2026 Agenda
Applied AI For Distributors
Join distribution leaders June 23-25, 2026, to discover how AI is already creating market leaders and leaving others behind.
Agenda
10:30 AM – 11:45 AM
Optional Workshop
Pre-Show Strategy Session | Get a Head Start on What’s Really Working in AI
The first 75 conference registrants are invited to an exclusive pre-conference strategy session led by Jonathan Bein, PhD, and Ian Heller of Distribution Strategy Group. Before the main conference begins, you’ll get a clear head start with a grounded overview of where AI is actually working in distribution today—no theory, no hype, just what real companies are achieving right now.
Ian Heller, Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer
Distribution Strategy Group
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Ian Heller has more than 30 years of experience executing marketing and e-business strategy in the wholesale distribution industry. He has written and spoken extensively on the impact of digital disruption on distributors.
Ian entered the distribution industry as a truck unloader at a Grainger branch while in college. He eventually became Vice President of Marketing there and has since held senior executive roles at GE Capital, Corporate Express, Newark Electronics and HD Supply. Ian most recently served as President and COO for Modern Distribution Management, a specialized information and analytics firm serving the wholesale distribution industry.
Ian earned a BA in History from Roosevelt University and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where he was elected commencement speaker by his classmates and won the Dean’s Distinguished Service Award.
Jonathan Bein, PhD, Co-Founder and Managing Partner
Distribution Strategy Group
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Jonathan Bein, Ph.D., is the co-founder and Managing Partner of Distribution Strategy Group. At the conference, to be held in Chicago on June 4th–6th, Jonathan will deliver the keynote, “AI Driven Revenue Growth.”
He’ll explore how AI can bring new levels of effectiveness and efficiency to areas like:
- Salesforce management
- Customer relationship management
- Cross selling and upselling
- Marketing automation and campaign management
- Digital marketing
- eCommerce capabilities
Jonathan Bein Ph.D. has worked with over 100 distributors to apply advanced analytics and AI to improve customer experience, define value proposition, estimate sales potential and create digital strategy.
Before Distribution Strategy Group, Bein has successfully led and been part of executive management for software product and services companies in information technology, healthcare and communications. Bein has been CEO of several companies. He earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science at the University of Colorado with a focus in Artificial Intelligence and his BA in Computer Science at Indiana University.
Sponsored By
12:00 PM – 12:15 PM
Welcome + Agenda Review
Conference hosts Ian Heller and Jonathan Bein preview the conference!
12:15 PM – 1:15 PM
Opening keynote | Economic and Labor Market Update – What to Expect in 2026 and Beyond
Alex Chausovsky, President
3DM Consulting
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Alex Chausovsky is a trusted resource and advisor for owners and executives of private-and-publicly-held firms and industry trade associations on analytical, economic, geopolitical and business-oriented topics. He is a highly experienced market researcher and analyst with more than two decades of expertise across industries such as automation, industrial technology, healthcare, business services and manufacturing. He has consulted and advised companies throughout the U.S. and Canada, Europe, South America, and Asia.
Alex has delivered more than one thousand presentations, webinars, and workshops to small businesses, trade associations, and Fortune 500 companies and is the go-to source of industry data and insights for hundreds of enterprises across a spectrum of industries. Alex’s analysis has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, on the BBC, and on NPR.
The macro environment around us is constantly changing, often with significant ramifications. As we transition to a multipolar world, there are shifting global alliances and multiple conflict hot spots around the world, some of which have turned into full-out war. Not to mention tariffs, sanctions, trade embargoes and many other disruptive forces at work. Despite all this, there are also immense growth narratives, such as AI adoption and data center construction, that defy any slowdown. The opportunity around AI is immense and long term, and leaders that want to take advantage of it must develop a deep understanding of the market in order to capitalize on it.
In this session, you’ll hear from Alex Chausovsky, the President of 3DM Consulting, who will deliver an insightful analysis of how recent events will impact the economy and how they could affect the outlook for the distribution industry. He’ll explain the potential impact on supply chains, input prices, and labor market dynamics, among others. He’ll share what key leading indicators are telling us about the direction of the economy and offer practical and actionable advice for business leaders based on today’s geopolitical and macroeconomic forces, helping you plan for future operating conditions. Most importantly, he’ll do a deep dive into the economic and labor market impact of AI and data centers to identify how you can take advantage of the upside and mitigate any risks associated with his dynamic, fast-moving market opportunity.
Attendees will walk away from the session with the following insights:
- An objective assessment of time-sensitive geopolitical and economic indicators such as business investment, inflation, interest rates, tariffs, and the impact of AI on the broader economy
- Concrete advice on how to navigate the current macroeconomic climate and plan for the future – Risk management and flexible scenario planning strategies to help you make informed decisions in an uncertain world
- Tools that leaders can leverage to be data-driven decision makers for their organization
1:15 PM – 2:15 PM
Welcome Event sponsors!
A brief introduction round for event sponsors where each sponsor is given 1 minute to introduce themselves, share their core offerings, and explain how they align with the event’s mission.
2:15 PM – 2:45 PM
Official Exhibit Hall Opening and snack break
Connect with your peers and Sponsors in the Exhibit Hall for a networking break. Enjoy complimentary beverages and snacks as you mingle, exchange ideas, and explore opportunities. Don’t miss this chance to make meaningful connections.
2:45 PM – 3:15 PM
A Series
Track 1
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GoMotivate, Inc.
GoMotivate delivers AI-powered sales automation solutions purpose-built for B2B distributors, helping companies automate quote-to-order processing, generate sales insights, and streamline customer communication. The platform automates over **50 % of manual order entry, integrates with existing systems, and enhances eCommerce with patent-pending PO-to-Cart technology to help distributors operate more efficiently and grow revenue.
