7.75 Hours (pending)

KEYNOTE & BREAKOUT SESSIONS

Opening Keynote (8:30-9:30 a.m.)

The Bucket List Life
Kenyon Salo, Lead Trainer and Keynote Speaker, Kenyon Salo Inc.


Get energized with Kenyon Salo, as he shares his three simple concepts of living “The Bucket List Life”. During this highly energetic and engaging presentation, you will learn how to create phenomenal experiences, share powerful stories, and help others along the way. The Bucket List Life and Kenyon Salo will help you elevate your life, both personally and professionally.

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Monday Morning Breakout Sessions (9:45-11:00 a.m.)

Maximizing Membership Engagement through Strategic Marketing and Communications
Kelsea Watson, CAE, Sr. Director, Membership and Marketing, ATLIS

Whitney Meyerhoeffer, MPA, CAE, Director of Communications and Chapter Relations, AMHCA

In today's competitive landscape, associations need a robust membership strategy that prioritizes not just growth, but engagement and retention. During this session, we'll explore the critical connection between member engagement, strategic marketing, and effective communication, offering practical strategies and real world examples to maximize your impact. Discover how to cultivate a member-centric culture that fosters loyalty, drives participation, and strengthens your association's brand. From creating a dedicated member success team to crafting compelling marketing messages, you'll gain valuable insights to elevate your membership program to new heights.

The Value of Conducting an Association Competitive Analysis
Bruce Rosenthal, Strategic Advisor and Consultant, Bruce Rosenthal Associates, LLC


In today’s dynamic environment, associations face intense competition for the attention and investment of sponsors, members, exhibitors, and advertisers. Gone are the days when associations were the sole source for networking, education, and industry connections. The rise of search engines, artificial intelligence, virtual meetings, social media, and online advertising has opened alternative pathways for stakeholders to connect, learn, and market. By conducting a comprehensive competitive analysis, associations can identify their unique value proposition, uncover growth opportunities, and develop strategies to stand out in this crowded marketplace. This session will equip association professionals with the tools and insights needed to understand the competitive landscape, prioritize areas for differentiation, and leverage findings to achieve greater impact and sustainability.

Workforce Challenges Through a Dual Lens
Patrick Glaser, M.A., MPA, Chief Practice Officer, McKinley Advisors


In this interactive session, association executives will explore workforce challenges through a unique dual lens, examining how labor market disruptions impact both association operations and their represented industries. Through expert insights, real-world case studies, and facilitated peer discussions, participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of today's most pressing workforce concerns and their cascading effects across different sectors. The session combines structured presentation with dynamic roundtable discussions, allowing executives to share experiences and strategies while building a practical toolkit of solutions for addressing workforce challenges within their organizations and industries.

Monday Afternoon Breakout Sessions (1:00-2:15 p.m.)

Strategies for Successful Career Management
Jennifer McCluskey, PCC, M.Ed., Founder and Owner, Jennifer McCluskey Coaching


Learn actionable strategies to achieve more direction, happiness, and success in your career from Certified Career Coach, Speaker, and Strategist Jennifer McCluskey. In this workshop, we will uncover the essential components of successful career management, including Professional Values Identification, Iterative Self-Discovery, Personal Brand Management, Effective Networking, Expanding Your Career Comfort Zone, Agile Career Pathing. This workshop incorporates interactive discussion, opportunities for self-reflection, and activities that will enable participants to leave with a tangible action plan, measurable next steps, and additional resources to help them immediately start using these life-long skills and achieve amazing results in their careers and lives.

Building Stronger Together: Strategic Alliances for Association Success
Susan Park, PhD, CAE, Executive Director, Coastal & Estuarine Research Federation

Bruce Whitehurst, President & CEO, Virginia Bankers Association
  

Dorothy Deng, Partner, Whiteford, Taylor & Preston LLP
  

As the association landscape continues to evolve, strategic alliances have emerged as a powerful tool for organizations to enhance their impact and better serve their members. This session will explore the various types of partnerships between associations, including affiliations, joint ventures, and mergers.

