Get ready to LEVEL UP!
KC IABC's Business Communicators Summit, one of the region's largest gathering for communications and marketing professionals, returns to the KU Edwards Campus with an exciting roster of expert speakers and local leaders. Don't miss your chance to:
Network with peers and like-minded professionals
Navigate the industry's evolving landscape
Gain knowledge, insights, and skills that you can apply every day!
Whether you're in corporate or nonprofit, internal or external communications, BCS offers something for everyone. Get your EARLY BIRD Pricing before it's gone, and keep an eye out for more information as we draw closer to February 22. Breakfast and lunch will be provided, and stick around for our post-conference happy hour!
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8-8:30 am - Registration & Breakfast
8:30-8:45 am - Opening Remarks
8:45-10 am - Keynote Presentation, Martin Waxman
10-10:20 am - Break & Networking
10:20-11:15 am - Breakout Sessions: Heather Richmond, David Patrick, Kurt Bartolich & Roben Graziadei
11:15-11:30 am - Break & Networking
11:30 am-12:15 pm - Lunch
12:15-1:15 pm - Lunch Session, Cory Scheer
1:15-1:30 pm - Break & Networking
1:30-2:25 pm - Breakout Sessions: Angela Kennedy, Kris Ann Carduff & Diane Collins, Cori Wallace
2:25-2:40 pm - Break & Networking
2:40-3:35 pm - Breakout Sessions: Adam Herbig, Lindsay McGonegle & Bailey Barry, Torey Berndt
3:35-3:50 pm - Break & Networking
3:50-4:50 pm - KC Tech Panel Discussion: George Brooks, David Mitchell, Dustin Burns, and Haley Harrison-Lee
4:50-5 pm - Closing Remarks
5-6 pm - Happy Hour/Cocktail Reception
Meet our Speakers
Crossing the AI Bridge: Tech Trends Transforming Marketing and PR
Keynote speaker Martin Waxman, MCM, APR will start the day by walking us across the AI Bridge. If you are in marketing or PR, your role is about to undergo a dramatic change as you welcome a new member to your team: artificial intelligence. AI will help you become more creative and remove some of the repetitive drudge work you hate to do. But it will also alter your workflow and the skills you need for your job. How will you adapt to the new landscape? What are the opportunities, risks, and ethical challenges you need to consider? How will AI affect your organization’s culture and customer trust? In a fast-paced, interactive presentation, Martin Waxman explores four trends—human-sounding synthetic voices, deepfake videos and images, natural language generation, and relational chatbots—to demonstrate how AI tools are about to transform the nature of marketing and PR and what you can do to keep up.
Martin Waxman, MCM, APR, writes a popular Digital Marketing Trends newsletter, conducts AI research and leads digital and AI training workshops. He’s a LinkedIn Learning instructor, co-founder of two agencies, and president of a consultancy. He’s also an adjunct professor at the York Schulich School of Business, associate director of the Future of Marketing Institute and a member of the Institute for Public Relations Digital Media Research Center.
Closing the Trust Gap: Taking Action on What Matters Most for Leaders, Teams, and Organizations
Lunch speaker Cory Scheer, Ed.D., EMBA will help us understand how to close the trust gap. If trust is so important for personal and professional relationships, why is it in such short supply? If trust is an inarguable universal truth, why does it seem so difficult to define and even more difficult to measure? If trust is vital for employee retention, team productivity, and a healthy workplace culture, why is there a growing epidemic of distrust in all industries? Cory will share the consequential truth about employee trust and how to take action on it. Drawing from his doctoral research, national research with BrandCertain, 25+ years in professional leadership experiences, and various national and international client engagements, Cory will share how trust is definable, measurable, vital, and actionable. Cory will share how the pervasive decline of organizational trust and the ever-widening leader to employee trust gap can be assessed, addressed and improved with research-based and strategic solutions. You will walk away with a deeper understanding of why trust is so vitally important, a practical and memorable trust framework, and proven methods to take action on closing the trust gaps in your organization.