Track 2
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A2 | Matterhaul | Title: Context is the Competitive Edge: The Next Era of AI in Distribution
As AI becomes widely available, the advantage shifts from algorithms to operating systems: how fast you can capture, structure, and reuse institutional knowledge across sales and operations. This session introduces a context-driven approach to AI adoption in distribution. How to build a shared “memory” of customers, products, and exceptions that improves decision-making across the business. We’ll cover what to prioritize first, how to avoid common failure modes (pilot purgatory, low adoption, hallucinations, stalled data projects), and how to align people, process, and governance so AI becomes a compounding asset.
- The AI advantage in distribution isn’t the model you use; it’s the institutional knowledge you can capture and reuse.
- Most AI pilots fail by design, not by technology; learn how to sequence your rollout to avoid the traps.
Your team’s best judgment on customers, products, and exceptions is your most scalable asset, here’s how to operationalize
Track 3
More information
Continuum Technologies, Inc.
Continuum Technologies, Inc.
Continuum is the first reverse logistics platform built for wholesale distribution that helps B2B distributors and manufacturers streamline complex post-sales operations like returns, warranties, and repairs to reduce labor costs and enhance customer experiences. Its cloud-based solution automates manual processes, integrates with leading ERP and eCommerce systems, and transforms returns from a costly burden into a strategic advantage.
3:15 PM – 3:30 PM
Passing Break
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM
Tech Leader Panel: AI in the Core: Modernizing ERP, Commerce & Product Data for Distribution
As distribution businesses evolve, intelligence is increasingly embedded within the systems that power day-to-day operations. This panel featuring Epicor, BridgeLine, and Kaavio examines how AI is transforming the core technology stack — from ERP platforms to digital commerce environments and product data management.
The conversation will explore how AI enhances operational planning and forecasting within ERP systems, improves online product discovery and customer experience in commerce platforms, and automates product data enrichment to reduce manual effort and improve accuracy. Rather than treating AI as an external add-on, this session highlights how intelligence is becoming foundational within the infrastructure that runs modern distribution.
Designed as an educational discussion, this panel will help distributors understand how to strengthen their core systems while building a scalable foundation for long-term digital transformation.
Key Takeaways:
- Smarter planning and decision-making within ERP systems with AI
- Intelligent commerce and automated product data management to enhance discovery, accuracy, and efficiency
- Embedded AI reduces manual processes and builds a resilient, AI-ready technology foundation
Panelist
More information
Epicor Software Corporation
Epicor drives business growth by providing flexible, industry-specific enterprise software designed to fit the precise needs of manufacturing, distribution, retail, and service industry customers and improve performance, profitability, and operational simplicity. Epicor’s solutions combine deep industry knowledge with smart software to streamline processes and help businesses “make, move, and sell” more efficiently.
Panelist
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Kaavio
Kaavio is focused on “turning product complexity into commercial clarity” and helps teams go from “price list” to “market ready content in seconds.” Kaavio’s solution supercharges your product content team by letting you give us part numbers and a manufacturer — we handle the research, enrichment, and content creation and upload a spreadsheet, get market-ready content back.
Panelist
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HawkSearch
HawkSearch is an AI‑powered site search and product discovery platform that enables companies to capture more traffic, increase order value, and drive conversions by delivering highly relevant, personalized search experiences across complex eCommerce catalogs. Designed for organizations with technical product catalogs — including manufacturers, distributors, and B2B brands — HawkSearch powers smarter search, merchandising, and content discovery to help buyers quickly find the products or information they need.
4:15 PM – 5:15 PM
Keynote: With Danna Stone with graybar
As Senior Vice President of Marketing and a member of the Board of Directors at Graybar, Danna is engaged in one of the most critical conversations shaping distribution today: how data, technology, and AI can drive growth, enhance the customer experience, and protect margins in an increasingly complex business environment.
Drawing on more than two decades in electrical distribution, Danna brings a practical perspective to the role of AI in marketing, pricing, purchasing and category management. At Graybar, AI is not viewed as a stand‑alone solution or a shortcut to decision‑making, but as part of a broader, disciplined technology journey that combines modern platforms and advanced analytics with strong processes, governance, and people strategies.
In this session, Danna will share how Graybar is applying AI to improve decision making, efficiency, and execution in a way that benefits the company and those it serves. Attendees will gain insight into how a leading distributor is integrating AI into the way
Danna B. Stone, Senior Vice President, Marketing
Graybar Electric Company, Inc.
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Danna B. Stone is Senior Vice President, Marketing and Board of Directors member at Graybar, a leading distributor of electrical and communications products and related supply chain management services.
Stone started her career in electrical distribution in 1999 and has held various director and VP positions. She joined Graybar in 2014 and has been VP – Strategic Accounts, District Vice President for the St. Louis District, and VP – Category Management. As SVP – Marketing, Stone combines the traditional role of negotiating distribution and incentive agreements with a heightened responsibility to drive growth and profitability in all product categories. In addition, she manages market development, marketing communications, pricing and purchasing for Graybar.
Stone holds a bachelor’s degree in supply chain management from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has completed executive leadership programs at the International Institute of Management Development (IMD) in Lausanne, Switzerland, as well as the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She is currently pursuing her EMBA at Washington University.
Stone is a corporate partner team member for the St. Louis Symphony and the St. Louis Art Museum, and a member of the Board of Directors for the St. Louis Ronald McDonald House Organization, the Opera Theatre of St. Louis, and the YMCA. She is also a member of the Board of Directors for both NAED and IDEA. In 2026, she is serving as Chair of IDEA.
