2025 Association Day – REGISTRATION

New this year for *non-members, your registration includes a year membership with DFWAE!

REGISTER HERE!

2026 Association Day – SPONSORS

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DFWAE’S 2026 ASSOCIATION DAY?

Sponsorship opportunities can be found here!

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2026 Association Day – EDUCATION

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CAE Hours: TBD

KEYNOTE SESSION

EMILY JONES
Sports Journalist & Media Personality

"Knowing Your Value: Lessons Learned on Camera, Off the Field, and Along the Way"
From a small-town girl with network dreams to three decades in sports media, this talk traces a career built on relationships, resilience, and reinvention. Through wins, mistakes, motherhood, and moments that changed everything, you’ll hear five hard-earned takeaways about opportunity, adaptability, and knowing your value - plus proof that you don’t have to have it all figured out to build a meaningful life and career.

MORNING BREAKOUT SESSIONS

Membership Dues Aren’t Enough: The Revenue Shift Associations Can’t Afford to Ignore
Speaker: Bill Sheehan, Global Head, Association Strategy – D2L
Membership dues alone can’t sustain associations in today’s fast-changing landscape. Demand for education, training, and credentialing is surging, creating a huge revenue opportunity. This session explores how associations can monetize learning, scale programs, engage members, and diversify revenue, unlocking growth and relevance while staying true to their mission.

Say Less, Mean More: Member-Centered Messaging They’ll Pay Attention To
Speaker: Anh Nguyen, Chief Brand Amplifier – Amplified Marketing
Association leaders face a crowded communications landscape more channels, more demands, and more pressure to show member value, often with lean teams. This session helps executives move beyond doing more and focus on clarity and intention in their messaging. Attendees will learn how to define what truly matters, align marketing and engagement efforts, and use communication as a leadership tool. The result is stronger trust, clearer value, and content people actually pay attention to.

Click to Convention Floor: Association Research Insights on Event Attendance
Speaker: Rich Vallaster, CEM, QAS, AAiP, Sr. Director of Industry Relations and Community Engagement – Personify
Fresh research from 750+ association professionals confirms what many suspect: members want to attend events but often can’t. The real barriers aren’t interest or loyalty, but workload, approvals, and budgets. This candid, data-driven session reveals the gap between perceived and actual attendance drivers, why knowing your membership isn’t enough, and how to rethink value narratives, build ROI tools for employer approval, and audit hidden access barriers to close the intent-to-attendance gap.

Boomer to Zoomer: Making Generational Gaps Work for You
Speaker: Rebecca Achurch, PgMP, PMP, CSM, CAE, Founder/CEO – Achurch Consulting
Your organization spans Baby Boomers to Gen Z, each bringing different technology expectations and strengths. What if those differences were your strategic advantage? This session reframes generational gaps as assets that propel technology to change forward. Learn how to build balanced tech teams leveraging diverse perspectives, design change strategies honoring different working styles, and create environments where multi-generational teams thrive during digital transformation.

AFTERNOON BREAKOUT SESSIONS

How AI is Exposing Cracks in the Association Operating Model
Speaker: Chris Vaughan, PhD, Chief Strategy Officer – Sequence Consulting
AI isn’t failing in associations because the technology is too new. It’s failing because most operating models weren’t built for their speed, scale, or unpredictability. In this session, Chris Vaughan, PhD. reframes the AI conversation away from tools and trends, and toward how work gets done. He explores why traditional workflows - linear, approval-heavy, and risk-averse - break under the weight of AI-driven demands.

Care as Currency: The Science of Transforming Member Connections into Lasting Loyalty
Speaker: Jamie Shibley, CEO – The Expressory
Today’s association members crave connection and trust, but most engagement remains transactional and digital. Based on the Strategic Engagement Index research, Jamie Shibley reveals how care is the new competitive edge. Leaders can replace outdated "know, like, trust" models with science-based engagement. Attendees will leave with a blueprint to deepen loyalty, drive referrals, and measure ROI blending psychology with strategy for impactful, legacy-building results.

Becoming an Event Architect: Creating Innovative Experiences for Association Meeting Planners
Speaker: Lydia Vara-Sebany, Event Coordinator – Visit Frisco
The standard event playbook of repetitive ballroom seminars is no longer enough to drive registration or member engagement. To thrive in the meetings industry, association executives must transition from being logistics managers to experience architects.

Find Your Lane: The Power of Influence in Your Association
Speaker: Bruce Waller, CRP, PHR, SHRM-CP, Vice President Corporate Relocation – The Armstrong Company
In today’s fast-paced business and talent landscape, influence is the currency of change. Many business and association professionals struggle to gain executive and board-level buy-in. In this practical session, business and sales leader Bruce Waller shares five proven strategies to build trust, gain alignment, and move ideas forward, equipping participants to influence with confidence and turn initiatives into measurable impact.