Dr. Cory Scheer, Founder and CEO of TrustCentric™ Consulting, an organizational and leadership development firm. TrustCentric™ helps leaders, teams, and organizations become more trustworthy, focused, and productive. In addition to over 25 years in leadership roles in multiple sectors, Cory has worked with small businesses, school districts, corporations, nonprofits, the military, municipalities and others to provide vital support and clear direction on how to ensure people, practices and policies become more trustworthy so that key performance indicators improve.
Get Your Ideas Adopted Internally
Session Presenter: Heather Richmond, Vice President Marketing, Touchnet
Summary: Marketing and communications professionals are used to persuading external audiences, but challenges often arise when trying to get your ideas adopted internally. Different agendas and priorities, various personalities, red tape processes, and budget constraints are a few of the roadblocks you may encounter. So how do you navigate these barriers to get your voice heard?
We’ve all heard of the 4 P’s of Marketing for external business, but how do you influence internally? Learn how to use persuasion to get your ideas adopted regardless of your level in the organization. Heather Richmond, EdTech Vice President of Marketing, provides real world examples utilizing an approach she calls “The 4 P’s of Persuasion” to obtain buy-in from internal stakeholders. She will share best practices for preparing for these conversations, ensuring your delivery is polished and professional - and ready to get the YES!
Heather Richmond, Vice President of Marketing at TouchNet, has more than 25 years experience in EdTech specializing in innovative software platforms tailored for the business of higher education. Heather is an inspiring change agent that leads with passion and thought leadership that reinforces TouchNet’s position as the industry leader in campus payments and ID management, security, compliance, and more. Heather believes in using data to inform problem solving throughout the solution lifecycle process: from conducting research and listening to needs in the market; to developing strategies and designing solutions; all the way to monitoring impact and success. Before joining TouchNet, Heather led the customer success team for an alumni fundraising and engagement technology company. Heather earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration with a marketing emphasis at Missouri Western State University.
Maintaining Humanness in an Artificial Intelligence World
Session Presenters: Kurt Bartolich, Founder of BrandCertain and Roben Graziadei, President of NetResult$
Summary: Communicators know better than anyone that what you say and do shapes brand perception. Conveying that your brand is more human and less corporate - the big headline from our 2022 national consumer brand study – is challenging enough. With companies and organizations racing to operationalize artificial intelligence, the risk of compromising brand humanness is real and makes the job of communicators even more difficult.
In this session, backed by fresh insights from our new National Leadership Study on Brand and Marketing, we tackle how to address this brand paradox and protect your brand’s character. Some of the crucial insights from the research we’ll be sharing include:
How optimistic leaders are about the future of their companies and organizations, and how the acceptance and adoption of AI are contributing to their sentiments.
If AI is seen as an advantage or disadvantage for brand and marketing purposes, and why.
What is at the top of company/organization priorities in the coming years, and where brand and marketing, and AI rank.
Specifically, how companies and organizations are using AI now for brand and marketing, and how they intend to use it in the future.
Leaders’ surprising perspective on brand, how much importance they place on humanizing theirs, and the disconnects in how they view their brands compared to what consumers want.
Kurt Bartolich founded BrandCertain, a brand positioning, and research firm, in 2009. Prior, Kurt spent six years as a senior brand consultant with Magid, the global leader in media research. Kurt quickly became the firm's go-to brand and positioning strategist, tackling some of the most challenging assignments like the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and Azteca America. He also spearheaded Magid’s consumer division advertising dial testing initiative for banking, lottery, automotive, utility, healthcare, and retail clients.
Throughout Kurt's career, which included stints at agencies, he has guided companies in a myriad of industries—consumer package goods, retail, beverage, banking, healthcare, education, IT technology, manufacturing, home improvement, non-profit, and many more—through brand transformation. He is also the author of the book, You Can't Ride Two Horses With One Ass.