She received the STL Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 award in 2015, Graybar’s WINGS Leadership Award in 2019, and President’s Club in both 2017 and 2019. Further, Danna is the 2018 Courage Award recipient of the Melanoma Research Foundation.
She and her husband, Steve, have two children.
5:15 PM – 5:45 PM
B Series
Track 1
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B1 | Epicor | Cut Through the AI Noise: Practical AI Use Cases for Distributors
AI is everywhere, but practical guidance for distributors is harder to find. While many organizations are experimenting with AI, few are seeing meaningful results. At the same time, distribution leaders continue to navigate thin margins, pricing volatility, multi-warehouse complexity, and disconnected systems that make fast decision-making difficult.
The real opportunity is identifying where AI can deliver operational impact. When paired with the right data foundation and embedded into core systems like ERP, AI can help distributors reduce manual effort, surface insights faster, and make better operational decisions.
In this session, we’ll cut through the noise and explore practical AI opportunities across the distribution business. From purchasing and warehouse operations to executive decision-making, you’ll see where AI can help teams identify margin risk, improve inventory visibility, and act faster using the data they already have.
- Understand why many AI initiatives fail, and what distributors should focus on instead; learn the foundational data readiness principles needed to support AI initiatives
- Explore practical AI use cases across distribution roles including purchasing, warehouse operations, and leadership
- See how AI-infused workflows are emerging within distribution ERP systems like Prophet 21
Track 2
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Distro
Distro offers “the complete AI sales platform built for distributors” where reliance on tribal knowledge is eliminated, new reps perform faster, quote accuracy and hit rate improve, and “every quote, from one-offs to complex takeoffs, becomes more profitable.” The platform helps teams “quote thousands of line items in seconds, no matter the format” and provides “instant knowledge from hundreds of manufacturers & associations” so reps have the answers they need exactly when they need them.
Track 3
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B3 | Torinit | You’re Leaving Money on the Table: What We Found Inside 20 Distributor Operations
Every distributor has revenue they’re not capturing — not because of competition or market conditions, but because their business has silently contracted to fit the limits of what their people can manually process. Over time, expertise of bottlenecks, unmeasured quote declines, and compounding manual errors become invisible. The business adapts around them. Nobody sounds the alarm because everyone adjusted. This session shows what happens when those constraints are surfaced and measured, using real examples from a $155M HVAC/plumbing distributor and a $135M industrial electrical distributor that stopped adapting and started measuring.
A $155M mechanical distributor discovered that 30–40% of incoming RFQs were going unanswered because senior estimators were at capacity, and nobody was tracking the lost revenue. After embedding AI into their quoting workflow, monthly takeoff volume went from 55 to over 140, RFQ decline rates dropped below 5%, and fitting errors fell by 82% — with the same team. A $135M industrial electrical distributor found the same pattern in a different workflow: technical cross-referencing expertise trapped inside a small team, limiting the company’s ability to respond to complex customer requests at scale. This is not a product demo or a technology overview. It’s a quantified look at what hidden operational constraints actually cost, how to find them, and what changes when you eliminate them. Attendees will leave with a 30-day diagnostic — three conversations and one spreadsheet — to uncover whether the same pattern exists in their operation.
- Identify where expertise bottlenecks, unmeasured quote declines, and manual errors become invisible and constrain revenue
- Quantify what hidden operational constraints actually cost, including unanswered RFQs and lost throughput
- Apply a 30-day diagnostic — three conversations and one spreadsheet — to uncover whether the same pattern exists in their operation
5:45 PM
Welcome Reception
Kick off the conference in style at the Applied AI 2026, Welcome Reception! Join us for an evening of connection, conversation, and celebration as you mingle with fellow attendees in the Exhibit Hall.
Enjoy a delectable selection of heavy hors d’oeuvres and a variety of drinks while you network and set the stage for an unforgettable event. Don’t miss this perfect opportunity to make new connections and reconnect with colleagues!
Sponsored By:
7:00 AM – 8:00 AM
All Attendee Breakfast
8:00 AM – 8:15 AM
Welcome + What We Learned
Join Ian and Jonathan to kick off day 2! Hear about yesterday’s highlights and what day 2 has in store.
8:15 AM – 9:15 AM
Keynote | The AI-Powered Distributor: Beyond the Chatbot
Brian Hopkins, Chief Operations Officer
Distribution Strategy Group
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Brian Hopkins is recognized for his expertise in customer service and operational efficiency within the industrial distribution sector. His career trajectory showcases a series of impactful leadership roles, marked by innovation and strategic growth.
Notably, at W.W. Grainger (2002-2011), Brian significantly enhanced call center operations, and deployed the Grainger strategy by leading an operational staff of 7 direct reports and more than 800 employees in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa Call Centers. His tenure as District Branch Operations Manager and Branch Manager demonstrated his proficiency in managing large-scale operations, overseeing 18 branches with $200 million in revenue, and effectively running a $25 million branch operation.
Subsequent roles include driving operational and customer service transformation at HD Supply Power Solutions (2011-2015), leading customer experience innovations at Hisco (2015-2020), and enhancing multi-site customer service strategies at Redi Carpet (2020-2022) and AZP Multifamily (2022-2023).
Brian Hopkins’ career is a reflection of his unwavering dedication to customer service excellence and operational efficiency in industrial distribution. His tenure, especially at W.W. Grainger, has had a lasting impact, showcasing his capacity to innovate and lead in complex, multi-site operational environments. His academic background, including an MBA and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management, complements his extensive practical experience.
Brian has consistently demonstrated his ability to lead, innovate, and drive sustainable growth across various operational landscapes.
