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

Exclusive Opportunity for Cincinnati Members:

We understand health and wellness play a big role in a leader’s performance at work and how they show up at home. At the upcoming Summit, Vistage is offering members access to the Galleri® multi-cancer early detection test—a groundbreaking screening that can detect signals for over 50 types of cancer, often before symptoms appear.

Special Member Discount: Vistage CE, SB, and KE members receive $150 off.

How to Prepare:

After registering for the event, please review the confirmation page and email for the Galleri Key that will provide you with your discount.

Complete a short health questionnaire provided by GRAIL following your event registration.

Bring a valid photo ID to the event for verification onsite.

Event Speakers

Connor Lokar

Economist, ITR Economics

Anticipating 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, Author

Leading 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.

Anne Petrik

VP of Research, Vistage Worldwide, Inc. | Summit Emcee

As 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.

Breakout sessions

11:20 - 12:20 PM

Predictable Marketing ROI: A Framework for Guaranteed Outcomes

Presenter: Lori Turner-Wilson, Founder & CEO| 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. Attendees receive Lori’s international best-selling book.

Topic: Customer Engagement - Marketing

11:20 - 12:20 PM

Triple-Digit ROI from AI Is Real, Just Not the Way You're Doing It

Presenter: Jonathan Adams, Co-Founder & President | SALIX Data

The ROI everyone's chasing from AI is actually achievable. Just not through today's playbook. The companies that will win aren't the ones that automated yesterday's business model. They're the ones that used Innovation fused with AI to imagine a fundamentally different one. This session gives business leaders a brutally honest framework for evaluating their AI bets - what to fund, what to kill, and how to play for maximum ROI. You'll leave with a clear-eyed assessment of where your AI strategy stands, what reinvention could actually look like in your business, and what it would take to win.

Topic: Business Operations – Technology

1:15 - 2:15 PM

So You Think You Want to Grow Through M&A?

Presenter: David Tramontana, Integrator & Area President | FocusCFO

Growth through acquisition can scale a business fast—or destroy value just as quickly.

David Tramontana shares hard-earned lessons from 14 acquisitions while scaling from $10M to nearly $50M in revenue. He'll cover what worked, what didn't, and what his 3 "wrong" deals taught him most.

Walk away with practical insight on evaluating opportunities, avoiding pitfalls, and knowing when a deal is truly strategic—so you can pursue M&A with clarity and confidence.

Topic: Financials - Financial Management

1:15 - 2:15 PM

Ownership Transition Alternatives: ESOPs in Long-Term Planning

Presenter: Anthony Dolan, Managing Director | Prairie Capital Advisors and Shaun McGehee, Managing Director | Prairie Capital Advisors

Business owners evaluating transition options must consider goals, market conditions, and timing. Each path has distinct pros and cons, yet ESOPs (Employee Stock Ownership Plans) are often overlooked. This session offers a clear, practical overview of how ESOPs work, their strategic advantages, and how they compare to other transition options. It will also address common misconceptions, helping you make informed decisions whether you're beginning succession planning or exploring exit strategies.

Topic: Financials - Mergers & Acquisitions

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: Financials - Financial Management

Greater Cincinnati Executive Summit

Event Overview