Manufacturing Summit
Industrial evolution - Unlocking innovation in modern manufacturing
Venue: The Starling
Manufacturing is entering a pivotal new chapter, shaped by workforce transformation, global supply chain disruption, and the rapid rise of intelligent, connected technologies. This Summit brings together industry leaders to explore how innovation, operational agility, and empowered talent are redefining industrial competitiveness and resilience in 2026 and beyond.
Harnessing Digital Transformation to Unlock Smarter Manufacturing
Manufacturers are under pressure to accelerate from pilot projects to enterprise-wide implementation of technologies such as AI, IoT, robotics and advanced analytics. However, many face steep obstacles in integrating IT and OT systems, ensuring clean and usable data, and establishing cross-functional collaboration across teams. According to research from IFS, 65% of manufacturers see themselves as digital laggards, at risk of falling behind due to stalled transformation projects and unrealized returns.
Manufacturing Resilience in an Age of Global Uncertainty
Unpredictable tariffs, high freight costs, geopolitical tensions and the unprecedented rate of technology change continue to pressure margins and procurement strategies in the manufacturing space. In response, manufacturers need flexible, multi-sourced supply chains with real-time visibility into changing scenarios. They need resilient operations that are better able to cope with disruption when it happens. And they need to develop the organizational agility to turn potential chaos into market opportunity.
Understanding the Evolving Workforce in a Digital Economy
Persistent labor shortages, retiring baby boomers and the rise of automation demand new workforce strategies. Manufacturers are investing in upskilling, apprenticeships and integrating AI-powered workflows to retain knowledge and boost capabilities. But challenges remain, not least when it comes to understanding the balance between humans and technology, finding new talent, and how to meet the digital skills gap.
Cybersecurity for an IT/OT Converged World
As factories become increasingly digitized, the threat landscape continues to escalate. Ransomware, AI-assisted attacks and supply-chain breaches all target weak OT security – meaning that cybersecurity has never been more critical in the manufacturing space. Zero-trust approaches, AI-enabled intrusion detection, and a robust GRC framework are now strategic necessities
Speakers
Andrei Tadique
Mohit Ahuja
Monique Lesser
Mansi Agarwal
Lee Jellum
Michael Loversky
Swamy Prasad
Kara Renai King
Nicolas Harpel
Bernardo Lawrence
Shannon Russo
Cesar Oliveira
Agenda
2:00pm - 4:30pm
Registration
4:30pm - 4:40pm
MOC Welcome & Meet the Team
4:45pm - 6:15pm
Mission Tracks: The Catalyst
Track 1: Harnessing Digital Transformation to Unlock Smarter Manufacturing
Manufacturers are under pressure to accelerate from pilot projects to enterprise-wide implementation of technologies such as AI, IoT, robotics and advanced analytics. However, many face steep obstacles in integrating IT and OT systems, ensuring clean and usable data, and establishing cross-functional collaboration across teams. According to research from IFS, 65% of manufacturers see themselves as digital laggards, at risk of falling behind due to stalled transformation projects and unrealized returns. So how do you ensure your transformation efforts realize real business outcomes – and transform from digital laggard to digital leader?
Track 2: Manufacturing Resilience in an Age of Global Uncertainty
Unpredictable tariffs, high freight costs, geopolitical tensions and the unprecedented rate of technology change continue to pressure margins and procurement strategies in the manufacturing space. In response, manufacturers need flexible, multi-sourced supply chains with real-time visibility into changing scenarios. They need resilient operations that are better able to cope with disruption when it happens. And they need to develop the organizational agility to turn potential chaos into market opportunity. So what does it take to develop resilient, agile and predictive operations in an age of uncertainty? Join this workshop to find out.
Track 3: Harnessing Digital Transformation to Unlock Smarter Manufacturing
Manufacturers are under pressure to accelerate from pilot projects to enterprise-wide implementation of technologies such as AI, IoT, robotics and advanced analytics. However, many face steep obstacles in integrating IT and OT systems, ensuring clean and usable data, and establishing cross-functional collaboration across teams. According to research from IFS, 65% of manufacturers see themselves as digital laggards, at risk of falling behind due to stalled transformation projects and unrealized returns. So how do you ensure your transformation efforts realize real business outcomes – and transform from digital laggard to digital leader?
Discussion points:
• Creating phased roadmaps, from high-impact use cases to scaling enterprise-wide.
• Investing in IT/OT integration platforms to unify data streams.
• Establishing data governance to define ownership, quality standards and security protocols for machine and enterprise data.
• Upskilling engineering/operations teams to use digital tools and analytics more effectively.
6:30pm - 7:00pm
Cocktail Reception
7:20pm - 9:30pm
Gala Dinner
7:30am - 8:30am
Breakfast
8:30am - 8:40am
MOC Opening
8:40am - 9:05am
Gamechanger
When the Plant Goes Down: Building Manufacturing Resilience Through Leadership, Culture, and Crisis
In July 2023, an EF3 tornado tore through Pfizer's Rocky Mount facility — a site responsible for nearly 25% of the sterile injectable medicines used in US hospitals. Overnight, a manufacturing operation became a national supply chain emergency.
