On June 9th, the Wharton Club of Northern California and the Harvard Business School Association of Northern California will host a presentation by Ken Schroeder, CEO of KLA-Tencor (market cap of $9B and sales the last 12 months of $2B.) Ken will talk to us about the unique challenges and opportunities of the semiconductor capital equipment industry. As CEO of KLA-Tencor for over two decades, Ken has a rare perspective and overview of his industry--and it's a tough one. Imagine a business where:

- product prices for your equipment have gone up over 10 times in the last 20 years while the prices of your customers' products have stayed roughly the same;

- you have fewer than 150 customers--and perhaps fewer than 10-15 that really drive your business;

- you have to deal with supplier lead times of six to nine months as you manufacture a multi-million dollar product...but your customers still wield enough power to be able to cancel orders on relatively short notice as their business conditions change; and

- you maintain a commitment to your shareholders to have profit margins of 20% in good times and 10% in bad times...you have maintain substantial R&D spending whether times are good or bad...and it's an historically cyclical industry that is just now entering another downturn (Ken will share his thoughts on the length and depth of the down cycle that has just begun over the last few quarters.)

Ken will begin his discussion with a short primer on the semiconductor industry as an introduction to a deeper discussion about the semiconductor equipment industry. He will also describe what it takes to successfully manage a large technology company as well as how he has personally managed his career progression at KLA-Tencor.

KLA-Tencor has been kind enough to make available copies of the Merrill Lynch 2004 Semiconductor Capital Equipment Guide. The first 100 attendees to pre-register will receive their copy when they check in at the event.

Thursday, June 9th, 2005
6:00pm - 7:00pm. Reception
7:00pm - 8:30pm. Presentation and Q&A

$35 Current Alumni Club members and their accompanied guests
$55 Non-Member alumni and other guests
$35 Members of Affiliated Clubs/Organizations

Registrations after 5:00pm, Monday, June 6th and on the day of the event (space permitting): $45 members/$65 non-members

Crowne Plaza Cabana
4290 El Camino Real
Palo Alto, CA 94306