Technology adoption, workforce constraints, supply chain volatility, tariffs and trade policy shifts, and ongoing cost pressure are forcing manufacturing leaders to make tougher calls—often with incomplete information.
One change in tariff policy or trade enforcement can alter your cost structure overnight. Geopolitical tension can reshape sourcing strategy. AI and automation are redefining productivity expectations. At the same time, boards and investors expect disciplined capital allocation and measurable growth.
The Manufacturing Leaders Summit is where CEOs and senior manufacturing executives come to compare real decisions: how peers are adjusting sourcing and pricing strategies in response to tariffs and trade uncertainty, how they’re deploying AI and automation to protect margins, how they’re running plants more efficiently amid labor constraints, where they’re investing, and where they’re pulling back.
If you’re also thinking about your company’s value, growth or acquisition strategy, you can expand your experience by attending the Manufacturing M&A Dealmakers Forum on May 4. This one-day program is the ideal primer for leaders evaluating the future of their business.
Bob Chapman
Chairman and CEO, Barry-Wehmiller; Author of ESJ Bestseller "Everybody Matters" | 2024 SHRM CEO of the Year
Jim McKelvey
Co-Founder, Square; Bestselling Author, The Innovation Stack: Building an Unbeatable Business One Crazy Idea at a Time
Bob Chapman
Chairman and CEO, Barry-Wehmiller; Author of ESJ Bestseller "Everybody Matters" | 2024 SHRM CEO of the Year
Jim McKelvey
Co-founder of Block, formerly Square, Former Chair of the St. Louis Fed, and Professional Glass Artist
President
Tokai Carbon U.S.
Shares the inside story of his 20-month push to turn AI from buzzword to practical day-to-day advantage inside a mid-market industrial operation.
CEO & Founder
Oransi
Shares how Oransi successfully reshored motor manufacturing by rebuilding its supply chain, redesigning products to offset higher U.S. costs and scaling new technology without sacrificing margins.
CEO
The Gund Company
Shows how a 70-year-old industrial manufacturer revived performance and culture into a continuous-improvement engine by embedding humanistic leadership into every corner of the business.
Chairman & CEO
Cambridge Air Solutions
Shares how daily plant-floor huddles, 7,000+ employee-made improvement videos, and a dignity-driven culture helped transform a mid-market manufacturer into an award-winning powerhouse.
Bob Chapman
Chairman and CEO, Barry-Wehmiller; Author of ESJ Bestseller "Everybody Matters" | 2024 SHRM CEO of the Year
Jim McKelvey
Co-founder of Block, formerly Square, Former Chair of the St. Louis Fed, and Professional Glass Artist
No other manufacturing event takes you this far inside the operations of top-performing mid-market companies. Our exclusive plant tours give you the rare chance to walk the floor with fellow executives—observing frontline problem-solving, learning how teams respond to real constraints, and seeing firsthand how innovation, culture, and discipline come together to drive performance.
Whether it’s a cutting-edge R&D center or a family-run factory powered by continuous improvement, these behind-the-scenes visits reveal practical, replicable ideas you can bring home to your own team. It’s learning you can see, hear, touch—and immediately apply.
Go beyond the presentations. Step inside operating systems that are winning in today’s environment. Each tour is a guided Gemba walk designed to surface practical ideas you can apply immediately.
A 60-year-old family business that operates like a next-generation manufacturer. At Cambridge, you’ll see how a $24M company competes successfully against industry giants through disciplined lean systems, visual management and a culture where front-line employees own quality and continuous improvement.
Learn how to build an operating system where people are the strategic advantage and innovation does not require massive scale.
A century-old, family-owned manufacturer operating at the leading edge of thermal technology. Your tour includes Watlow’s 185,000 sq. ft. global headquarters, $6M Ceramic Technology Center, semiconductor-grade clean rooms and advanced materials labs. With 1,000+ patents and certifications including AS9100D and NADCAP, Watlow shows how mid-sized firms can out-innovate larger competitors.
See how deep technical expertise, reinvestment and operational rigor combine to create sustainable competitive advantage.
A fourth-generation manufacturer of mission-critical composite components for aerospace, healthcare, power generation and industrial markets. At their 70,000 sq. ft. facility, you’ll see advanced fabrication in action alongside a structured, people-centered leadership system that drives performance.
