Seattle Executive Summit
Hosted in Bellevue Tuesday, May 12, 2026 8:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m. PDT
Event Overview
Every Decision, Obstacle, and Success Has Shaped the Leader You Are Today
The Vistage Executive Summit is your day to build on that experience through expert insights, meaningful peer connection, and practical tools that drive growth.
My biggest takeaway from the Vistage Executive Summit is the importance of aligning long-term planning with both business goals and personal well-being. Success isn’t just about short-term wins—it’s about building something sustainable over time. When both areas are nurtured, they reinforce each other, leading to more consistent progress and a better quality of life.
— Davinder Harcharan Singh, Vistage member and 2025 Executive Summit attendee
Event Speakers
Taylor St. Germain
Economist, ITR EconomicsAnticipating Changes in Business Direction
Anticipating changes in the market over the second half of 2026 and through 2027 will be essential for leaders preparing for the next stage of the economic cycle. ITR Economics expects approximately two notable shifts in business trajectory during this period, and understanding these movements will help leaders stay proactive rather than reactive.
This presentation will provide you with invaluable insights from ITR Economics’ latest forecast to help inform your decision making on how to navigate forthcoming changes effectively. By leveraging these insights and actionable recommendations, you can ensure your organizations remain resilient in the ever-evolving market landscape.
Rajeev Kapur
CEO, 1105 Media & AuthorLeading Digital Transformation: 6 Key Takeaways for AI Success
The AI revolution is here—but adoption doesn’t happen by inspiration; it happens by execution that starts with you as a leader. In this presentation, Rajeev Kapur, author of AI Made Simple and CEO of 1105 Media, shares the specific steps leaders must take to implement AI successfully, and what they should be worried about. This presentation, tailored to the CEO audience, will include the tools you should use to turn your AI adoption into measurable productivity gains.
Dr. Jeffrey Boone
Founder and Medical Director of Boone Heart InstituteA World Without Heart Attacks – A 15 Minute Lecture to Save Your Life
Heart disease has been the world’s leading cause of death for the past century—and it’s only getting worse. Our health care system incentivizes the wrong things, allowing this epidemic to continue to spread. 70% of heart attack victims are considered ‘low-risk’ by traditional measures.
Jeffrey L. Boone, MD, offers a better approach. Using tools that are readily available, he will demonstrate how to find the disease, identify the root cause, and eliminate your risk, so you can become a success story instead of a statistic.
You'll learn the steps you can take now to improve your cardiovascular health and help prevent heart disease before symptoms arise. Onsite testing—a painless 10-minute ultrasound of the arteries in the neck—will also be available for interested attendees, register here.
Anne Petrik
VP of Research, Vistage Worldwide, Inc. | Summit EmceeAs emcee for this Summit, VP of Research Anne Petrik will share the latest data from the Vistage CEO Confidence Index, adding context about peer sentiment and CEO priorities to the program throughout the day.
A deep dive into the economic forecast facing your market.
See below for a full listing of breakouts
See below for a full listing of breakouts
Leading Digital Transformation: 6 Key Takeaways for AI Success
Celebrate your community's Vistage Member Excellence Award winners and finalists and connect with fellow peers. Refreshments to be served in the Marketplace.
Breakout sessions
11:20 - 12:20 PM
The Dark Side of Private Equity: Missteps that Could Cost You Millions
Presenter: Brian Daley, Director of Strategic Partnerships | Founders Advisors
With more Private Equity (PE) firms targeting private companies, business owners must be equipped to navigate this complex world successfully. Using case studies, data-driven insights, and over two decades of M&A experience, we’ll discuss the PE investor ecosystem, how they exploit inexperienced business owners, and strategies to help you protect your equity.
You’ll learn:
- 7 reasons your business is not qualified for PE investment (and what to do)
- Essential questions to answer before engaging PE
- The truth about “Minority Investors” and “Founder Aligned” PE
- Why 90% of founders lose in PE negotiations
- Enterprise Value Coaching through Industry Driven Valuation Scorecards
Topic: Financials - Mergers & Acquisitions
11:20 - 12:20 PM
Your Sales Team Isn’t the Problem – Your System Is
Presenter: Steve Heroux, Founder | The Sales Collective
Most CEOs, owners, and visionaries assume sales performance is a people problem. When results are inconsistent or growth stalls, the default response is to hire “better” salespeople, apply more pressure, or raise goals. But these fixes rarely create lasting change because they ignore the real issue. Sales organizations manage to outcomes instead of performance drivers like process clarity, coaching, skill development, and support systems. Most sales teams don’t have a people problem. They have a system design problem.
Topic: Customer Engagement – Sales
11:20 - 12:20 PM
Predictable Marketing ROI: A Framework for Guaranteed Outcomes
Presenter: Lori Turner-Wilson, CEO/Founder | RedRover Marketing
Marketing shouldn’t be a black box. In this workshop, Lori shares her 12 Battles™ Framework—a proven system that reveals hidden gaps costing you growth and replaces gut instinct with data-backed decision-making. Learn how to uncover true customer drivers, conduct perfectly legal competitive surveillance, identify the touchpoints most responsible for a customer's decision to purchase, pressure-test strategies before spending, and build a pay-for-performance team.
