11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. 

Arrivals/Hotel Check-In/Registration

12:00 p.m. – 12:45 p.m. 

Welcome Beverage and Lunch

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. 

Welcome and Opening Session: Ready, Set, Connect

Presenter: Karyn Nishimura Sneath, FASAE, Engagement and Leadership Lead, Synergos AMC

Overview: Some people enter a room for networking and jump in, eager to meet dozens of new friends and colleagues. Others walk in gingerly, hoping they don't look as awkward as they feel. Others hate networking events and activities so much, they don't even come in the door. Be prepared to ease into this session with a little bit of information and then move to create a lot of connections through structured (and NOT embarrassing) activities. We will not hold hands, nor sing songs. We will not trust fall into the arms of strangers. We WILL move, interact, and prepare for a conference full of new colleagues.

2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Becoming Invaluable

Presenters: Megan Kyte, Program Manager, AMR Management Services and Ashleigh Roche, Senior Association Manager, MBA, Association & Conference Group

Overview: It takes a unique combination of skills, knowledge and abilities to be successful and build a career in an AMC, and it may feel impossible to juggle the workload and build new skills or capacities to help grow in your career. Well, we've got the secret to becoming invaluable to your AMC and charting your growth path. This session will reveal some of the most important characteristics that AMC owners and leaders need from their teams to keep their businesses thriving and tips and ideas for embodying those characteristics no matter what role you currently have. Join the session and become invaluable to your AMC today!

Key Topics:

• Top ten (ish) characteristics that owners need/want to see from their AMC team members.
• Ways to demonstrate leadership and aptitude in these areas from a variety of seats within an AMC (Director, Account Exec, specialist seat – marketing, events, membership – Program/Project Coordinator, etc.)
• Tips and suggestions from those that have grown in AMC roles.

3:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. 

Networking Break

3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Creating a Trust Surplus, Understanding the Trust Deficit (In Your Team and with Your Clients)

Presenter: Lane Velayo, CAE, Partner, Synergos 

Overview: Creating a trust surplus, understanding the trust deficit. This is something I talk about with our teams often, small "paper cuts" as it relates to inaction, non-communication or missed deadlines add up to create a trust deficit which then leads to micro management from our volunteers and stakeholders. Understanding how to build a trust surplus and what that means for our day to day work in AMCs is really important in balancing client portfolios and ensuring our clients are happy with our work.

5:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

Reception

TBD

Dinner

Networking Breakfast at the IHG Design Center

9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.

Becoming Invaluable

Presenters: Megan Kyte, Program Manager, AMR Management Services and Ashleigh Roche, Senior Association Manager, MBA, Association & Conference Group

Overview: It takes a unique combination of skills, knowledge and abilities to be successful and build a career in an AMC, and it may feel impossible to juggle the workload and build new skills or capacities to help grow in your career. Well, we've got the secret to becoming invaluable to your AMC and charting your growth path. This session will reveal some of the most important characteristics that AMC owners and leaders need from their teams to keep their businesses thriving and tips and ideas for embodying those characteristics no matter what role you currently have. Join the session and become invaluable to your AMC today!

Key Topics:

• Top ten (ish) characteristics that owners need/want to see from their AMC team members.
• Ways to demonstrate leadership and aptitude in these areas from a variety of seats within an AMC (Director, Account Exec, specialist seat – marketing, events, membership – Program/Project Coordinator, etc.)
• Tips and suggestions from those that have grown in AMC roles.

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

Which Hat am I Wearing? Managing the Multiple Roles, Multiple Clients, and Multiple Expectations of AMC Work

Presenter: Jim Thompson, CAE, IOM, Founder/CEO, Tying It Together Consulting

Overview: AMC professionals are constantly shifting between roles: board liaison, staff leader, client manager, entrepreneur, problem solver, and trusted partner. With multiple clients, cultures, personalities, and expectations in play, that role-switching can create confusion, friction, and competing priorities.

This session will explore practical ways to clarify roles, manage expectations, communicate boundaries, and build trust across client relationships. Participants will leave with strategies for navigating the "hat switching" of AMC work while maintaining credibility, focus, and capacity.

Learning Objectives

• Identify the different roles AMC professionals are expected to play and recognize where role confusion can create friction with clients, boards, and internal teams.
• Apply practical strategies for clarifying expectations, managing competing priorities, and communicating boundaries across multiple client relationships.
• Explore ways to maintain professionalism, trust, and strategic focus while shifting between different clients, cultures, personalities, and governance environments.