Kara Renai King was the sole person legally accountable for that site. In this keynote interview, she takes us inside the crisis: the decisions made in real time, the operational and human challenges of rebuilding, and why the culture built during a prior transformation proved as critical as any contingency plan.
Drawing on hard-won experience, Kara explores what genuine manufacturing resilience looks like — not as a framework, but as something lived, tested, and rebuilt from the ground up.
9:10am - 10:40am
Mission Tracks: The Blueprint
As a continuation of the Catalyst Mission track, these sessions will establish a strategic blueprint to chart the pathway toward identifying a solution.
Track 1: Harnessing Digital Transformation to Unlock Smarter Manufacturing
Track 2: Manufacturing Resilience in an Age of Global Uncertainty
Track 3: Harnessing Digital Transformation to Unlock Smarter Manufacturing
10:45am - 11:15am
Future on Fire
Driving Digital Adoption on the Plant Floor: How Papa Johns Transformed Dough Production
Get insights into how Papa Johns’ Food Service (PJFS) has adopted a hosted SaaS solution to revolutionize its dough production operations at its Pennsylvania Quality Control Center. Learn how digital transformation enabled improved data accuracy and traceability, increased operational efficiency, and minimized IT investment, setting the stage for scalable success across sites with no incurred infrastructure or IT resource expenses.
The discussion highlights below:
- The operational challenges PJFS faced with manual, paper-based systems
- How real-time data and cloud-based MES eliminated inefficiencies and human error
- The measurable impact on product quality, traceability, and waste reduction
- Why a hosted SaaS model was the key to minimizing IT investment and maximizing ROI
11:20am - 11:50am
Future on Fire
1:00pm - 2:05pm
The Provocation Tables
2:05pm - 2:35pm
Peer to Peer Networking
2:40pm - 3:45pm
The Provocation Tables
3:50pm - 4:20pm
Radical Perspectives
From Plant Initiatives to Enterprise Impact
Manufacturing transformation is not limited by ideas—it is limited by choices. With AI, automation, and digital initiatives accelerating, organizations face a tougher question: where to invest, what to scale, and what to stop. This keynote explores a pragmatic approach to governing digital investments, connecting plant-level initiatives to enterprise priorities through clear decision logic and portfolio steering. Governance is reframed as an enabler of speed rather than bureaucracy—creating transparency, aligning stakeholders, and focusing resources on measurable outcomes. The result is fewer disconnected pilots and more scalable impact across plants, regions, and functions.
4:25pm - 4:55pm
Radical Perspectives
The Cost of Decisions Made Too Late
Manufacturing organizations continue to struggle with operational volatility and financial pressure despite major investments in systems and data visibility.
This session explores why these problems persist, how delayed decisions create downstream operational and financial impact, and how one manufacturer improved coordination, responsiveness, and customer performance through a phased decision intelligence approach.
Attendees will leave with practical insights into the emerging operating model of continuous operational decision optimization and real-world lessons learned from a measurable manufacturing transformation.
7:15pm - 10:00pm
Offsite Evening Experience
7:00am - 8:15am
Breakfast
8:15am - 8:20am
MOC Opening
8:20am - 9:50am
Mission Tracks: The Reckoning
Continuing your mission tracks, having built the blueprint we now enter the reckoning – a decisive phase where insights are rigorously challenged and crystallised into solution-led outcomes.
Track 1: Harnessing Digital Transformation to Unlock Smarter Manufacturing
Track 2: Manufacturing Resilience in an Age of Global Uncertainty
Track 3: Harnessing Digital Transformation to Unlock Smarter Manufacturing
9:55am - 10:25am
Ecosystem Exchanges
10:30am - 11:00am
Radical Perspectives
What Happens When Hiring Isn't the Limiting Factor
This session explores how today’s leading organizations combine speed, technology, and human touch and insight to always keep the right talent within reach. When critical talent is reliably available across locations, skill sets, and timelines, workforce strategy shifts from reactive to intentional. Learn how to turn hiring options into real results and why consistent execution is what allows you to scale without compromise.
11:05am - 11:35am
Radical Perspectives
The Connected Worker Playbook – Close the Skill Gap and Scale Expertise with AI
Workforce challenges aren’t just about hiring—they’re about retaining knowledge and scaling expertise. This session explores how manufacturers are digitizing frontline work so technology supports people, improves productivity, and helps teams do more with less.
12:15pm - 12:45pm
MOC Closing
Why attend?
Connect with like-minded senior leaders for a curated agenda, focused on tackling your current business critical challenges and driving industry forward.
Be a part of exclusive shared learning, horizon scanning and actionable insights enabling organizations to deliver transformative strategies.
Build meaningful relationships with solution providers matched to your business priorities to help accelerate your projects and deliver your objectives.
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