2025 Conference Program

Did you know that Indianapolis boasts more monuments than any U.S. city outside of Washington, D.C.? Join us for the Indy Monuments & Murals Tour—a fun and fascinating journey through the city’s most iconic landmarks and vibrant public art. Along the way, you’ll uncover the rich history behind these cultural treasures and enjoy plenty of photo and selfie opportunities.

The tour departs from and returns to the Hyatt Regency Indianapolis.

🎉 Free for all early-arriving SISO attendees!
Advance registration is required.

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Join us on Monday, August 18, from 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM for a spirited adventure through Indy’s craft beverage scene! This guided tour includes stops at 3–4 local breweries that are part of the Indy Craft Pass. You’ll sample unique brews, tour the facilities, and learn about the brewing process firsthand.

Along the way, discover how the Indy Craft Pass was created, how it works, and how Visit Indy collaborates with its partners to promote the city’s vibrant craft culture—plus, hear some valuable lessons learned from the journey.

The tour departs from and returns to the Hyatt Regency Indianapolis.

🎉 Free for all early-arriving SISO attendees!
Advance registration is required.

Hosted by:

🍽 Buffet Lunch
A buffet lunch will be provided for all registered participants of the SISO Women’s Leadership Forum.

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When we think about mentoring, we often think of more senior individuals imparting advice and knowledge to junior employees. However, reverse mentoring is where junior employees teach more senior leaders.

In this interactive session, you will learn how to create a reverse-mentoring program and the individual and organizational benefits. We will also explore the skills and capabilities that will enable both the junior mentor and the senior mentee to be more effective in learning from each other.

What did Gen Z think the very first time they stepped on a trade show floor? How do they like to be communicated with? How did they end up in the industry? How are they using AI? How can trade shows utilize social media more effectively? Hear from Gen Z panelists on a variety of topics.

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Beverages and desserts will be served in the back of the room.

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Senior leaders will be at each roundtable and ask participants about hot topics such as – what do they think is the future of trade shows? What do they think of the employee experience? Are we using data effectively at our shows? And many more! At the end, tables will share back some of their main takeaways from these valuable discussions.

Joey Graziano is tasked with extending the brands of both the Indiana Fever (Caitlin Clark) and the Indiana Pacers, as well as building on Indianapolis’ rise as a sports epicenter.  He’ll share his journey from the NBA to Pacers Sports and Entertainment and share his approach to building his brands domestically and globally. 

 

 

Kick off your SISO experience in high gear with an exclusive evening at the newly renovated Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum! Be among the first to explore the museum’s reimagined exhibits, featuring cutting-edge displays and legendary race cars that bring the thrill of the Indy 500 to life like never before.

Enjoy a night of networking, hors d’oeuvres, and drinks in a one-of-a-kind setting that celebrates speed, innovation, and history. Whether you're a motorsports fan or simply love a unique venue, this is the perfect way to start your time in Indy.

🕓 Date & Time: Tuesday, August 19 | 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
📍 Location: Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum
🚌 Transportation provided to and from the Hyatt Regency Indianapolis

🎉 Free for all registered SISO attendees!
Advance RSVP required.

🚌 Shuttle Schedule – Opening Night Reception
Departure from Hyatt Regency to the Museum:

• The first shuttle loads at 5:30 PM, and departs at 5:45 PM
• The second shuttle loads at 6:00 PM depart at 6:15 PM

Return from the Museum to the Hyatt Regency:

• First return shuttle at 7:30 PM
• Additional return shuttles at 8:00 PM, 8:30 PM, and 9:00 PM (final departure)
   

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Using specially curated SISO research, Ken Holsinger of Freeman will provide you with initiatives you need to take immediately to enhance your events, event experience, and overall success. This session has become a staple at the Leadership Conference, and Ken will help organizers and sponsors with actionable insights. 

Data is only as powerful as the story it tells—but how do we translate numbers into insights that resonate across marketing, sales, and leadership teams? This session will focus on bridging the gap between raw data and strategic decision-making, equipping attendees with the tools to craft compelling narratives, ask the right questions, and connect the dots between insights and action. Through real-world examples taking the National Grocer Event challenge and outcomes, we’ll explore how to build confidence in data interpretation and foster collaboration that turns insights into business growth.

 

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The sales landscape is evolving at lightning speed, and Artificial Intelligence is at the heart of this transformation. In this dynamic session, we’ll explore the complete AI-powered sales journey—from the first prospecting email to closing the deal.

Discover how AI is revolutionizing each stage of the sales cycle. Learn how tools like Jasper can craft personalized, high-converting prospecting emails at scale, while platforms like Gong are being used to train teams with insights from real conversations. Explore how AI can automatically summarize meetings and surface action items, helping teams stay focused and aligned. We’ll also dive into how sales feedback loops, powered by AI, are driving product development decisions, and how platforms like Highspot are enabling reps to find, personalize, and share the right content at the right time.

Join us to see how sales leaders are using AI not just to improve productivity—but to win more deals, faster.

 

How should organizers think about leveraging AI to enrich the event experience?

• What are the key learning from the real-world implementation of these AI tools in the market?
• How important is it to get the data foundation in place?
• What is the leadership’s role in driving the AI transformation inside a company? (I certainly want to ask you about the course you are doing and your first-hand experience with the AI tools)
• What is the same and different about the AI implementation?

