The West Sound Technology Professionals Association (WSTPA) recently held its annual summit on technology and economic development entrepreneurship at the Bremerton Harborside.

The event, which draws a who’s who of local tech professionals, as well as politicians, was well attended.

After a technology showcase and networking event that featured vendor displays and a buffet, WSTPA President and Board Chair Dona Keating welcomed the crowd.

 Congressman Jay Inslee, a regular at past events, who is also the group’s honorary chairman, made opening remarks. Introduction of the first keynote speaker, Michael Besselievre, CIO of Kitsap and Olympic Banks and vice president of the group, was made by David Porter, executive director of Kitsap Regional Economic Development Council (KREDC).

A special guest speaker, .Robert McDowell, who is vice president of business critical solutions for Microsoft, spoke on “The Information Technology Payoff — Positioning for the Rebound.” He brought clarity to the issues surrounding critical success factors for realizing business value from technology. He also shared stories of both success and failure from a diverse group of business leaders and managers and the lessons learned along the way.

He also explained what organizations must do to get the best return on their information technology investments.

Next up was Jim Nall, President and CEO of Poulsbo’s Paladin Data Systems, who introduced a keynote panel who discussed with the audience the subject, “Global Outsourcing — An Irreversible Megatrend?” Serving on the panel were Dr, Madhu Rao, from the Albers School of Business and Economics at Seattle University; Joy Howland, development director for RATEC and a member of the board of directors of the Society for Information Management; and Bud Albers, vice president and CTO of Drugstore.com. The mediator for the discussion was Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal Publisher Lary Coppola.

The final keynote address was from Dr, R. Lee Cheatham, executive director of the Washington Technology Center (WTC). WTC published the Index of Innovation, which tracks Washington State’s innovation economy. In its most recent index, the WTC identified Kitsap County as having the highest growth rate in technology jobs in the state. Cheatham spoke on the technology industry trends in our state and the implications in terms of business opportunities in emerging areas such as nanotechnology, security, and energy.