On Wednesday, March 22, at 8:50 a.m. Greg Gilkeson, a business manager of technical support at Microsoft, Inc., in Redmond, Wash., will speak at Colby College. Gilkeson is a keynote speaker at the 49th annual program for leaders in the Maine workplace—the 2000 Colby Institute for Leadership. Advance registration for the institute is required and spaces are still available. Businesses or individuals should contact Colby’s Office of Special Programs at (207) 872-3386 for more information.

Gilkeson’s engaging talk is titled "A Funny Thing Happened on My Way to Maui, I Found That All the People I Wanted Lived in Maine." He will speak about Maine’s EnvisioNet call center, which provides daily telephone support for Microsoft customers. Gilkeson currently manages technical support for MSN Internet Access, Microsoft’s online service. He supervises seven call centers with more than 1,000 technical support engineers, who provide support for MSN customers worldwide. Gilkeson joined Microsoft after a career in technical management at AT&T and as an entrepreneur.

The theme of the 2000 Colby Institute for Leadership is "People: The Competitive Advantage," and the program will present workshops designed to help Maine business people advance their companies and careers. The institute runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Colby’s campus in Waterville.

Participants register for two of the eight workshop sessions offered by successful business executives and consultants and also attend two keynote addresses. Activities include Governor Angus King’s lunchtime presentation of the 2000 Governor’s Awards for Business Excellence. Registration, lunch and an afternoon reception are included in the $174 fee, and four or more participants from the same organization are eligible for a group discount.