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2026 Spring Collaborative
Saturday & Sunday Highlights
From the moment attendees arrived, the energy was unmistakable. Optional activities kicked things off Saturday with golf outings and a lively Punch Bowl Social event that gave members, guests, and partners a chance to reconnect (and compete) before the Collaborative officially began.
On Sunday, attendees headed to the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Museum where members experienced racing simulators, explored the history of the Indy 500, and embraced the spirit of teamwork and precision that would become a recurring theme throughout the event. The golfers headed out early Sunday morning for a competitive round of golf at Purgatory Golf Course. They all returned safely and still friends!
By Sunday afternoon, the Meet, Greet & Eat session was already creating new connections among first time attendees and longtime members alike.
Then we officially launched the Collaborative with our opening keynote from Robyn Benincasa. Robyn challenged us to rethink how teams perform under pressure and shared lessons from a career spent leading elite adventure racing teams through impossible conditions. One quote in particular resonated throughout the week: “Share the suffering.” Her message was simple but powerful. The strongest teams distribute the load so everyone can perform at their peak. It became a defining theme for the entire Collaborative and a reminder that leadership is rarely about individual heroics. It is about lifting each other up.
Monday - Tuesday Highlights
Monday morning started off with the ITA Fun Run-Walk hosted by Mark Severance. We kicked off the 2026 Spring Collaborative with the ITA Leadership Alliance (ILA) graduation: The ILA program, led by Bret Romney, had 22 graduating in the 2025-2026 program during the Spring Collaborative. Congratulations! The Leadership Alliance year long program currently has 21 participants enrolled for the 2026-2027 year. With 165 participants completing the program to date, this initiative continues to thrive, fostering leadership within member firms.
Monday morning then continued the momentum as Ryan Jenkins helped us understand the importance of human connection in a rapidly evolving AI world. Ryan did more than speak about connection. He created it. Attendees connected themselves with fellow members, shared stories, and built relationships that will continue long after the event ended.
Immediately following Ryan’s keynote, members jumped into a high energy Junior Achievement (JA) Stock Market Simulation. Thirteen volunteers donned green eyeshades and scrambled to manage rapid fire buy and sell orders from tables around the room. The exercise demonstrated the same collaborative learning experiences Junior Achievement uses to teach students teamwork, financial literacy, and decision making. It was loud, fast paced, and unforgettable. The ITA donated a total of 5 iPads to the Indianapolis JA chapter so they can offer this education to even more students. We plan to support JA's efforts in every city in which we hold an event.
Then came another team exercise in the NASCAR Pit Stop Teamwork Experience with Andy Papathanassiou. Attendees worked through hands on exercises on model cars that highlighted the importance of role clarity, communication, trust, and continuous improvement. Participants selected their favorite pit crew tools while Andy connected those choices back to how high performing teams function under pressure. The session concluded with a Q&A discussion featuring members of the ITA Board.
Monday's final session was another crowd favorite: the first ever ITA AI Prompt A Thon hosted by Ellen Choi and David Emmer. This was truly an all hands on deck effort. Teams competed to create the best prompts while 48 volunteers helped enter submissions from tables around the room. Judges Michael Pynch and Kevin Sexton demonstrated remarkable integrity and professionalism in proving themselves entirely above bribery, despite enthusiastic efforts from competitors. Special thanks also go to our Technology Partners who provided prizes and support for the competition.
The Monday Night Dinner Party “Indy After Dark” was a racing-themed success, complete with a DJ and a fun photo booth. Members reconnected in true ITA style while enjoying great food, drinks, and plenty of laughter throughout the evening.
Overall Collaborative Highlights
Throughout the Collaborative, members explored topics ranging from AI implementation and CAS transformation to leadership development, cybersecurity, ERP strategy, vendor relationships, innovation, and operational excellence. The agenda reflected the incredible depth of expertise within our community and reinforced why ITA remains such a unique organization.
The roundtable discussions for each track continue to rank among the most valued parts of every Collaborative because they create space for meaningful peer to peer connections and candid conversations among members facing similar opportunities and challenges. Based on attendee feedback, future roundtables will move earlier in the schedule to allow those connections to continue and deepen throughout the event.
Most importantly, this event would not have happened without volunteers. Thank you to our content planning committees, led by chairs Tom Jackson for ITL, Arline Welty for CR, and Arna Erazo for CAS. The content was the result of their efforts in guiding volunteers from concept to delivery on stage.
In all, more than 160 people played a role in bringing this Collaborative to life, most of them volunteers. Speakers, facilitators, judges, coordinators, moderators, Board members, Technology Partners, committee members, and countless behind the scenes contributors all gave their time, talent, and energy to create an unforgettable experience for our members.
As evaluations continue to come in, one theme is already clear: members value relationships, collaboration, and the willingness to share that make ITA special. If you have not yet completed your evaluation, we would still love to hear from you. Your feedback helps shape future Collaboratives and ensures we moving the needle forward together. Here is the 2026 Spring Collaborative Survey Link.
Thank you to everyone who attended, volunteered, presented, sponsored, organized, encouraged, participated, and connected with us throughout this event.
On behalf of the entire ITA staff, thank you for the opportunity to work alongside each of you. If you were unable to join us in Indianapolis this year, we hope you will consider volunteering as part of the planning process and joining us at a future event.
We cannot wait to see you at the next ITA Collaborative event in San Antonio, Texas!
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