DUBLIN CONGRESS TO FEATURE DELHAIZE CEO

DUBLIN, Ireland -- Pierre-Olivier Beckers, chief executive officer of Delhaize "Le Lion," Brussels, will present a speech here on the challenges of employing a new generation of executives during the 43rd Annual Executive Congress of CIES-The Food Business Forum, which is based in Paris.

e these are the three key factors driving the new economy," said Richard Fedigan, president and CEO of CIES.

"The recent turbulence in the capital markets is a striking reflection of the uncertainty surrounding the relative performances of the old and new economies," Fedigan said. "At the Dublin Congress, CIES will present a series of case studies that put proponents of both these economies in the dock. Since early April this year, the consensus seems to be that the wheat is now being sorted from the chaff."

Fedigan said that North American representation will be up almost 60% from last year's conference in Stockholm, Sweden. "We expect a delegation of almost 120 delegates from the U.S. and Canada," he said.

At the Congress, Rob Voss of Priceline.com will talk about how his company and the new dot-coms are turning traditional retailing ideas up-side down. Other highlights will include Kjell Noordstrom, of the Stockholm School of Economics, on "how people can make capital dance"; David Reid, of Tesco on "relating performance indicators to people and shareholder value," and Mark Craig, of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, who will talk about using technology as a driver of "out of the box" thinking.