If you are still using Large Language Models just to write emails, you are barely scratching the surface. AI has officially transitioned from simple chatbots into conversational reasoning engines that can revolutionize how distributors work, compete.
In this keynote, we are cutting through the hype to show you what modern AI actually does. We’ll break down how to choose the right tool for the right job—whether that’s the logic of ChatGPT, the workflow mastery of Claude, the multimodal power of Gemini, or the deep research of Perplexity. More importantly, you’ll learn why the future belongs to “AI Workspaces”—centralized hubs that unlock team-level productivity that individual prompting never could.
Get ready to see real distributor use cases in action. We’ll build prospecting dashboards in 5 minutes, model interactive sales commissions, and show you how to integrate AI notetakers to automatically extract process documentation and training materials before institutional knowledge walks out the door.
We’ll demystify the skill that separates mediocre outputs from game-changing ones: context-building. You’ll walk away not just knowing how the tech works, but how to lead the adoption from the bottom up, empower your team, and model the behavior that makes AI stick.
Key Takeaways:
- Navigate the Modern AI Landscape: Understand the distinct strengths of ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity, and when to deploy each for specific distribution challenges.
- Move from Prompting to Workspaces: Learn how to transition from siloed, individual AI use to centralized, team-wide AI projects that multiply productivity.
- Lead the Change: Master a practical, bottom-up framework for driving AI adoption, empowering employees, and building a culture of innovation.
9:15 AM – 10:00 AM
tech leader panel: Intelligent Revenue Operations: Aligning Customer, Procurement & Digital Strategy with AI
Revenue growth in distribution no longer depends on isolated systems or departmental optimization. It depends on how effectively customer intelligence, purchasing workflows, and digital performance are connected.
This panel brings together SugarCRM, Suppli, and Turn to explore how AI is being applied across the commercial lifecycle — from CRM-driven sales insights and forecasting, to procurement automation and supplier visibility, to data-driven digital growth strategies. The discussion will focus on how distributors can eliminate silos between front-office and operational teams, using AI to create alignment, improve decision-making, and drive measurable revenue impact.
Attendees will gain practical insight into how AI can unify revenue operations — strengthening sales execution, streamlining purchasing processes, and enhancing customer acquisition and engagement — without requiring disruptive system overhauls.
Key Takeaways:
- AI-driven CRM insights improve sales forecasting and account performance
- Procurement automation increases efficiency and supplier coordination
- Connect data and apply AI to accelerate revenue growth and improve visibility
Panelist
More information
Kaavio
Kaavio is an AI platform that helps businesses turn complex product data into clear, market-ready content. It enables companies to go from “price list to market-ready content in seconds” by researching part numbers, enriching product information, and automatically generating product titles, descriptions, and attributes.
Panelist
Alok Pradhan, Co-founder and CEO
TURN
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Alok is the co-founder and CEO of Turn, a software company with an intelligent ERP for distributors, as well as an AI assistant for sales teams that works with any ERP to boost quote to order conversion rates. He brings over a decade of product leadership experience, having led company-defining initiatives at high-growth startups and billion-dollar enterprises. Prior to Turn, Alok served as Director of Product at Symphony, a communications platform for the highly regulated and secure banking sector. At Symphony, Alok managed global teams and spearheaded the next-generation client that became the backbone of the company. Earlier, Alok guided product initiatives at Intapp, a leading legal technology company (INTA NASDAQ), to help transition the company to become a cloud first software provider and began his career tackling energy efficiency and transportation systems at Rocky Mountain Institute. An electro-mechanical engineer by training, Alok holds degrees from Michigan and Illinois, and is passionate about applying systems thinking to solve complex industry challenges.
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TURN App
Turn App
Turn App is an online events discovery platform that enables users to create, discover, and share social events happening around them, helping people find parties, concerts, workshops, and experiences matched to their interests via an intuitive mobile interface. The app focuses on making event discovery easy, fast, and accessible for everyone, building community engagement through shared event content and interaction.
Panelist
Ryan Ayers, Co-founder & CEO
Suppli
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Ryan Ayers is the Co-Founder and CEO of Suppli, the digital credit teammate built for distribution that integrates with your ERP to monitor customers for changes in credit health, proactively manage dunning, and automate cash application. Under his leadership, Suppli has become a trusted industry partner recognized by AD, NAW, ISA, LMC and NACM.
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Suppli
Suppli is a payments and finance platform built for materials suppliers and distributors. It provides ERP-integrated tools like digital credit applications, automated collections, and customer payment portals to help businesses simplify accounts receivable and “get paid faster.”
10:00 AM- 10:15 AM
Passing Break
10:15 AM – 10:45 AM
c Series
Track 1
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C1 | Making AI Work for Distribution: A Practical Playbook for Every Team
In this interactive session, Benj Cohen, CEO of Proton, cuts through the AI hype to help distributors focus on what truly drives results. As AI adoption accelerates, many leaders are unsure where to invest their time and budget. This session provides a practical, no-nonsense look at what AI does well today, where it still falls short, and how distributors are successfully applying it across sales, marketing, operations, product, and pricing. Attendees will also gain a simple framework to evaluate AI use cases and prioritize initiatives that deliver meaningful ROI—along with ready-to-use tools and prompts they can immediately apply in their organizations.
Key takeaways:
- Understand the current state of AI — Clearly distinguish what AI can do well today, where it falls short, and what’s coming next.
- Recognize high-impact AI applications in distribution — Learn how peers are leveraging AI across sales, marketing, operations, and pricing.
- Prioritize where to start and take action — Identify organizational pain points, rank AI opportunities by impact, and leave with practical tools and prompts ready for immediate use.
