These events run concurrently and only one may be selected during registration. Click on each box to learn more about the activity.
Courtesy of Lubbock Economic Development Alliance
Join Adam Witty, a 6-time author with two decades of experience in shaping industry leaders, for an exclusive session on harnessing authority to drive meaningful business growth.
In this engaging and actionable workshop, Adam will unveil 4 proven strategies for leaders to cultivate genuine authority and leverage it for substantial business success, including insights on:
Don’t miss this opportunity to unlock the full potential of your leadership and personal brand authority. As a special value-add, attendees have the opportunity to sign up for a complimentary executive Book and Authority Blueprint to help jump start their goals.
Founder and CEO of Advantage Media and Forbes Books
We open with the question every leader in the room is wrestling with: how do you build an organization that can adapt continuously — not just survive one disruption, but thrive through the next five? Ferrazzi’s research institute has studied thousands of executives and teams to identify what the highest-performing organizations do differently. His answer is provocative: the era of the command-and-control leader is ending, and the companies pulling ahead are the ones that have fundamentally restructured how their teams collaborate, make decisions, and hold each other accountable. He’ll share the specific frameworks that separate organizations that are merely coping from those that are actually gaining ground.
Founder, Ferrazzi Greenlight; #1 New York Times Bestselling Author
You know AI matters. You probably don’t yet know what to do about it — and you’re not alone. Woods built his credibility on this topic not as a technologist but as a business leader: as Chief Growth Officer of Jindal Steel & Power, he helped drive market cap growth from $750 million to over $12 billion in four years, in part by integrating AI into strategic decision-making. His argument is that AI’s real value for leaders isn’t automation — it’s better thinking. He’ll show you how to use AI as a strategic thought partner to make faster, higher-quality decisions on the issues that actually move the needle, without needing to become a technologist yourself.
Founder, AI Leadership; Author, The AI-Driven Leader
This is your chance to learn from fellow CEOs who are working through the same challenges you are. Select the topic most pressing for your business right now:
Featured Speaker: Brian Hill, Head of Security Services, BlackCloak
As cybercriminals increasingly target executives’ personal digital lives, bypassing corporate security becomes a significant risk. This session will delve into real-world examples of targeted attacks and the latest threat vectors, illustrating how cybercriminals exploit personal vulnerabilities to infiltrate enterprises. Learn the essential components of a holistic Digital Executive Protection program and why it is imperative for security leaders.
Featured Speaker: Lee Benson, CEO and Founder, Execute to Win
The number one job of a leader is to continuously and responsibly increase the value of their organization. Join your peers to explore how leaders can create real value by aligning teams and focusing on what matters most. The workshop is hands-on and built around the practical application of holistic value creation, balancing material outcomes, team energy, and purpose-driven connectedness. Don’t miss this conversation to help you:
This workshop is not about theory, it’s about simple, actionable steps to improve outcomes in any organization.
Featured Speakers: Chris Happ, CEO of VirtuousAI & Leo Tropeano, CEO and Founder of Mugsy
The mid-market is at a critical point: either adopt AI or die. In this interactive workshop, you’ll learn what the AI Execution Gap is and how to get your business “unstuck” and growing at the pace of AI-fueled change. Collaborate with a proven, 3x CEO and EY’s 2025 Entrepreneur of the Year Midwest to learn how to use strategic AI to bridge your gap with speed and efficiency:
Attendees will also receive a personalized AI Execution Gap Assessment Report outlining the steps their company needs to take to grow at the pace of AI-fueled change.
Featured Speaker: Donovan Pyle, CEO of Health Compass Consulting and Senior Advisor, Validation Institute
Join this roundtable for a candid discussion on tackling the hidden costs of healthcare. Discover why US employers waste an estimated $4,000 per employee annually and how misaligned incentives in the brokerage industry perpetuate this drain. Learn actionable, fiduciary-based strategies to transform healthcare benefits from a cost center into a strategic asset, boosting your bottom line and enhancing employee well-being. This session will equip you with the clarity and confidence to reclaim control and drive meaningful change for your organization.
Attendees will also receive a complimentary copy of Mr. Pyle’s forthcoming book, Fixing Healthcare: How Executives Can Save Their People, Their Business, and the Economy.