Discover how humanistic leadership and operational discipline work together to elevate quality, ownership and long-term performance.
Explore the leadership system behind a $3.6B global manufacturing organization with 12,000+ team members. In this interactive experience, leaders from Barry-Wehmiller and Chapman & Co. Leadership Institute will demonstrate how “Truly Human Leadership” translates into measurable performance, retention and engagement outcomes.
Learn how to strengthen culture without sacrificing operational excellence and how leadership systems become growth systems.
An exclusive opportunity to visit one of the most recognized names in aerospace manufacturing.
More details will be announced shortly. Expect a focused look at scale, precision and operational complexity inside a global manufacturing leader.
Leave with lessons in operating at scale while maintaining precision, discipline and quality.
This is a great way to get out of your comfort zone and share & hear unique business practices. Very thought provoking. So much experience in this organization.
Wonderful opportunity to network, build relationships, share ideas and offer advice. Speakers covered very diverse topics; discussing current trends, conflicts and skills to apply/adapt in business today.
President
Tokai Carbon U.S.
Shares the inside story of his 20-month push to turn AI from buzzword to practical day-to-day advantage inside a mid-market industrial operation.
CEO & Founder
Oransi
Shares how Oransi successfully reshored motor manufacturing by rebuilding its supply chain, redesigning products to offset higher U.S. costs and scaling new technology without sacrificing margins.
CEO
The Gund Company
Shows how a 70-year-old industrial manufacturer revived performance and culture into a continuous-improvement engine by embedding humanistic leadership into every corner of the business.
Chairman & CEO
Cambridge Air Solutions
Shares how daily plant-floor huddles, 7,000+ employee-made improvement videos, and a dignity-driven culture helped transform a mid-market manufacturer into an award-winning powerhouse.
Gain exclusive insights from top mid-market manufacturing leaders and strategists.
Learn from peers facing the same challenges in AI, automation, supply chain, labor and growth.
Experience behind-the-scenes tours at high-performing mid-market manufacturing facilities.
Leave with proven ideas to strengthen your business right away.
Why Attend
Go behind the scenes at leading manufacturing facilities to see how digital transformation, automation, and workforce development are being applied on the ground.
You’ll be in the room with manufacturing CEOs and senior executives from across North America—people tackling the same problems you are. The side conversations often turn into the most valuable takeaways.
Every session is built around one goal: helping you run a stronger business today. From AI adoption to supply chain resilience to workforce retention, you’ll walk away with a notebook full of concrete ideas to apply right away.
2026 will bring another wave of change. This is your chance to get out in front of it—to see where the industry is headed and how leading manufacturers are preparing for what’s coming next.
Add-on event
If you’re considering a sale, acquisition, partnership, or recapitalization—or simply want to understand how value is being created in manufacturing today—start your experience with the Manufacturing M&A Dealmakers Forum.
This one-day program gives CEOs and CFOs a candid look at valuations, deal flow, financing trends and strategic growth options.
Topics include:
Add the M&A Dealmakers Forum to your Summit registration for a complete leadership and growth strategy experience.
This is a great way to get out of your comfort zone and share & hear unique business practices. Very thought provoking. So much experience in this organization.
Wonderful opportunity to network, build relationships, share ideas and offer advice. Speakers covered very diverse topics; discussing current trends, conflicts and skills to apply/adapt in business today.
Who Should Attend
Many leaders attend both for a complete strategy view.
registration options
Recommended
Manufacturing Leaders 2026 Event Bundle
$2,595
Rate through Apr. 3
RECOMMENDED
Manufacturing Leaders Summit
$2,295
Rate through Apr. 3
RECOMMENDED
Manufacturing M&A Dealmakers Forum
$895
Rate through Apr. 3
Attendees can take advantage of a room block for a discounted rate of $309/night through April 10, 2026 at the Ritz Carlton. Reserve your room online or call 1-800-960-7056 and mention the code CEG.
Stay in the Loop
We’re continuing to announce new speakers and sessions—let us know a bit about your role and we’ll make sure you’re among the first to get agenda updates, along with highlights most relevant to your business.
Lead Partner
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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.