2025 Association Day – EDUCATION

CAE Hours: TBD

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

8:45a – 9:45a 

MEG POAG
CEO and Founder of Mission Squared. 

Leveraging Neuroscience and Emotional Intelligence to Hack Adversity: 

When we understand how our brains and emotions impact our leadership and success, we can truly take the reins. Practice a short list of self-coaching questions using proven strategies to master our triggers, reduce negative emotions, induce calm, promote clear thinking, and focus your brain on a productive path out of stress. And finally, learn how to put thought distortions in check, build awareness of complex work. 

AM Breakout Sessions 

10:15a – 11:15a

Lights, Camera, Financial Action: Navigating Financial Reporting – Chinaberry Room

Speakers: Amanda Feil, CAE, Director of Operations, enSYNC; Josh Kozinski, CiSE, enSYNC

Take a cinematic journey that blends financial reporting tips with the timeless charm of classic movies. This session uses iconic films as thematic backdrops to explore key financial concepts, from integrity in reporting to decoding complex statements. Participants will gain practical insights and strategies in an engaging and entertaining way.

Why Nonprofit Boards are Failing Us and How to Fix Them – Cedar Room

Speakers: TD Smyers, Capatil, US Navy (ret), CEO, BoardBuild 

The method by which we populate our nonprofit boards makes it difficult or impossible to grow diverse, strong governance leadership. A holistic way to reach a candidate base beyond the spheres of influence of current staff and board members is required to break the cycle.

Unleashing the Power of E-Learning for Member Engagement Corporate Development – Oak 3 Room

Speakers: Kellie Tinni, MA, Owner and President, Kellie Tinnin & Associates, LLC

Seeking strategies to improve member benefits and boost your association's non-dues revenue? Discover the potential of self-paced eLearning courses to generate passive income for associations, while simultaneously boosting member engagement and fostering corporate development. Leave this session armed with powerful strategies to elevate member engagement through your e-learning offerings igniting praise while diversifying income streams.

Beyond the Business Card: Modern Networking Tips for Introverts & Extroverts – Oak 1&2 Room  

Speakers: Cathey Wise, CAE; Asha Desai, CAE

Networking is crucial for our careers yet mastering it can be challenging. We've got you covered! Join us as we share invaluable tips for both introverts and extroverts and engage in real-life networking. Whether you're looking to connect with members, sponsors, leaders or other association professionals, you'll walk away with practical strategies that you can implement immediately.

PM Breakout Sessions 

1:00p – 2:00p 

Life After Launch – Chinaberry Room 

Speakers: Rebecca Achurch, PgMP, PMP, CSM, CAE, Founder and CEO Achruch Consulting 

Go-live of your new AMS is just the beginning. To keep the momentum going and ensure your AMS is working for you, you need continuous engagement. Often, organizations rush past go-live, moving quickly to the "next thing" without exploring all the capabilities of their new AMS. We'll show you how to plan for success in the "life after launch" phase. We'll share strategies to drive long-term adoption, boost ROI, and ensure that your AMS continues to support your mission for years to come.

Bridging the Gap: Mastering the Role of a Senior Leader – Cedar Room 

Speakers: Greta Zeimetz, CAE, SHRM-SCP, American Mensa 

Stepping into the role of a senior leader is both a challenge and an opportunity to make a lasting impact. This session offers a practical roadmap for individuals aspiring to excel in unique leadership positions. Drawing on firsthand experience, Dr. Greta Zeimetz will explore three key phases of the senior leader journey: preparation, execution, and career development.

The Ultimate Assist: Working with CVBs/DMOs from Site Selection to Closing Survey – Oak 3 Room 

Speakers: Lacy Lange, CMP, Visit Fort Worth; Paola Bowman, CMP, CMM, Arlington Convention & Visitors Bureau; Heather Walker, CMP, VP of Client Services, Visit Dallas

Discover the untapped potential of collaborating with your local Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) or Destination Marketing Organization (DMO). This panel discussion will delve into the invaluable resources and support these organizations offer, empowering you to:-Streamline site selection and logistics-Enhance attendee experience through destination expertise and services-Access cost-saving benefits and exclusive deals.

You’re Invited to Play the Feud! – Oak 1&2 Room 

Speakers: Scott Roberston, IOM, Director of Strategic Accounts, GrowthZone

Get ready to strategize and shout out your answers because GrowthZone's session is inspired by the iconic TV show Family Feud. Put your thinking caps on as we dive into industry trends, member insights, non-dues revenue, and association dynamics. In addition, Scott Robertson, IOM, will ask some of the most popular survey questions from the hit game show "Family Feud" as contestants face off to give the top answers.