Focalyst home page Focalyst Executive Forum Home Page
2008 Speakers

Click on speaker name for additional information.

  • Melissa Abbott

    Senior Trendspotter and Analyst

    The Hartman Group, Inc.

  • Alexis Abramson

    Vice President of Research, “Lifestyle Gerontologist”

    Retirement Living TV

  • Gretchen Addi

    Location Lead

    IDEO

  • Jess Aguirre

    Senior Vice President, Research

    Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel

  • Majd Alwan

    Director

    Center for Aging Services Technologies

  • June Amori

    Vice President, Strategy and Marketing Communications

    Prudential Annuities

  • Corinne Asturias

    Boomers Consumer Strategist

    Iconoculture

  • Bill Bass

    Co-Founder and CEO

    Fair Indigo

  • Graceann Bennett

    Managing Partner, Director of Strategic Planning

    Ogilvy Chicago

  • Andrew Bienkowski

    Vice-President of Global Brands

    Kimberly-Clark

  • Lori Bitter

    President

    JWT Boom

  • Jonathan Boehman

    Creative Director & Partner

    Immersion Active

  • Jim Bremer

    Vice President, Futures Team

    Hasbro Games

  • Geoff Brooks

    National Director of Premier & Retirement Strategy, Senior Vice President

    HSBC Bank USA

  • Linda Caliri

    Vice President, Marketing

    AARP Financial

  • Mike Caprio

    VP of Sales, New Business Development

    Visible World

  • Chiqui Cartagena

    Managing Director, Integrated Marketing

    Meredith Hispanic Ventures

  • Terry Clark

    Chief Marketing Officer – Enterprise Services for Ovations

    UnitedHealth Group

  • Kit Cody

    General Manager Web Strategy

    AARP Services Inc.

  • Andy Cohen

    Co-Founder and CEO

    Caring.com

  • Arthur Cresce

    Housing and Household Economic and Statistics Division

    Census Bureau

  • Kierstin DeWest

    CEO, Co-Founder

    Ci

  • Mark Dolliver

    Editor at Large

    Ad Week

  • Matthew J. Doyle

    Director and Senior Researcher, Research & Development, Health Care Products – Worldwide

    The Procter & Gamble Company

  • Peter Drake

    Vice-President, Retirement & Economic Research

    Fidelity Investments Canada

  • Richard Dugas

    CEO

    Pulte Homes, Inc.

  • John Forsyth

    Partner

    McKinsey & Company

  • Nan-Kirsten Forte

    Executive Vice President, Consumer Services

    Web MD

  • Jeffrey Glueck

    Chief Marketing Officer

    Travelocity

  • Kelly Greene

    Staff Reporter

    The Wall Street Journal

  • Arlene Harris

    Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Chief Strategy Officer

    GreatCall

  • Michael J. Hewitt

    Exercise Physiologist

    Canyon Ranch

  • Nigel Hollis

    Chief Global Analyst

    Millward Brown

Richard Dugas photo

Richard Dugas

CEO

Pulte Homes, Inc.

On July 1, 2003, Richard J. Dugas, Jr., became President and Chief Executive Officer of Pulte Homes, Inc., the nation’s most geographically and product diverse homebuilder with operations in 51 markets and 26 states.  At the time of his appointment, Mr. Dugas (pronounced Doo-gah) at age 38 was the youngest CEO of any FORTUNE 500 company.  Prior to that, he was Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company.  

Pulte Homes, Inc. (NYSE: PHM) is one of America’s biggest home building companies.  In 2007, the Company delivered the 500,000th home built during its 57-year history.  Pulte Homes was founded in 1950 in Detroit by William J. Pulte.

Since 1994, Mr. Dugas has served in a variety of management positions at Pulte Homes.  Prior to becoming C.O.O. in May 2002, he was Coastal Region President with responsibility for the Company’s Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee operations. In 2001, the Coastal Region was Pulte Homes’ largest with approximately 3,400 closings and $650 million in revenues.  

Mr. Dugas also served as City President and Market Manager for the Company’s Atlanta Division and, earlier, as Process Improvement Vice President was responsible for driving system-wide process upgrades via two major national initiatives.

Prior to joining Pulte Homes, Mr. Dugas worked for PepsiCo in process improvement and plant operational efficiency, and at Exxon Company USA in marketing, retail and customer service functions.

Mr. Dugas is a graduate of Louisiana State University and in 2007 was inducted into the LSU Alumni Association Hall of Distinction.  He currently serves as a member of the High Production Home Builders Council of the National Association of Home Builders and has appeared as a guest on nationally televised business programs, including CNBC’s “Squawk Box”, “Morning Call”, “Closing Bell” and “Mad Money.”  He has also been featured in USA Today, TIME and BusinessWeek magazines.