacey O’Connor, Headless Mumby Brewing
Dean Priebe, Icicle Brewing Company (retired)
Description:
Stacey O’Connor will describe the tools and changes made at 7 bbl Headless Mumby Brewing to encourage their “No Lift Brewery” motto. She’ll provide resources and feedback from human resource and healthcare professionals about steps and programs that can be incorporated into your company to help increase the health and longevity of your team and their careers.
Dean Priebe will focus on moving grain without breaking your back or the bank. Icicle Brewing Company has achieved a great balance of equipment and effort. He’s excited to share what has worked and not worked at Icicle’s 5 bbl pub system, 20 bbl pub/production system, and 20 bbl production system. The money you save on ibuprofen will help pay for that new auger!
WBG DEIA Committee – Hiring Guide
Speakers:
DEIA Committee
Description:
The DEIA Committee is pleased to unveil a Hiring Guide for attracting, retaining, and supporting diverse hires in Washington Craft Beer. The guide is divided into four sections including an Introduction, Internal Assessment of Company Culture, Hiring Best Practices, & Onboarding and Retaining Diverse Hires.
Craft Better Beer: Utilizing Sensory Techniques in Your Brewery
Speakers:
Tommy Yancone, Yakima Chief Hops
Adam Butler, Icicle Brewing Company
Description:
This presentation will focus on ways to leverage sensory analysis to drive innovation and improve consistency and quality. Specific tests will be covered (True to Brand/Tetrad/Descriptive Analysis) through the use of case studies. We will discuss the importance of the sometimes-overlooked aspects of sensory, like getting buy-in from key stakeholders, and the equipment/materials necessary to get started, or to expand your sensory program. Suggestions and ideas will be covered from breweries of all sizes and budgets.
Your Brewery Financial Toolkit – A Crash Course about Financial KPIs to Guide Your Brewery to Better Profitability
Speakers:
Adam Robbings, Reuben’s Brews
Chris Farmand, Small Batch Standard: Premier Financial Agency Servicing Craft Beverage Industry
Description:
Should we brew more lager? Should we invest in new tanks? Should we hire a new salesperson? Should we upgrade our canning line? How much should we be spending on marketing? These are just a few of the questions we ask ourselves every day. In this seminar we will walk you step-by-step through how to calculate industry leading benchmarks in the areas of costs of goods sold (COGS), labor, and much more. We will also share actionable key performance indicators (KPIs) that you can monitor with ease and should lead you to greater profitability.