Announcing the EPN Leadership Summit

Written By Katie Spell

The Event Professionals Network is excited to introduce a brand-new experience in our EPNOW event series:

✨ The 2026 Leadership Summit

January 29, 2026 | 10:00 AM–1:00 PM PT

Live, virtual, half-day

This Leadership Summit is designed specifically for event and marketing leaders who guide people, shape strategy, influence stakeholders, and drive cross-functional alignment across their organizations.

Whether you're:

  • Leading a team

  • Managing complex, cross-functional work

  • Supporting executive alignment

  • Or simply trying to bring clarity to constant chaos

This summit was built for you.

You can attend the full experience or select the sessions that matter most. Each session is short, strategic, and built for real-world impact – so you can learn, apply, and move forward. 

The Leadership Summit Agenda (Sneak Peek)

Here’s your first look at what’s happening on Wednesday, January 29:

🎶 Welcome & 2026 Leadership Outlook

10:05–10:30 AM PT

Welcome Keynote: 2026 Event Landscape & The Evolving Role of the Event Leader
Brent Turner (EVP, Strategy & Solutions @ Opus Agency)

The events industry is entering its next defining chapter, and the role of the event leader has never been more critical.

To kick off the Leadership Summit, we’re thrilled to welcome Brent Turner, EVP of Strategy & Solutions at Opus Agency, for a powerful state-of-the-industry keynote designed for modern event leaders. With global experience executing events for some of the world’s most recognized brands, Brent brings a rare, big-picture perspective on where events have been – and where they’re headed next.

The last few years have reshaped everything: how we plan, how we lead, how we prove value, and how we show up for our teams. As we move from rebuilding and stabilization into a new era of growth, innovation, and rising expectations, event leaders must evolve alongside the industry.

In this interactive keynote, Brent will share insights on the shifting event landscape, emerging trends shaping 2026, and how the role of the event leader is expanding beyond logistics into strategy, influence, and leadership. Joined by Lisa Gregory, Founder & CEO of Gregory Event Services with 26 years of experience across corporate, startup, nonprofit, and agency environments – this session will blend real-world experience with forward-looking perspective and candid conversation.

Expect thought-provoking insights, practical takeaways, and an engaging live Q&A where attendees can ask questions and dig deeper into what’s next.

You’ll walk away feeling informed, inspired, and empowered—with insights you can take back to your team and use to confidently lead into 2026.

This is the conversation you don’t want to miss.

💡 VISIBLE Events: What Happens When Your Team Feels Invisible (& How to Fix It)

10:30–10:55 AM PT

Sheena Yap Chan (Founder @ The Tao of Self-Confidence)

Behind every successful event is a team of professionals who are often undervalued, unseen, and running on empty. In an industry that prizes perfection and speed, the human side of event work gets lost—leading to burnout, boundary-blurring, and emotional exhaustion.

This session introduces the VISIBLE Framework™—Voice, Identity, Spotlight, Inner Work, Belief, Leverage, and Elevation—as a practical, reflective tool for event professionals to reset how they lead, show up, and take care of themselves in high-pressure environments.

Through real stories and actionable strategies, you’ll learn how to re-center your professional identity, claim your impact without over-functioning, and create space for sustainable leadership—even when you’re behind the scenes.

💬 EPN Zone: Highlights & Hot Takes

10:55–11:10 AM PT

Marisa Cali (Founder @ Be Present LLC)

Gabriella Robuccio (Foundation Event Manager @ Intermountain Healthcare)

Fast, fun, and community-led, the EPN Zone is an unscripted conversation designed to turn the morning’s biggest ideas into real, actionable takeaways.

Building on insights from the 2026 Event Landscape & the Evolving Role of the Event Leader keynote with Brent Turner and the leadership session VISIBLE Events with Sheena Yap Chan, this session brings the community together to share honest reactions, sharp takeaways, and immediate next steps.

This is not a presentation or a recap deck. It’s a facilitated, open dialogue grounded in real experience.

We’ll also preview what’s next: Peer Conversation Breakouts, where small groups will dive deeper into the topics that matter most. Insights from these discussions will be captured in a shared Event Leadership AI Booklet, extending the learning beyond the Summit.