Roben Graziadei is a distinguished and accomplished professional bringing three decades of experience to her position as the president and owner of Net Result$, LLC, her consulting firm. She specializes in sharing her insights, carefully cultivated from her own experiences, as well as business best practices. As a thought leader, she provides a range of sales, leadership, and business development coaching and training services to executives and sales professionals from mid-size companies to Fortune 500 companies and academia.
A cornerstone of Ms. Graziadei’s methodology is her brand, Instinctology®, which is the concept of embracing one’s intuition to achieve greater success. An accomplished author, Ms. Graziadei has penned a number of books outlining her time-tested practices. She has also been included in Marquis Who’s Who, as well as Marquis Women of Influence.
The Communication Strategy that Moved McDonald’s in Denmark From Ranking 285th in the World into the Top 20
Session Presenter: David Patrick, CEO & Founder of High Performance Marketing Boot Camps
Summary: McDonald’s had been in Denmark 10 years and only captured less than 50% of household penetration. Dave Patrick ran the marketing and advertising for McD’s Denmark and shares the Communication Strategy Case Study that changed everything. He will also share insights into why Target failed in Canada, Coke in India, Taco Bell in Mexico, and Wal-Mart in Canada – all because of ineffective communication strategies.
Dave Patrick works with senior executives on sales, business development, marketing, and growth strategy. When he’s not launching and scaling companies, Dave is most often found leading client strategy sessions.
Dave is the CEO and Co-founder of High Performance Marketing Boot Camps. These are customized to help senior executives get smarter and more effective with their marketing.
Dave is also a Partner at WizeWebz, a business growth consultancy that helps clients get to their next stage of growth through smarter business, sales, marketing, communication, and technology strategies.
For 30+ years, Dave has created and led high performance growth teams in the roles of CEO, President, COO, CMO, Chief Strategy Officer, Chief Sales Officer, and Group Account Director in intensely competitive categories.
The Secret Sauce of Customer Experience
Session Presenter: Adam Herbig
Summary: In this session, I’ll share the recipe for a winning customer experience, and how to sustain it. Clue: If you’re only focusing on the customer, you only have 1/3 of it right!
We’ll also discuss the formula for connecting your product or service to the target audience. Whether a b2b, b2c, or complex retail sell-in, I’ll share case studies illustrating when the formula works, and what happened when brands didn’t nail the recipe.
Throughout his career, Adam Herbig has analyzed clients' business objectives and delivered customer experiences and growth for brands of all sizes. An award-winning designer and consumer strategist, he has led licensing and retail partnership sell-in and execution for top brands including the NBA, Major League Soccer, US Soccer, Nickelodeon, DreamWorks Animation, CVS Health, and Walmart.
He currently serves as Creative Director for the Katalyst Group serving brands in the service retail and QSR space. Adam also is owner of the brand and retail consultancy, DigBig. He developed the fashion & lifestyle brand, Artify Life, for Malibu artist Katina Zinner, and continues to guide all product, marketing, and licensing efforts.
The Compelling Content Framework
Session Presenter: Torey Berndt, ToreyStories
Summary: Do you know you need to enhance your online content presence but you don’t know how? Have you ever found yourself with that social media app open, staring at you, but you don’t know what to post? We’ve all been there. The problem isn’t your lack of ideas (I promise you have them), it’s lacking the strategy behind how to channel those ideas into reality. Enter The Compelling Content Framework. With this course, you’ll learn what content is, why it’s important and a simple three-step process to take your content strategy to the next level.
Torey Berndt inspires community & builds connection. Through her work in the nonprofit field & entrepreneurship, she works with value-driven, people-focused companies in collaborative environments to create impact & meaning through storytelling and strategy.
Torey is the Program Manager for the Square One Small Business Center through the Mid-Continent Public Library. Square One supports local entrepreneurs and nonprofits through access to information, programs and opportunity. In her role, Torey develops curriculum, leads presentations, and communicates Square One initiatives through social media and more.