Lunch & Learn: AI Working Groups

• AI & Event Strategy
• AI & Attendee Experience
• AI & Content/Programming
• AI & Operations
• AI & Marketing
   

Lunch Hosted by:

In this candid 20-minute conversation, industry veterans Warwick Davies (The Event Mechanic!) and Paul Miller (CEO, Questex) unpack the real-world origin story of The Annabelle Project—a mentorship initiative that started with a personal mission and evolved into a model for leadership in action.

Whether or not your company has a formal diversity strategy, you likely have the resources, influence, and opportunity to shape the next generation of event professionals—and grow your business culture in the process. This session is not about compliance or checking boxes. It’s about practical leadership, how to back up good intentions with meaningful action, and why mentorship might be your most underleveraged asset.

Expect straight talk, real examples, and clear ideas you can bring home and implement—without a new budget or board resolution.

 

In a time when even the word “inclusion” can spark debate, event organizers may feel pressure to stay neutral. But inclusion isn’t about politics — it’s about people. And when done with authenticity, it’s also smart business. This session will address why meaningful inclusion efforts — not just seasonal posts or stage moments — drive attendee connection, brand trust, and long-term loyalty. Backed by research and real-world examples, a panel will challenge leaders to rethink what representation really means and how it can be embedded into the event experience in practical, impactful ways.

The amount of pessimism, uncertainty and disconnect employees are experiencing in the workplace is reaching critical levels, endangering employee well-being and undermining productivity, which can trigger symptoms of burnout and hurt your bottom line. We'll discuss key strategies we can use as leaders (and for ourselves) to help our teams avoid this. 

• Recognizing signs of burnout in high-stress event roles
• Practical ways to support mental health during peak seasons
• Encouraging boundaries and downtime in deadline-driven cultures
• Building resilience to thrive in turbulent times

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In an industry built on live, in-person experiences, trade show organizers face a distinct set of vulnerabilities that require proactive planning. This panel will explore practical, actionable strategies for developing emergency preparedness plans that prioritize safety, maintain continuity, and foster trust. Hear from industry leaders as they share how to:

· Develop comprehensive risk assessment frameworks

· Build effective crisis communication plans

· Enable real-time information sharing across internal and external stakeholders

Walk away with a better understanding of emergency preparedness – and the confidence to put effective plans into action in an ever-changing risk landscape.

Strong peer-to-peer connections are the foundation of our events, but how can we better facilitate, measure, and learn from the relationships we help create? This session will explore strategies for designing intentional networking experiences, leveraging technology to track engagement, and extracting insights that improve future connection-building efforts. From structured networking formats to real-time data tracking, attendees will gain actionable tactics to enhance peer-to-peer engagement and maximize event impact.

 

Hear from a panel of sales leaders driving revenue with innovative approaches.

Details to follow. 

Dress Code: Casual Chic
Shorts are welcome! Join us in comfortable, casual attire for an enjoyable evening at the SISO Leadership Conference on August 20, 2025, at the Eiteljorg Museum in Indianapolis.

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Michael Barnett recently shared this vision in Greece and opened many eyes.  We’ve asked Michael to expand on this topic, and he has assembled a panel to discuss it in detail.

Doug Emslie will share his unique perspectives on the Tradeshow Industry.  He has a unique perspective, having started, scaled, and sold a large enterprise, and then restarted from scratch. Fresh off a successful TrailCon, Doug has lots of interesting (and often humorous) thoughts about the next few years of our business.

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Organic growth hasn’t disappeared, although it has taken a backseat to growth via acquisition in recent years. Listen to a panel amid very significant launches in 2025 and beyond.

 Your company has just acquired a new company. Integration is bumpy to say the least.  You’ve been acquired, and the “acquirer” doesn’t understand the secret sauce that made your company so desirable.  Listen to tales from the field about mistakes and success. 

Hear from our friends at UFI, who can provide their valuable perspectives.   

Data is only as powerful as the story it tells—but how do we translate numbers into insights that resonate across marketing, sales, and leadership teams? This session will focus on bridging the gap between raw data and strategic decision-making, equipping attendees with the tools to craft compelling narratives, ask the right questions, and connect the dots between insights and action. Through real-world examples taking the National Grocer Event challenge and outcomes, we’ll explore how to build confidence in data interpretation and foster collaboration that turns insights into business growth.

 

🍽 Lunch Options – Departure Day

• Grab & Go Boxes will be available starting at noon for those needing to leave early for flights.
• For those staying, a sit-down lunch will begin at 12:30 PM.
   

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Tour the Indiana Convention Center and Lucas Oil Stadium 🏈

Two venues, overseen by One board with 566,600 sq. ft. of contiguous exhibit space. From tradeshows and conventions to dirt bikes and concerts, walk behind the scenes to see how they make it happen.

Indiana Convention Center - from standard tradeshows to semi-truck driving championships, to firefighters with live fire drills and everything in between, let alone hosting the entirety of the NCAA Championships during COVID in a bubble.

Lucas Oil Stadium - from NFL Football games to loading tons of dirt for Motorcross Supercross, to building Olympic-sized pools for USA Olympic Swimming Trials and concerts galore.
 

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