If you want clarity, connection, and practical insight you can use right away – this is your moment.

🧠 Peer Leadership Breakouts

11:10–11:35 AM PT

Join focused, facilitated conversations on today’s most important leadership challenges, including:

✨ All insights will feed into an Event Leadership AI booklet, built from peer conversations and shared with attendees. 

💬 EPN Zone: Community Report-Out

11:35–11:55 AM PT

We return to the main room for a high-energy share-out on themes, insights, and key leadership patterns emerging across the community.

🧍‍♀️ Stretch & Reset Break

11:55–12:00 PM PT
With Brooke Polner (Fitness Professional & Endurance Athlete | Gregory Event Services Marketing Lead & Event Strategist)

A short movement moment to reset before closing the Summit with powerful strategic leadership sessions.

🤝 Network Like a CEO: A Strategic System for Building Connection & Capital

12:00–12:10 PM PT

Michelle Kennedy (Event Producer & Attorney @ Plato Media Co.)

Emily Griesing (Owner & Chief Strategy Officer @ Bossible)

For most event professionals, ""networking"" is a dirty word. It feels like vanity , scarcity , and transactional ""taking"". But what if we've been looking at it all wrong? As a former attorney turned event production CEO , I learned that building relationships isn't a soft skill—it's the strategic soul of the business.

In an industry built on connection, we need to move from "networking"" to ""relationship architecture." This workshop reframes connection as a core business system. We'll move beyond the awkward handshake and dive into a practical, repeatable playbook for building professional relationships with curiosity , abundance , and genuine reciprocity.

🎙 Everybody Pulls The Tarp: The Mindset Powering The World’s Most Successful Companies, Teams, & Communities

12:15–12:25 PM PT

Andrew Moses (Creator & Host @ Everybody Pulls The Tarp Podcast)

Podcast host & high-performance expert Andrew Moses has interviewed over 240 Olympians, pro athletes, TV personalities, Broadway stars, Grammy winners, bestselling authors, & other high-performers on his weekly podcast Everybody Pulls The Tarp.

In this session, Andrew will share his trademarked 'Everybody Pulls The Tarp' mindset and tell you why it's the secret to success in our work & everyday lives.

🧩 Panel: Leading Through Change With Heads of Events

12:25–12:50 PM PT

Moderator:

Panelists include:

A candid, powerful conversation on navigating uncertainty, shifting expectations, and leading teams through constant change.

🎉 Closing & Leadership Takeaways + Optional Networking

12:50–12:55 PM PT
Lisa Gregory and Marisa Nebosky close the Summit with clear, actionable next steps for leading intentionally and strategically in 2026.

🎁 Why Attend the Leadership Summit?

You’ll walk away with:
⭐ A clear picture of what leadership requires in 2026
⭐ Practical tools to lead people and programs with confidence
⭐ Systems for connection, influence, alignment, and visibility
⭐ Strategies you can use immediately – the same day
⭐ Community support from peers facing the same challenges

All in a short, live, virtual format that respects your time and workload.

🤝 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors

  • Pinnacle Branding – 100 thoughtfully curated swag kits

  • Goldcast – Virtual event platform partner

🎟 Register for the Leadership Summit

You’re already doing the work.
You already care deeply about your team, your programs, and this industry.

Give yourself one morning to grow as a leader.

👉 Register now for the 2026 Leadership Summit – January 29, 2026.

🌟 BONUS: The BIG Annual Event — February 26, 2026

In addition to the Leadership Summit, we’ll gather again on February 26 for our flagship community event, The BIG Event.

This half-day virtual experience is designed for all event professionals – planners, producers, strategists, field marketers, and experience creators.

It features:
⭐ A future-focused keynote on experience architecture
⭐ Sessions on shifting from busy to effective
⭐ Insights on the future of event strategy, operations, and field marketing
⭐ Design-forward sessions with Pinnacle Branding
 ⭐ And of course… more EPN Zones 🎉

Make 2026 the year you invest in YOUR growth, your leadership, and your craft.

Join us for one – or register for both for the full EPNOW experience.

👉 Register for the BIG Event – February 26, 2026

(same registration link, shared here again for convenience)

Katie Spell
Next

Announcing the EPN BIG Event — February 26, 2026