Track 2
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C2 | WizCommerce | Add 10% to Your Bottom Line with AI: Lessons from 200+ Distributors
Every distributor is being pitched AI for something — order entry, CRM, ecommerce, quoting, forecasting. But which of these actually move the bottom line? After 200+ implementations, tracking outcomes at 6, 12, and 18 months, and listening to distributors share their experiences with other AI tools and vendors, this session draws directly from what has worked in practice — and what has only looked good in a demo.
This is not a product demo or a technology overview. It’s a practical look at what actually delivers ROI and what doesn’t. Attendees will see the three highest-ROI AI use cases — automating inbound order entry, building a self-serve B2B ecommerce channel, and making your CRM actually work for your sales team — along with real numbers on time saved, revenue added, and margin impact, and how they compound to 10%+ bottom-line growth. The session also covers how to spot the point-solution trap before it costs you, why distributors running one connected platform are outpacing those stitching together five different tools, and the questions to ask every AI vendor before you sign.
- Identify the three highest-ROI AI use cases and understand their impact through real numbers on time saved, revenue added, and margin improvement
- Evaluate AI vendors and solutions by spotting the point-solution trap, asking the right questions, and distinguishing what actually delivers ROI vs. what’s just a good demo
- Understand why a connected platform outperforms fragmented tools and how these decisions compound to 10%+ bottom-line growth
Track 3
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C3 | GAINS | From Prediction to Action: How Agentic AI is Transforming Supply Decision Automation for Distributors
Discover how Border States is leveraging the latest advancements in agentic AI to automate complex supply and purchasing decisions, overcoming labor shortages and driving measurable business results. This session will showcase a practical AI maturity path from lead time prediction (LTP) to full-scale Supply Decision Automation (SDA), highlighting real-world outcomes, lessons learned, and strategies for scaling AI adoption. Attendees will gain actionable insights into automating repetitive, non-value-added tasks, freeing up teams for higher-value work, and navigating the organizational and technical challenges of AI transformation.
- Leveraging the latest advancements in agentic AI to automate complex supply and purchasing decisions, overcoming labor shortages and driving measurable business results.
- Showcasing a practical AI maturity path from lead time prediction (LTP) to full-scale Supply Decision Automation (SDA), with real-world outcomes, lessons learned, and strategies for scaling AI adoption.
- Gaining actionable insights into automating repetitive, non-value-added tasks, freeing up teams for higher-value work, and navigating organizational and technical challenges of AI transformation.
10:45 AM- 11:00 AM
Passing Break
11:00 AM – 11:30 AM
d Series
Track 1
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D1 | Cavallo | The Science of Profit for Distributors
In a $53.8 trillion global distribution economy, competitive advantage is no longer driven by volume; it’s driven by precision. While many distributors focus on top-line revenue, the true “Science of Profit” is won or lost at the atomic level: the individual order. Currently, most distributors operate with a hidden liability: a 30–40% order defect rate. These invisible leaks, caused by pricing slippage, inefficient fulfillment, and misaligned customer economics, silently erode margins. This session introduces a rigorous, data-driven framework to bridge the gap between your ERP’s “system of record” and a true “system of optimization”. Inspired by real-world success and engineered for modern warehouse complexities, we will provide a roadmap to becoming a profit-centric distributor. Attendees will learn how to transition from reactive, aggregate management to a state of flawless, high-margin execution using AI.
- Isolate Order Economics: Understand why profit is determined at the transactional level and how aggregate P&L metrics obscure true performance, and discover how a seemingly small 1.25% improvement in pricing precision can skyrocket profits by over 47%.
- Operationalize the “Perfect Order”: Learn to identify margin leakage within ERP workflows and quantify the true cost-to-serve.
- Strategic Segmentation: Master customer segmentation based on margin contribution rather than revenue to unlock reinvestment and enterprise value.
Track 2
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D2 | Canals | AI Hype vs. Reality: How Distributors Can Identify the Right AI Partner
AI adoption across distribution is accelerating, but many organizations are discovering that selecting the right AI partner can be just as challenging as implementing the technology itself. As the market becomes increasingly crowded with vendors claiming AI capabilities, distributors face an important question: how do you distinguish credible solutions from marketing hype?
This presentation focuses on a critical—but often overlooked—aspect of AI adoption: how distributors should evaluate AI vendors before committing to a solution. Drawing on real-world experience evaluating AI platforms, along with feedback from distributors navigating these decisions, the session outlines practical criteria organizations can use to assess vendor readiness, technical depth, security and data practices, and the ability to deliver measurable business outcomes.
Rather than focusing on specific AI features or tools, this session provides attendees with a clear framework for making smarter AI investment decisions. Participants will learn how to evaluate potential partners, ask the right questions during the selection process, and identify common warning signs that may indicate risk.
Attendees will leave with actionable guidance they can apply immediately as they evaluate AI initiatives and technology partners within their own organizations.
- A practical framework distributors can use to evaluate AI vendors
- The most important questions to ask before committing to an AI solution
- How to identify common warning signs and avoid costly vendor selection mistakes
Track 3
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D3 | Optimizley | The AI Checklist: Where to Strategically Apply AI to eCommerce In Your Organization for Maximum Impact
Ready to move from AI hype to tangible results? In this interactive session, leaders will pinpoint their organization’s unique AI needs and identify where to apply it for the most significant returns in ecommerce.
