ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Business author and consultant Jim Collins will serve as a keynote speaker at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores 2010 Annual Meeting.

Collins, who authored or co-authored such best-selling books as Built to Last, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…And Others Don’t and How the Mighty Fall: And Why Some Companies Never Give In, is scheduled to speak on Tuesday, April 27.

His work has also been featured in Fortune, The Economist, Fast Company, USA Today, Industry Week, BusinessWeek, Newsweek and Harvard Business Review.

Collins began his research and teaching career on the faculty of Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, where he received the Distinguished Teaching Award. After seven years at Stanford, Collins returned to his hometown of Boulder, Colo., to launch his management research laboratory.

"We are delighted to have such a renowned author as Jim Collins headlining our Annual Meeting business program this year," commented NACDS president and chief executive officer Steve Anderson. "His business expertise will offer diverse attendees — including retailers, front-end suppliers and pharmacy suppliers — a unique perspective on best practices and provide insights on how companies can succeed."

The NACDS Annual Meeting, to be held April 24 to 27 in Palm Beach, Fla., is designed to provide attendees with a stage to meet and discuss strategic issues with key trading partners.