August is a slow month for conferences, a busy month for conference planners

So, it’s August—the month that everyone in the conference industry pretends they’re French and takes the month off. Well, almost everyone.

Foremost forums upcoming in August

• IDG’s CIO 100 Symposium (August 22 – 24; Rancho Palos Verdes), produced by IDG’s CXO Media division, recognizes leadership in the use of technology, information management, and organizational development, and honors the outstanding achievements of 100 industry-leading enterprises. Theme is Creating Sustainable Innovation and Business Value.

Noteworthy conferences beginning agenda planning this month

• The Wall Street Journal will begin developing the agenda for its ECO:nomics Conference scheduled for March 2 – 4, 2011, in Santa Barbara. Event is subtitled “Creating Environmental Capital” and offers what it calls “a CEO-level view of the rapidly developing relationship between the environment and the bottom line.” Program covers topics such as green technology; the future of fossil fuels; and carbon trading.

• Early August marks the beginning of agenda planning for DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University’s McMaster World Congress to be held February 1 – 2, 2011, in Hamilton, Ontario. Event provides a forum for business leaders and academics to focus on ways to enhance intellectual capital within organizations. Program includes both practical business experience presentations and academic research findings that address topics such as intellectual capital, knowledge management, innovation management, organizational learning, management of new technology, and human capital.

• Kellogg School of Management will begin agenda development for its Marketing Conference scheduled for next January 21 – 22 on the Evanston, IL campus of Northwestern University. Event brings together C-level and other senior marketing executives from the Chicago area, as well as Kellogg School students and alumni to share their perspectives on current marketing challenges and best practices. Program addresses such topics as what a market-driving organization looks like, the brand lifecycle, and the benefits of nontraditional marketing. Theme will be Evolution to Revolution: Marketing’s Next Leap Forward.

• The Competitiveness Institute Network has issued a call for papers for its Global Competitiveness Conference scheduled for November 29 – December 3, 2010, in Gurgaon, India, with a proposal submission deadline of August 15. Event brings together industry and academia to formulate “common solution to problems that emerge in the business context” and aims to “gather practitioners from Indian and global clusters to create an expansive discussion platform for the future of clusters.” Program addresses such topics as enhancing productivity; configuration of value chains; and climate change and competitiveness. Theme will be The Actionable Agenda: Competitiveness, Innovative Clusters and Prosperity.