- A prioritized roadmap for your Digital Commerce-Related AI Program
- Actionable examples of high-value AI agents that drive online sales growth
- Key insights from real-life AI success stories
11:30 AM- 11:45 AM
Passing Break
11:45 AM – 12:15 PM
e Series
Track 1
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E1 | Blue Meteor | The Self-Building Catalog: The Zero-Touch Product Data Dream for Distributors
Every distributor knows the pain: supplier spreadsheets, inconsistent attributes, missing images, manual cleanup, and endless normalization before a single SKU can go live online. But what if product data could flow in from suppliers, aggregators, and internal systems — and automatically emerge clean, standardized, enriched, and eCommerce-ready — without your team ever touching it? We’ll walk through the “dream state” for distributors – This session explores the practical application of AI to make that vision real.
- Eliminate manual cleanup – No more supplier spreadsheets, inconsistent attributes, missing images, or normalization before a SKU goes live.
- AI automates product data flow – Data is ingested, normalized, enriched, and errors flagged and resolved proactively.
- End-to-end automation – Governed, approved, and delivered to ERP, eCommerce, marketplaces, and digital channels without manual work.
All without spreadsheet wrangling, manual copy-paste, or repetitive cleanup work.
Track 2
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Endeavor
Endeavor AI, Inc.
Endeavor AI is the #1 AI platform for manufacturing and distribution, designed to help industrial companies win more, sell more, and save time by automating complex workflows like order entry, quoting, and sales operations with advanced agentic AI tailored to manufacturers and distributors. Its AI agents rapidly integrate with existing ERP and data systems to streamline manual processes and improve operational efficiency across front‑ and back‑office functions.
Track 3
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E3 | Klizer |Built from the Floor, Not the Lab Custom AI Engines for Distribution Commerce
Most AI solutions for distribution are built in R&D labs and sold as one-size-fits-all products. They enrich your catalog with consumer-grade language. They automate the easy 60% of your orders and leave the messy 40% with your team. They process your data through the same generic third-party model that serves fashion retailers and grocery chains. And then they ask you to train your team on a new interface.
Klizer takes the opposite approach. With 20+ years building eCommerce systems for distributors and three years attending this conference, listening to what works and what doesn’t, we engineer custom AI solutions born from real distributor problems, not product roadmaps. Every solution we’ll demonstrate in this session was built because a distributor described a specific challenge that off-the-shelf tools couldn’t solve.
This session features a live side-by-side comparison of proprietary distribution-trained AI versus generic commercial models on the same product data, followed by three real deployment stories: turning thin catalogs into conversion-driving storefronts, making 50,000+ product pages visible to Google, and automating the messy POs that standard tools can’t read.
- See the difference: Live comparison of proprietary distribution-trained AI versus generic third-party models on real product data
- ·earn from real deployments: Three distributor case studies covering AI-driven catalog enrichment, continuous SEO optimization, and agentic order automation
- Decide with clarity: An honest framework for when to buy an AI product versus when to engineer a custom solution — and why most distributors need both
12:15 PM – 1:15 PM
All Attendee Lunch
1:15 PM – 2:15 PM
Keynote | Cybersecurity in the Age of AI: When Trust Becomes the New Attack Surface
Jeff Crume, PhD, CISSP, IBM Distinguished Engineer, Master Inventor, Cybersecurity Architect
IBM
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Jeff Crume is an IBM Distinguished Engineer and Master Inventor with more than 40 years’ experience in the IT industry. He has a PhD in Cybersecurity and serves as an Adjunct Professor at NC State University. Jeff’s YouTube videos have been viewed more than 25 million times and he is the author of a book entitled “Inside Internet Security: What Hackers Don’t Want You To Know” as well as a contributing author to the “Information Security Management Handbook.” He is a member of the inaugural class of the NC State University Computer Science Alumni Hall of Fame and serves on the editorial board for the “Information and Computer Security” research journal. Jeff lived in Beijing on assignment in 2006 and has worked with clients in 50 countries.
Artificial intelligence is transforming cybersecurity — but not in the way most executives expect.
For decades, technology has helped organizations defend themselves against digital threats. AI changes that equation. But the same tools that make businesses more productive also make deception cheaper, faster, and more convincing than ever before. Deepfake voices, synthetic video, and AI-generated identity fraud are no longer theoretical risks — they are already being used against real companies, often exploiting long-standing trust between employees, customers, and partners.
In this eye-opening keynote, Jeff Crume of IBM, a globally recognized cybersecurity leader and one of the most widely followed AI educators on YouTube and the conference circuit, explores how AI is fundamentally reshaping the threat landscape. Drawing on real-world examples, Jeff explains why traditional security thinking — and even many emerging “AI detection” tools — are no longer sufficient.
The session will examine:
· How AI dramatically expands the cyber attack surface
· Why deepfakes and impersonation attacks are especially dangerous for transaction-heavy, trust-based businesses
· What executives often misunderstand about AI “detection” and why humans, not technology alone, must be part of the solution
· How AI will simultaneously eliminate some jobs, create others, and force organizations to rethink how they train people for work in a world where trust can no longer be assumed
· What leaders should be doing now to reduce risk, strengthen governance, and prepare their organizations for what comes next
This is not a technical deep dive. It is a candid, executive-level conversation about risk, responsibility, and resilience — delivered by someone who has spent decades at the intersection of AI, cybersecurity, and enterprise reality.
Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of the cybersecurity risks AI introduces, why those risks are different from anything before, and what practical steps leaders can take to mitigate them.
2:15 PM – 2:30 PM
Passing Break
2:30 PM -3:00 PM
f Series
Track 1
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Oro Inc.
Oro Inc. provides OroCommerce, a cloud-based digital commerce platform built for manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers. The platform enables businesses to “enable, manage, and track all your commerce operations” with built-in B2B capabilities such as corporate account management, customer-specific pricing, self-service portals, and integrations with ERP and other enterprise systems.