Featured Speakers: Andy Harris, President North America Strategies, STS Capital Partners
Sean Friday, CEO, STS Capital Partners
If you’re thinking about your exit any time in the next few years, be sure to join this roundtable to discuss and learn how a strategic sales process will maximize your value and get you the other outcomes you require/desire. The roundtable will explore:
Facilitated by: Steve Casey, VP of Global Finance and Accounting Division, Personiv, a division of eClerx
Uncertainty may be the new normal, but leaders aren’t standing still. Executives are doubling down on talent, technology, and resilience—even as macro pressures intensify. In this roundtable, CEOs and C-suite leaders will share candid strategies for closing workforce gaps, putting AI and automation to work, managing risk, and making bold investments that keep growth on track. You’ll leave with fresh ideas and peer-tested approaches you can put to work in your business in the year ahead and beyond.
Facilitated by: Robert Grilli, Vice President of Sales, ProServeIT
Jaime McMahon, Chief Technology Officer, ProServeIT
Many executives feel pressure to launch large-scale technology initiatives to stay competitive. But true innovation often starts with smaller, strategic moves. This roundtable explores how to approach technology investments, including AI, with agility and precision. You’ll learn how to identify high-impact, low-complexity opportunities that build momentum and deliver measurable ROI, and how starting small can turn quick wins into lasting transformation and long-term competitive advantage.
Here’s the leadership risk no one puts on the agenda: your own health. Dr. Hurt chairs Mayo Clinic’s Executive Health Program, where he and his team of more than 100 physicians work with C-suite leaders to optimize performance and longevity. Drawing from research conducted in partnership with Chief Executive magazine and Mayo Clinic, he’ll share evidence-based strategies specific to the demands executives face — the physiological costs of sustained high-stress leadership, the interventions that actually work, and the markers most leaders overlook until it’s too late. If you’re going to lead through disruption, you need to be around — and at your best — to do it.
Chair, Division of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic
The hardest part of leading through uncertainty isn’t reacting to what’s already happened — it’s seeing what’s coming before your competitors do. Rodney has built a cultural intelligence framework at The Harris Poll that has identified major shifts — from the rise of “fear of being obsolete” among workers to fundamental changes in consumer expectations — months before they hit the mainstream. She advises Fortune 100 leadership teams on translating behavioral and cultural data into strategic decisions. In this session, she’ll walk you through the trends most likely to reshape your competitive landscape in the next 18 months and give you practical scenario-planning tools to prepare for multiple futures rather than betting on one.
Chief Strategy Officer, The Harris Poll
Great leaders don’t command—they inspire. In this powerful session, Stephen M.R. Covey will share insights from his best-selling books The Speed of Trust and Trust & Inspire: How Truly Great Leaders Unleash Greatness in Others. Covey will challenge traditional leadership models and show CEOs how to create high-trust cultures that foster innovation, engagement, and exceptional performance. Through real-world case studies and actionable strategies, attendees will learn how to elevate their leadership and bring out the best in their teams.
Attendees will gain:
This session is designed not only to inspire but to equip leaders with the necessary tools to create a thriving organizational culture rooted in trust. Leave with a clear plan to implement these strategies, resulting in a more empowered, aligned, and effective workforce ready to meet the challenges of a rapidly evolving business landscape.
New York Times & #1 Wall Street Journal Best-selling Author, Trust & Inspire: How Truly Great Leaders Unleash Greatness in Others; Global Practice Leader, FranklinCovey
courtesy of The Virtual Hub
We open the final day by honoring companies that set the standard for supporting those who serve. The Patriots in Business Award recognizes businesses leading our nation in hiring, training, and championing active-duty military members, veterans, and their families. Join us as we celebrate this year’s honorees.
Business Advisor; Best-selling Author, Mastering the Rockefeller Habits and Scaling Up
We open the final day by honoring companies that set the standard for supporting those who serve. The Patriots in Business Award recognizes businesses leading our nation in hiring, training, and championing active-duty military members, veterans, and their families. Join us as we celebrate this year’s honorees.
Business Advisor; Best-selling Author, Mastering the Rockefeller Habits and Scaling Up
Thursday gave you new ways to think about adaptability, technology, foresight, and health. Friday morning is about going on offense. Leddin led the Disruption Project at Vanderbilt University — a multi-year research initiative studying how leaders and organizations succeed not by enduring disruption, but by creating it — and co-authored the resulting book with James Patterson. Colosimo brings 35 years of building and leading high-performing teams at Accenture, DaVita, and FranklinCovey. Together, they’ll give you both sides of the equation: Leddin on the mindset and framework for becoming a positive disruptor, Colosimo on the leadership practices that translate disruptive vision into team execution. One gives you the playbook for driving change; the other shows you how to bring your people with you.
