Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1543032
FEBRUARY 2026 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 23 Who should plan to attend the Summit? Historically, this was an "executive only" event, but several years ago we promoted it as an opportunity to expose the next generation of leaders, especially given ongoing concerns about attracting and devel- oping new talent in the industry. We encourage EMS companies of any size to bring their current and future leaders to this event. Last year, we had 57 industry leaders from 38 companies in atten- dance. In other words, more companies are bringing multiple leaders. A whopping 96% of the surveys told us they would definitely attend again and recommend the event to others. Overall, we have grown the atten- dance by at least 20% each of the last three to four years and the company level "retention rate" has been around 60%, which is outstanding in this busy world. This is one of the main metrics I watch to tell us whether the content is valued. I really hope to see at least the same level of growth and retention this coming March as well. What is the agenda and who will be speaking? The overall schedule can be found at EMS Lead- ership Summit | APEX EXPO 2026. If you click on the individual agenda items, speakers and a more detailed description are included. A few highlights from my perspective are: • Audrey McGuckin is returning with empha- sis on what AI can and can't do for EMS and its implications for the workforce and how it impacts "human leadership," especially in the technical world. • Raj Vora of VAS Engineering will facilitate a panel discussion to provide real-world AI use in the EMS space, emphasizing how EMS companies can become much more "excep- tion based" by leveraging AI. • Monica Michalski from The Petrova Experi- ence Group will discuss how successful EMS companies can build customer trust and loy- alty. They have an outstanding message to deliver; it's obvious when you hear it but not always remembered in practice. • We will also again do a "live benchmarking" session to dig deeper into market opinions and perceptions. As always, there will be sig- nificant time to network with industry peers and experts throughout the day. Those sound really interesting. How did you determine what needed to be in the program? First, we have an EMS steering committee that reviews the feedback we receive literally the day after we hold the event, when it is still very fresh. We determine what worked well and what didn't during that discussion. Then, we have monthly meetings to monitor emerging topics and identify potential speakers. I also leverage the topics that are introduced during my Regional EMS Leader- ship Roundtables and look for common themes. If I am hearing some consistent challenges, like AI readiness or customer retention, we look to introduce those topics into the agenda if not already there. Because you are inviting all levels of leadership, what do you hope attendees will leave with? I want every attendee to feel that their investment of a very full day of their time (or more for those who come for the EMS Summit) is valuable. At minimum, we bring a breadth of topics so that every attendee goes home with one or more items that falls into the "we need to try that" category. For some, the peer-to-peer opportunity and networking is their reason, regardless of other content. We don't want to lose that, but we also don't want that to be the only strength of the event. How do you feel you have improved on last year's very successful summit? Last year we saw attendance growth from larger EMS companies (Tier 2) and we want to ensure content tailored to them, without losing appeal to the small EMS companies. We continue to work hard to strike a balance between breadth and depth of topics that should be valuable to a broad range of company sizes. SMT007 The EMS Leadership Summit at APEX EXPO 2026 takes place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, March 16, with a networking breakfast before the meeting begins and a networking dinner at 6 p.m. This is all included in your event registration.