Track 2
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From Spreadsheet to Smart Sheet: Connecting MS Excel to ChatGPT
In this live session, Mark Gilham, VP, Rebate Advisory at Enable will unlock the potential of integrating artificial intelligence directly into Microsoft Excel. Participants will discover how to establish a seamless, functioning connection between everyday spreadsheets and OpenAI’s sophisticated GPT models all without external plugins, additional downloads, or complex coding knowledge.
The session begins with foundational concepts, demonstrating how to set up your first API connection with a simple query like “What is the capital of France?” Through clear, methodical instruction, the session progressively builds toward advanced applications, culminating in a practical demonstration of how AI can automatically classify product descriptions, a task that typically requires hours of manual work.
You’ll also get to see a quick demonstration of how Enable’s AI-Powered Analytics can help you analyze, act on, and optimize your rebate data.
Learning objectives:
- Master the technical implementation of OpenAI API connections within Excel using VBA
- Develop practical skills to transform routine Excel tasks into AI-powered workflows
- Apply AI integration techniques to solve real business problems with existing spreadsheets
Track 3
3:00 PM – 3:15 PM
Beverage Break
3:15 PM – 3:45 PM
g Series
Track 1
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Driving Growth with Augmented Intelligence
This presentation explores the transformative impact of augmented intelligence on the distribution industry. Learn how AI can be easily harnessed to automate complex processes, unlock valuable insights, and ultimately fuel sales growth using AI. Gain actionable insights on leveraging AI to enhance workforce capabilities, improve customer satisfaction, and drive smarter decision-making.
Walk away equipped with strategies to:
- Drive Business Agility: Harness data-driven decisions to stay ahead in a competitive and rapidly evolving market.
- Streamline Operations: Automate repetitive tasks, implement AI powered recommendation systems and pricing strategies
- Elevate Workforce Productivity: Empower teams with AI-driven tools and insights.
Through real-world examples and interactive discussions, this presentation delivers practical steps to integrate AI into your operations, ensuring your business thrives in the age of AI.
Track 2
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Oro Inc.
Oro Inc. is the company behind OroCommerce, a unified cloud‑based B2B digital commerce platform built for manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers that combines commerce, CRM, marketplace management, invoicing, payments, and workflow automation to give organizations a single view of customers, transactions, and processes. Founded by the original creators of Magento with a mission to deliver long‑term business resilience and flexible solutions for complex sales models, OroCommerce is recognized by industry analysts and powers hundreds of mid‑market and enterprise businesses worldwide.In this session, Distro CEO Jason Sullivan breaks down why change management often fails when AI is treated like a feature instead of a foundation.
You’ll learn how leading distributors are driving real revenue growth with a complete quote-to-close platform that combines automation with something most tools don’t offer: an embedded selling agent.
Track 3
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Sales Effectiveness: AI’s Strategic ROI Sweet Spot
In this session, we’ll cut through the AI hype to explore why sales effectiveness use cases consistently emerge as the most successful entry points for industrial organizations beginning their AI journey. Unlike the moonshot projects that capture headlines but drain budgets, sales effectiveness applications offer predictable returns paired with practical learning opportunities that build organizational muscle memory for larger transformations.
We’ll map how sales effectiveness projects naturally integrate into broader technology strategies, creating the technical infrastructure, data governance frameworks, and stakeholder confidence that enable more ambitious AI applications downstream. The session’s core focus addresses the fundamental truth that successful AI adoption depends more on change management than algorithmic sophistication.
Through concrete examples drawn from 20+ years of B2B industrial implementation experience, participants will discover proven approaches for designing implementations that augment human capabilities rather than threatening them—understanding not just what works, but why it works and how to replicate that success.
Learning Objectives:
- Position sales effectiveness use cases strategically within broader AI roadmaps for maximum organizational impact
- Apply people-first design principles that ensure sustainable adoption and measurable business outcomes
- Understand the specific characteristics that make these implementations successful and replicable
3:45 PM – 4:00 PM
Passing Break
4:00 PM – 4:30 PM
h Series
Track 1
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Pivotree, Inc.
Pivotree is a provider of frictionless commerce solutions that helps organizations design, build, and manage complex digital platforms in commerce, data management, and supply chain to improve how customers find, buy, and receive products. The company supports more than 200 major retailers, branded manufacturers, and distributors globally with end‑to‑end strategic planning, implementation, and managed services as they work toward a future of frictionless commerce.
Track 2
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The AI No-Brainer: Clean Your Data, Unlock Conversion, Fuel Everything Else
Every AI vendor is promising magic for pricing, personalization, and automation — but here’s the hard truth: none of it works without clean, enriched product data. This session spotlights the highest-ROI AI investment a distributor can make right
now: fixing their product catalog. Matt Johnson from Pivotree will reveal why AI that actually works starts with better
SKUs — and how Pivotree uses machine learning and generative AI to instantly turn messy supplier files into enriched, channel-ready products that drive conversion. Attendees will see real results from top distributors using these tools to improve findability, reduce returns, and increase sales — while multiplying their data output without complex rules or integrations.
● 20–50% increase in conversion
● Up to 30% fewer returns
● 70% faster SKU onboarding
● 50%+ cost savings through automation
You’ll also be given the 5-stage Data-for-AI Success Flywheel — a proven framework to govern, enrich, consolidate, activate, and optimize product data. With a centralized PIM engine at its core, this model powers everything from eCommerce to delivery — and ensures your AI strategy is built on a rock-solid data foundation.
Learning Objectives
● Understand why AI fails without clean product data — and why enrichment leads to faster ROI.
● See how distributors use AI to automate SKU enrichment and drive measurable gains.