In addition, Torey is the Founder of toreystories. toreystories helps you do you better by providing tools and resources to get your time back, cultivate community, and express your brand. Her slate of clients has included statewide & local nonprofit organizations, healthcare professionals, digital product business owners, podcasters, business coaches, and more. In October 2023, she launched Cookies & Creatives, a semi-structured social experience and membership community designed to help humans spark creativity, cultivate community, and connect over cookies.
Torey serves as the Secretary of the Connext Board of Directors for emerging nonprofit professionals through Nonprofit Connect in Kansas City.
Breaking Down Silos between Marketing & Sales
Session Presenters: Kris-Ann Carduff & Diane Collins, Yare Group
Summary: Imagine entering the office with your caffeine drink of choice, ready to tackle the strategic plan everyone agrees can catapult your brand to the next level. Before you can power up your laptop, a sales rep has a "quick favor" to ask—could you whip up some custom swag for an impromptu client meeting this afternoon? An email notification appears: "URGENT: Can we get a social media blast for the new promo? Needs to go out ASAP!"
Sounds familiar? To them, you're the social media guru, the swag fairy, the master of ceremonies. Your expertise is vast, your strategies are vital, and yet, here you are, stuck in the cycle of endless one-off tasks.
This session is an urgent call to action for marketing professionals tired of the constant distractions and one-off requests that wrench their strategic gears. It's for those who know that marketing and communications are not a mere support function but a driving force capable of steering the company's direction.
We delve into the heart of the issue – the struggle for credibility and the challenge of executing a grand strategy amidst a sea of misconceptions. Everyone thinks they know marketing. Everyone thinks they can do what you do. Join us as we change this narrative.
Join us for an exhilarating, interactive session that combines lightheartedness with practicality, where you'll discover actionable strategies to:
Effectively communicate the value you and your team bring.
Discover the art of selling your expertise to internal stakeholders
Learn practical techniques to balance your quick wins with broader objectives.
Leave this session empowered and energized, armed with the knowledge to transform your role from a reactive task juggler to a strategic powerhouse.
Kris-Ann Carduff is a highly-accomplished speaker with over two decades of marketing, communications, and sales expertise. With a master's degree in marketing communications, she brings a deep understanding of the industry. Her unique background includes training at Second City - Detroit and honing her skills in stand-up comedy, giving her a distinct perspective and the ability to engage audiences in entertaining and impactful ways. Kris-Ann's passion lies in sharing strategies to overcome the challenges faced by marketing professionals, empowering them to thrive in their roles. As a co-founder of Yare Group, a renowned marketing and business development firm, she has a track record of delivering fast and innovative solutions without additional payroll costs. With a dynamic speaking style, a wealth of knowledge, and practical experience, Kris-Ann is an exceptional choice for any event or conference seeking to equip marketing professionals with the strategies and insights needed to succeed in today's competitive landscape.
Diane Collins is a strategic mastermind who thrives on tackling even the toughest marketing challenges. With a rich background at TVH Parts, Cox Automotive, Perceptive Software/Hyland, Balance Innovations, and Autodesk, Diane is your go-to expert in strategic marketing, program development, and digital marketing. Her secret sauce? A blend of global marketing, sales, and business development experience, which she credits for her remarkable success in the marketing realm. Diane doesn't just navigate the marketing landscape; she leads the way, bringing her unique perspective and expertise to every project. She's not just a marketing pro; she's the one you want in your corner when the marketing gets tough.
Values & Retention: How to embed core values and ensure they benefit employee retention
Summary: Organizational values are an expectation of the modern workplace. They can increase employee retention, but they can also work against it. The modern era of communication is a similar two-edged sword. When organizational values don’t align with employee experience, the risk of toxic workplace culture is high.
In this breakout session we will cover:
Key steps to ensure values are embedded in culture
The role communications and marketing play
Case studies on getting it wrong and getting it right
A solutions-focused leader activating more than a decade of experience in strategic communications and employee engagement, Angela Kennedy helps companies retain and attract top talent.
