2026 Acetech Leadership Retreat Agenda

  • 5:00 - 7:00 VIP/Speaker Reception – Kananaskis Room

    • 10:30 - 11:30 Speaker 1 - Caleb Spitler, BecomeAGreatSpeaker.com, CEO Retreat opener
      Topic: Connect First: The Hidden Driver Behind Leadership, Sales, and Team Performance

    • 11:30 - 1:00 Lunch in Wildflower

    • 1:00 - 3:00 Keynote – David Yoffie case study – Frontenac ABC and Foyer.
      Topic: From LLM to Agent? Anthropic’s Next Move.

    • 3:00 - 3:30 Break

    • 3:30 - 4:30 Steven Langer, Well By Design
      Topic: The Coherence Compass: Designing A Life That Fits)

    • 4:30 - 6:00 Break

    • 6:00 - 7:00 Reception in Foyer

    • 7:00 - 9:00 Gala Dinner & Awards Ceremony
      CEO Stormy Story (from Roundtable)

    • 7:00 - 9:00 Breakfast

    • 8:00 - 9:00 Coffee Table Topics

    • 9:00 - 10:00 Sandy Joy Weston
      Topic: Building with Joy as Your Competitive Edge

    • 10:00 - 10:30 Break

    • 10:30 - 11:45 Heidi Roizen and Aidan Madigan-Curtis, VCs
      Topic: Funding

    • 11: 45 - 1:15 Lunch in WildFlower Restaurant

    • 5:00 - 6:30 Break

    • 6:30 - 8:30 Reception/Dinner in Portobello OR offsite dinner

    • 8:30 - 10:30 Casino Night if dinner is in Portobello; if Offsite, then no evening activity.

    • 7:00 - 9:00 Breakfast

    • 7:45 - 8:45 Coffee Table Topics

    • 9:00 - 10:30 Sean Flaherty
      Topic: Operations/Scaling - the Momentum Framework

    • 10:30 - 11:00 Break

    • 11:00 - 12:00 Keynote – Jack Newton (Clio) OR Alison Taylor (Jane App)
      Topic: Scaling and Staying in BC

    • 12:00 - 12:30 Wrap Up & Thank Yous

    • 12:30 - 1:30 Buffet Lunch in Frontenac Foyer

    • 1:30 - 3:30 Unconference Sessions

    • 3:30 - 4:30 Informal Goodbyes in Mallard Bar

Featured Speakers & Sessions

Caleb Spitler

Monday, April 13 | 10:30 – 11:30 AM

Topic: Connect First: The Hidden Driver Behind Leadership, Sales, and Team Performance

Retreat Opening Session focused on leadership communication, influence, and connection as a performance multiplier.

CEO, BecomeAGreatSpeaker.com

David Yoffie

Monday, April 13 | 1:00 – 3:00 PM

Topic: From LLM to Agent? Anthropic’s Next Move

Strategic case discussion exploring AI evolution, large language models, and next-generation competitive positioning.

Professor, Harward Business School

Founder, Well By Design

Steven Langer

Monday, April 13 | 3:30 – 4:30 PM

Topic: The Coherence Compass: Designing a Life That Fits

Framework for aligning leadership, performance, and personal coherence.

Sandy Joy Weston

Tuesday, April 14 | 9:00 – 10:00 AM

Topic: Building with Joy as Your Competitive Edge

Practical tools to reset your nervous system, sharpen focus, and lead with clarity and confidence.

Founder, Weston Fitness & SJW Productions

Heidi Roizen & Aidan Madigan-Curtis

Tuesday, April 14 | 10:30 – 11:45 AM

Topic: Funding

Strategic session on venture capital, scaling capital, and investor dynamics.

Venture Capitalists

Wes Bush

Tuesday, April 14 | 4:00 - 5:00 PM

Topic: Product-Led Growth

Framework for scaling through product-driven acquisition and expansion.

Founder, ProductLed

Sean Flaherty

Wednesday, April 15, 9:00 – 10:30 AM

Topic: Operations & Scaling – The Momentum Framework

Operational scaling systems to sustain growth and execution discipline.

CEO, Advanced Leadership Concepts