AI Con USA 2026 - Summit Keynote
Thursday, June 11
Reception and Summit Kickoff: As a Leader, What Is Keeping You Up at Night?
Kickoff the AI Leadership Summit with a reception and some networking.
Friday, June 12
Summit Welcome - Opening Remarks
After enjoying the Summit breakfast starting at 8:00 AM, join your moderator Jeff Payne as we kick off the AI Con USA AI Leadership Summit for 2026.
Commanding the Transformation: A Leadership Playbook for AI Adoption in the Modern Organization
Successful AI adoption is 10% technology and 90% organizational change—and most organizations are failing at the 90%. In this dynamic, experience-driven session, we will cut through the hype and get honest about what it actually takes to move AI from promising pilot to measurable business impact. Drawing on nearly three decades of technology leadership and his background as a U.S. Army Ranger, Shawn brings a battle-tested perspective to the modern boardroom: the same principles that forge elite units into high-performing teams are exactly what today's organizations need to win the AI...
Leadership Secrets from the Room
While everyone has their own approach to leadership, we all have our go-to tips and tricks that can help others lead teams, organizations, and ourselves. These may be techniques for motivating staff, growing team skills, managing senior executives, or finding the right people for your organization.
During this collaborative lean coffee session, Jeffery Payne will facilitate a discussion to elicit and discuss those leadership secrets used effectively by Summit participants. Using a lean coffee meeting format, participants will choose which aspects of leadership to discuss, vote on...
Think Tank Discussion Parts I, II, III, and Wrap-Up
Think Tank Discussion Part I: Problem Definitions | 11:15 AM
Join with your peers in an engaging and highly interactive session to discuss the issues that affect you most. Using answers to the question “As a Leader, What is Keeping You Up at Night?” posed at Thursday’s evening reception, participants will form small groups to work on finding solutions to pressing leadership & management issues. Discussions will review identified issues, barriers to change, and focus on innovative strategies and practical next steps. At the end of the think tank, all feedback will be collected and...