Senior Executive and Bestselling Author, Strikingly Different Selling and Expect a Lot, Care a Lot
Bestselling Author, Disrupt Everything and Win (with James Patterson); FranklinCovey Senior Advisor for Leadership and Culture
We close with execution — because strategy without execution is just conversation. Nardelli ran three of the largest enterprises in America and for the past decade has been working in the trenches with midmarket companies as a private equity investor and operating partner. He knows the difference between a strategy that looks good in a boardroom and one that actually gets implemented across an organization. His Operator’s Playbook distills 50 years of operating experience into a disciplined framework for clarifying strategic direction, aligning your team around it, and building the accountability systems that ensure follow-through. This is how you take everything you’ve heard over two days and make it real on Monday morning.
Former CEO, The Home Depot and Chrysler; Former Vice Chairman, General Electric
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11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Join fellow attendees on one of San Antonio’s finest courses for a shotgun-start scramble. Golfers of all abilities welcome. The $295 fee covers greens/cart fees, practice facilities, boxed lunch, and a cocktail reception.
Strategies for Navigating Disruption with Confidence and Impact
1:00 - 5:00 PM
The challenges facing women in the C-suite are amplified in uncertain times — when boardroom dynamics shift, organizational priorities get reshuffled, and visibility matters more than ever. This workshop is designed for female CEOs and senior executives to share strategies, build connections, and develop practical approaches to leading with authority through periods of change. Topics include strengthening executive presence amid organizational disruption, navigating shifting board dynamics, and building the high-trust teams that sustain performance when everything else is in flux.
Building a Sales Engine That Performs Through Uncertainty
1:00 - 5:00 PM
When markets shift, the companies that grow are the ones whose sales organizations can adapt without losing discipline. This workshop is designed for CEOs and senior executives who want to pressure-test their sales models against the current environment — examining go-to-market alignment, team structure, compensation design, and pipeline management. You’ll leave with a clearer picture of where your sales organization is strong and where it’s vulnerable.
1:00 - 5:00 pm
Already using AI but want to master advanced techniques, fast? Ready to move beyond basic prompts and unlock sophisticated applications? Perfect for graduates of our Beginning workshop or executives with solid AI fundamentals who want to scale their capabilities. This half-day, hands-on workshop will help you leverage advanced Generative AI techniques to become far more productive, leaving you with new hours in your day. You’ll leave with sophisticated prompting strategies, multi-step workflows, and custom AI configurations you can apply in your own routines and scale across your teams. Learn how to build custom GPTs for your organization, create multi-agent workflows for complex decision-making, master chain-of-thought reasoning for strategic planning, develop AI-powered automation sequences, and—most important—systematic frameworks for AI integration that you can use to tackle whatever strategic challenge comes your way Participants must bring their own laptop and have a ChatGPT Plus subscription to access the advanced features covered.
1:00 - 5:00 pm
Over 70% of Executives Surveyed Agree: Many Strategic Planning Efforts Lack Systematic Approach Tips for Enhancing Your Strategic Planning Process
Executives expressed frustration with their current strategic planning process. Issues include:
Steve Rutan and Denise Harrison have put together an afternoon workshop that will provide the tools you need to address these concerns. They have worked with hundreds of executives to develop a systematic approach that will enable your team to make better decisions during strategic planning. Steve and Denise will walk you through exercises for prioritizing your lists and steps that will reset and reinvigorate your process. This will be a hands-on workshop that will enable you to think about your business as you use the tools that are being presented. If you are ready for a Strategic Planning tune-up, select this workshop in your registration form. The additional fee of $695 will be added to your total.
2:00 - 5:00 pm
Female leaders face the same issues all leaders do, but they often face additional challenges too. In this peer session, we will facilitate a discussion of best practices and how to overcome common barriers to help women leaders be more effective within and outside their organizations.
Limited space available.
10:30 - 5:00 pm
General’s Retreat at Hermitage Golf Course
Sponsored by UBS
General’s Retreat, built in 1986 with architect Gary Roger Baird, has been voted the “Best Golf Course in Nashville” and is a “must play” when visiting the Nashville, Tennessee area. With the beautiful setting along the Cumberland River, golfers of all capabilities will thoroughly enjoy the golf, scenery and hospitality.
The golf outing fee includes transportation to and from the hotel, greens/cart fees, use of practice facilities, and boxed lunch. The bus will leave the hotel at 10:30 am for a noon shotgun start and return to the hotel after the cocktail reception following the completion of the round.