Small Staff, Smart Tech
Moira Edwards, MS, CAE, President, Ellipsis Partners LLC

Gain the knowledge and tools to develop a robust technology strategy for your small association and lay out an implementation plan. We'll explore key considerations such as identifying and adopting new technologies, aligning technology with your organization's mission, developing a realistic technology budget, and streamlining processes with technology. We'll also delve into crucial aspects of technology implementation and ongoing maintenance, including adoption, updates, and training. Through practical exercises and a guided workbook, you'll leave with a personalized technology plan tailored to your unique needs and budget, equipping your organization for successful technology adoption and long-term success.

Monday Afternoon Breakout Sessions (2:30-3:30 p.m.)

Hackathon: High-Impact Meetings Without Breaking the Bank
Tiffany Brown, Program Assistant, Virginia Tech


Feel like the cost of hosting a meeting seems to go up by the day and your dollars are already stretched thin? You’re not the only one. Join us for a hackathon that will look at finding new ways to have high-impact meetings that your members can afford to attend. This session will be fast-paced and interactive as we work through topics like F&B, AV and meeting space. Come ready to throw your thoughts and ideas on the table, shuffle them with everyone else’s and see what fresh ideas and solutions can be generated.

Legal Considerations for an Association’s Code of Ethics
Mark Carlos Franco, Partner, Rimon PC

Cindy Ziegler, Director of Governance and Special Initiatives, APIC

Does your association code of ethics or professional conduct include ethical principles from the profession that the association represents?  This session will discuss what types of ethical misconduct may be covered by a code of ethics or professional conduct and the requirements under which that misconduct may be disciplined by an association.  This session will also provide examples of existing codes of ethics or professional conduct currently in use by associations.

Monday Afternoon Shared Interest Group Meetings (3:30-4:30 p.m.)
Shared Interest Groups (SIGs) are a great way to learn from fellow association executives about the issues keeping you up at night. These member-led discussions are organized around areas of interest and offer a forum for you to discuss what matters most to you. Earn 1.00 CAE hour per meeting. Choose from these SIG meetings:

• Association Management Companies
• Associate Members (hoteliers, CVBs, vendors)
• Chief Executive Officers/Executive Directors
  
• Government Affairs
• Membership, Marketing & Communications
• Meeting Planners
• Senior Staff
  
  

Tuesday Morning Closing Keynote (9:00-10:15 a.m.)
Unstoppable Courage - Shattering Limitations and Daring to Thrive
Dima Ghawi, Executive Coach, Dima Ghawi, LLC


A Middle Eastern woman, born into a world where obedience is survival, is given a path to follow. It is not hers, but it is the only one allowed. To challenge it is unthinkable. To escape it is impossible. Or—she can risk everything to break free. Dima Ghawi made that choice. She walked away from the only life she had ever known, sacrificing family, security, and identity to forge an entirely new existence. She stepped into an unfamiliar, unforgiving world—alone, uncertain, and vulnerable. Yet, through every challenge, she uncovered something greater: the unshakable power of her own voice.

With gripping storytelling, raw vulnerability, and relatable insights, Dima takes the audience inside the defining moments of her journey. Dima’s story resonates with those who feel held back by doubt, societal pressures, or fear of failure. Her insights ignite a shift in perspective, daring the audience to question their own self-imposed limitations and empowering them to take bold action.

Presented courtesy of:

Tuesday Morning General Session (10:30-11:30 a.m.)
Inspiring Bold Leadership & Creating Engaged Employees
Dima Ghawi, Executive Coach, Dima Ghawi, LLC


Employees in healthy cultures thrive. These cultures are created and passed down, inherited by the next generation of employees. The strongest leaders know to focus on a long-term strategy with an emphasis on corporate culture health for future generations to sustain and thrive within. Dima Ghawi worked with Fortune 20 corporations and diverse teams around the world for two decades. Through her assignments in 19 countries, working with IBM in Leadership Training and Development, she gained critical insights into leading global teams.

Dima will share how organizations can cultivate healthy and thriving organizational cultures that attract and retain top talent. Gain insights into the critical link between bold leadership, employee engagement, diversity and inclusiveness and discover how to implement strategies that foster inclusive and high-performing teams, even across diverse cultural contexts.

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