She quickly cemented a career connection between marketing skills and talent attraction + retention. As director of a prominent regional talent initiative, TeamKC: Life+Talent, Angela worked alongside more than 1,000 HR, talent acquisition, and DEI&B executive leaders to create resources in support of their recruitment and retention goals. In her time with a nationwide staffing firm, Angela developed a communications and marketing framework to elevate the organization's brand positioning and trained staff on pivotal recruitment techniques.
Using insights garnered, Angela partners with teams to establish a culture of inclusion, respect, and empowerment.
Angela serves on the Centurions Alumni Board of Directors leading its Membership/Marketing Committee and is in her 4th year of volunteer work as a Lead to Read mentor. Named a 20 in Their Twenties by Ingrams Magazine in 2020, she has also served on the Central Exchange Corporate Advisory Council and genKC Board of Directors.
In this line of work, it may come as no surprise that Angela prioritizes wellness with regular workouts, meditation and mindfulness practices. She constantly seeks adventures (literally and literarily), and is always eager to discuss recipes and dining experiences from around the globe.
How to Engage and Educate a Community When Lives Are on the Line
Summary: How can we ensure that our communications strategy around a divisive issue respects diverse perspectives, and addresses the specific needs of different community members? In this breakout session, join Cori Wallace, Director of Communications and Community Relations for the City of Lawrence, as she explores the value of centering equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) practices in a strategic communications plan.
This session will also be a springboard for attendees to identify what key EDI-aligned communications strategies are applicable to their work. What lessons can be learned from the City of Lawrence’s experiences, successes, and challenges?
Using the City of Lawrence, KS case study as a focal point, the session will explore effective strategies for communication to a wide audience using:
EDI awareness
real-time data
use of tech to encourage trust building
All categories of business (for-profit, non-profit) benefit from tools that will help professionals engage, educate and explore complex issues. Cori will examine her team's approach to communicating a broad schedule of City priorities in an environment where the audience has multiple attitudes and perspectives.
Cori Wallace is the Director of Communications and Community Relations for the City of Lawrence. Cori supports a team of folks who manage all digital, print and social media, PR and media relations, community engagement and external relationships for the City of Lawrence. Her career as a public relations and communications professional spans more than 15 years, and her expertise has been applied for local, regional and national organizations. Her professional investment in community building has been leveraged in service to the March of Dimes Foundation, the Miss America Organization, the Rose Brooks Center, as the communications lead for multiple national membership organizations, and most recently as the development and community engagement director for Della Lamb Community Services, a 125-year old social service agency serving four populations in Kansas City. Cori focuses on public trust building and communications as a tool for community improvement, and is encouraged by our community’s commitment to striving for better.
2024 Trends and Predictions in Social and Digital Media
Summary: Discover the future of social and digital media in 2024! Join us as we explore key trends shaping the social and digital landscape, including platform changes, the role of brand authenticity, integration of e-commerce into social platforms and emerging consumer trends. Essential insights to stay ahead in the ever-evolving social and digital world!
As managing supervisor at FleishmanHillard, Lindsay McGonegle focuses on social media and executive visibility. Supporting companies and executives on their social strategies and tactical execution. In the past, she has worked in advertising in various industries including pharmaceuticals, education, restaurants and telecommunications at both agencies and on the corporate side.
A graduate from Rockhurst University with a Master of Business Administration - MBA in 2019 and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration - BSBA with a concentration in International Business in 2017. She has also served as an adjunct professor in the Communications Department at Rockhurst.
Bailey Barry is a managing supervisor on FleishmanHillard Kansas City’s Brand Marketing team. She is a strategic social media expert supporting national consumer brands with social counsel, content strategy, influencer amplification and paid media integrations. Bailey is passionate about collaboration and driving results across teams.
Bailey earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Iowa and started her marketing career at an agency in Phoenix. A job at Bernstein-Rein brought her back to the Midwest. Before joining FHKC, Bailey also worked as a Social Media Coordinator at AMC Theatres and as the Social Media & Creative Manager at Woodside.