Topic: Customer Engagement – Marketing
11:20 - 12:20 PM
From Chatbot to Co-Worker: AI Agents in Your Business
Presenter: Ross Hartmann, CEO | Kiingo AI
Your competitors have access to the same AI tools you do. The difference is whether they're using them. In this session, you'll see real case studies of companies using AI agents to cut costs, reclaim capacity, and gain a competitive edge. You'll walk away with a framework for your own AI strategy, including how to identify your first high-impact use case and avoid the most common mistakes.
Topic: Business Operations - Technology
11:20 - 12:20 PM
The Growth Playbook: Scaling Smarter With Remote Teams + AI
Presenter: Pranav Dalal, CEO and Founder | Office Beacon
Discover how an AI plus human hybrid model is redefining workforce productivity. With 25 years of operational insight, Office Beacon shows how to remove workflow bottlenecks through targeted AI tools and high-performance remote teams. Learn how AI-assisted executive support, Prospectly’s AI-driven network expansion, and optimized hybrid workflows unlock immediate gains in efficiency and scale. This session gives leaders clear, actionable steps to integrate AI into daily operations in a way that empowers teams and accelerates scale.
Topic: Leadership - Hiring Recruitment & Sourcing
11:20 - 12:20 PM
Millionaire Tax Passes: Washington Saves Mandate in 2027
Presenter: Kevin Hasslinger, Financial Advisor, Principal | Edward Jones
If you think retirement plans are a low‑value HR detail, think again. These changes directly impact your taxes, cash flow, and long‑term business strategy. This session cuts through the noise to show you how to turn mandatory compliance into measurable financial advantage—through smarter plan design, stronger tax efficiency, and tools that boost retention without increasing overhead.
Topic: Financials - Financial Management
11:20 - 12:20 AM
When Nothing Else Feels Certain, Make Performance Inevitable
Presenter: Ahmed Sidky, Ph.D., CEO | X2A
In uncertain times, it’s tempting to double down on strategy and launch new initiatives, hoping better plans will deliver results. But performance doesn’t come from plans—it comes from behaviors.
This session introduces a human-centered approach to leadership, focusing on the few high-impact behaviors that matter most and shaping the conditions that make them inevitable. You’ll also gain access to Tomorrow-Ready DNA™, a research-backed framework used by high-performing organizations.
Topic: Leadership - Performance & Culture
1:15 - 2:15 PM
How to Keep More of the Money You Make
Presenter: Kimberly Ellis, Strategic Partnerships | Fisher\SMB
High earning business owners typically face a common problem—As income grows, so does your tax bill. While we can’t completely eliminate your taxes, we can show you:
- Create a tax shelter for up to $400,000 of earned income per year
- Diversify the tax treatment of your retirement income
- Pay yourself instead of Uncle Sam
Topic: Personal Development - Exit Planning
1:15 - 2:15 PM
Where AI Actually Moves the P&L in Manufacturing & Industrial SMBs
Presenter: Steve Russell, CEO | [up]start.13
Most AI conversations are theoretical. Most manufacturing margins aren’t. This session cuts the hype and goes straight to where AI creates operating leverage in $30M–$300M industrial companies and where it should be ignored. We’ll map six economic levers across your operation, go deep on the one that matters most, and pressure test whether AI pays back or just burns a quarter.
Takeaway: A clear lens on which lever moves enterprise value this year and the first disciplined step to prove it.
For manufacturing and industrial operators accountable for P&L.
Topic: Business Operations – Technology
1:15 - 2:15 PM
What To Do if Economists Are Right: Depression-Proof Business & Life
Presenter: Paul J. Brahim, CFP®, CEPA®, Managing Director, SVP - Financial Advisor | Wealth Enhancement Group
With ITR Economics forecasting a depression ahead, what should CEOs do now? This session translates economist's outlook into practical actions leaders can apply immediately.
Key takeaways:
- Turn economist’s depression forecast into practical business and personal financial strategies
- Strengthen cash flow and operational resilience before a downturn
- Protect personal liquidity and wealth while leading through uncertainty
- Spot opportunities that often emerge during depressions
Topic: Financials - Financial Management
1:15 - 2:15 PM
Fund It or Kill It: A Decision System for Backing the Right Ideas
Presenter: Micah Merak, Co-Founder & CPO, Profitic
- Identify which ideas deserve your capital, focus, and people
- Pressure-test priorities and model financial outcomes before you commit
- Use AI to cut through the noise and decide with confidence
Topic: Business Operations - Productivity & Execution
1:15 - 2:15 PM
ATTACK! The Best Offense for Growth Is…Offense
Presenter: Matt Sabljak, President/Co-founder I SRH
When growth slows, most leaders push on the usual suspects: sell harder; improve the offering; expand current customers. But these fixes don’t address the real problem: too few customers thinking of them when it's time to buy. What’s missing is demand, and it’s the secret to unlocking revenue growth and supercharging sales, ops and even talent.
- Discover the science-backed formula for driving demand.
- Learn the proven principles for how buyers make decisions and how brands grow.
- Identify where your offense is weak, unfocused, or missing entirely — and how to start fixing it.
Topic: Customer Engagement - Marketing
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