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

Modernizing Client Events

Presenter: Molly Marsh, CMP, Director of Consultative Services, Account Executive, AMR Management Services

Overview: The data is clear, Millennials and Gen Z are dominating the workforce, but many association events still follow agendas and formats set before these younger professionals were born. The future of associations and the essential communities they support relies on engaging all facets of the workforce, so it is imperative for AMCs to help guide their client volunteers toward more innovative and modern in-person events that meet the needs of all audiences. This session offers not only an update on event trends and participant insights, but strategies for how to encourage creativity and innovation from volunteer leaders across your clients who may be hesitant to change long-standing traditions.

Key Topics:

• Event trends and data on participant preferences
• Identifying the mismatch between what association conferences offer and what participants are looking for
• Tactics for presenting new ideas and innovations to volunteer leaders or other association leaders who may not see the need for change
• Strategies for modernizing event infrastructure across an AMC that don't break the bank

11:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 

Hard Skills Get You in The Door; Mastering Soft Skills as an AMC Client Executive Ensures Success

Presenter: Bennett Napier, M.S., CAE, President/CEO, Partners in Association Management

Overview: This session will discuss best practices and examine trends to help AMC Client Executives achieve maximum effectiveness in the role; define the Personal/Professional Line with Board Volunteers and develop Professional Action Plans.

11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 

Accelerating AI Thinking & Readiness at AMCs

Presenter: Rich Vallaster, CEM, QAS, AAiP, Senior Director of Industry Strategy, Momentive Software

Overview: This session explores how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can revolutionize every aspect of association management companies (AMCs), from daily operations to strategic decision-making. Designed as a welcoming, jargon-free space for all experience levels, it offers practical insights into AI readiness and showcases how AMCs can use AI to boost efficiency, uncover deeper insights, and make smarter decisions that impress clients and outpace competitors. Attendees can expect actionable tips, live demos, and engaging moments that highlight how every role within an AMC can benefit from embracing AI.

12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Lunch

1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

Knowing How To Communicate With Whom

Presenter: Lane Velayo, CAE, Partner, Synergos

Overview: Knowing how to communicate with whom: The Art of Communication internally and externally. I think particularly for those that deal with volunteer leaders, stakeholders and internally how we couch our conversations, whether we use AMC acronyms or Association focused ones is really important. Ensuring that stakeholders feel like they're calling their association and not just a warehoused call center and understanding that for leaders is important.

1:30 PM - 2:30 PM

Scope Creep Survival Guide: Spot It, Stop It, Prevent It

Presenter: Beth Chitnis, CAE, Senior Vice President, Etherio and Beth Knight, CAE, Vice President-Membership, Association Solutions

Overview: "Just one more report." "This will only take a minute." "You make it look so easy!" Sound familiar? Scope creep doesn't announce itself. It accumulates through small requests that compound over time, straining your team and eroding profitability.

In this interactive session, you'll learn to identify the early warning signs of scope creep, develop practical strategies to address it, and build prevention systems into your contracts and client relationships. Through real-world scenarios and actionable frameworks, you'll gain the confidence to say "yes, and..." instead of just "yes," protect your team's capacity, and demonstrate value without giving it away. Whether you're managing volunteers, boards, or client expectations, you'll leave with tools to maintain healthy boundaries while strengthening partnerships.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the early warning signs and common patterns of scope creep.
• Apply communication techniques to address scope creep in real-time and respond to common objections.
• Design outcome-focused contracts that clearly define deliverables, frequency, and boundaries.
• Implement ongoing scope management practices.

2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Closing Session: Managing Associations in an Ever-Changing World

Presenter: Bennett Napier, M.S., CAE, President/CEO, Partners in Association Management

Panelists: Carolyn Lagermasini, CAE, President & Founder, Association and Conference Group, Katie Oxford, CAE, CEO, Association Services Group and Jim Thompson, CAE, IOM, Founder/CEO, Tying It Together Consulting

Overview: In this interactive panel, AMC leaders will share real world strategies for managing associations amid constant change. The session begins with brief introductions, giving attendees insight into each panelist's background, including years in the profession, AMC size, and the scope of clients they serve.

The conversation will explore practical tools and approaches AMC teams use to stay agile and effective, with moderated questions guiding the discussion across several core areas:

• Volunteer Management, Communication, and Transparency: Platforms like Basecamp, Asana, and other tools that support clarity and collaboration.
• Financial Strength and Stability: Key KPIs, dashboards, ratios, reserve targets, cash flow management, and forecasting practices that help ensure organizational health.
• Workflow and Capacity Management: How AMCs balance scope, team bandwidth, and operational efficiency using modern workflow tools.

If time allows, the panel will close with forward looking insights, including "crystal ball" perspectives on the AMC landscape or one strategic tip each panelist would offer to AMC client/account executives.

Designed for professionals seeking practical, immediately applicable guidance, this session offers a candid look at how AMC leaders navigate complexity, support their teams, and deliver consistent value to the associations they manage.