● Apply the 5-stage Data Success Flywheel to build a scalable, ROI-positive data foundation.
● Discover Pivotree’s AI-powered SKU Build tools, and how they make SKU quality trackable, fast, and transformation-ready.
Track 3
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Driving Profitability with Intelligent Pricing and AI-powered CRM Systems
During “Driving Profitability with Intelligent Pricing and AI-powered CRM Systems,” you will learn how cutting-edge technologies can transform your pricing strategies and customer relationship management.
In this session, you’ll gain:
- More Time Back: Discover how automated tasks can free up your sales team’s time.
- Intelligent Pricing to Improve Margins: Use dynamic pricing models and data analytics to boost your bottom line.
- Tips for Using AI: Enhance customer insights, automate sales processes, and forecast trends effectively.
- Consistency: Understand the steps for integrating and optimizing these advanced systems.
4:30 PM – 5:00 PM
Exhibit Hall Break
5:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Keynote | AI, Skills, and the Future of Work
Matt Sigelman, President
Burning Glass Institute
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Matt Sigelman is President of the Burning Glass Institute, a nonprofit data laboratory working at the intersection of the future of work and the future of learning to advance economic mobility, shared prosperity, and improved outcomes for workers and learners. Named by Forbes to its Future of Work 50, Matt has dedicated his career to bridging the gap between talent and opportunity.
Previously Chairman and CEO of Lightcast, Matt pioneered the field of real-time labor market analytics, a breakthrough innovation that transformed the way employers, education institutions, policy makers, and workers understand, plan for, and connect with the world of work.
He serves as Senior Advisor at the Harvard Project on the Workforce and a Futures Fellow at the Stanford Center on Longevity. He writes widely on the job market, has testified before Congress, and is consulted frequently by public officials and the global media. He is also Founder of the Main Line Classical Academy, an elementary school bringing the classical liberal arts curriculum and rigorous study in math and science to the kindergarten level on up and dedicated to the idea that children are never too young to learn great things.
Matt holds an AB from Princeton University, an MBA from Harvard, and is a Member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
AI is rapidly transforming work—but not in the way most leaders expect. The biggest changes aren’t happening at the level of jobs; they’re happening at the level of skills, learning curves, and career pathways.
In this keynote, Matt Sigelman, President of the Burning Glass Institute, draws on real-time labor-market data and historical insights from prior technology revolutions to explain how AI is reshaping productivity, entry-level work, and workforce structures. He explores why some skills are being automated while others are becoming more valuable, how AI is compressing traditional career ladders, and what this means for hiring, training, and talent strategy.
Designed for senior business leaders, this session provides a clear framework for understanding AI’s impact on the workforce—and practical guidance for navigating talent decisions in an era of rapid change.
6:00 PM
Reception and networking
Cap off the second day of the conference with a lively networking reception designed for connection and fun! Mingle with fellow attendees over complimentary drinks and appetizers. Spark new connections or deepen existing ones! It’s the perfect way to unwind, recharge, and build your network as we head into the final day.
Make sure to stick around for Prize Giveaways!
7:00 AM – 8:00 AM
All Attendee Breakfast
8:00 AM – 8:15 AM
Welcome + What We Learned
Wrap up the event with Ian and Jonathan! Revisit all the note-worthy events from the 2 previous days and review what today has in store.
8:15 AM – 9:00 AM
Distribution Leader Panel | AI Priority-Setting at Three Scales: A Founder, a President, and a CXO Talk Execution
Three distribution leaders from very different corners of the industry — electrical, security/AV, and automotive recycling — share how they are making real AI investment decisions inside their organizations. Natasha Broxton, CEO of Alitura Group and Select Auto Parts & Sales, brings the perspective of an owner-operator who has deployed voice AI and inventory optimization systems in her own facilities before consulting other recyclers on how to do the same. Dwayne Roberts, President of Summit Electric Supply, leads a 23-branch electrical distributor navigating enterprise-level digital integration across mobile field tools, ERP, and e-commerce after Summit’s recent acquisition by Sonepar. Stu Tisdale, SVP and Chief Experience Officer at ADI Global, oversees the digital and data strategy for a $4.6B distributor with 256 locations, where AI-driven tools are already reshaping how contractors buy and how sales teams sell.
Rather than theory, this session focuses on how each leader evaluates where AI will actually deliver returns — and where it won’t. The panel will cover how they assess organizational readiness at different scales, sequence initiatives across sales, pricing, operations, and customer experience, and decide which use cases get funded versus shelved. Attendees will hear how a founder funding AI with grant dollars, a newly appointed president integrating technology across a growing branch network, and a CXO scaling AI/ML tools across a global operation are each moving from experimentation to disciplined execution — and what they have learned the hard way along the route.
Natasha Broxton, Founder, Owner & CEO
Alitura Group, Select Auto Parts & Sales
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Natasha Broxton is a 14-year operator and CEO of Select Auto Parts & Sales, a 125,000-square-foot automotive recycling facility in Milwaukee. As one of the few Black woman owners in the automotive recycling industry, she has built and scaled her operation through disciplined systems, workforce development, and strategic modernization.
After implementing AI inside her own facility to improve pricing logic, operational visibility, and decision consistency, Natasha founded Alitura Group to help established operators and distributors modernize with structure — not hype.
Her work focuses on embedding AI into real operational workflows to strengthen margin protection, leadership clarity, and scalable execution across distribution and industrial businesses.
Natasha is a national speaker and industry contributor focused on practical AI adoption for operators who want measurable results.
Dwayne Roberts, President
Summit Electric Supply
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Married to my wife (Chante) for 14 years, with one child (son named Cameron). Born and raised in western North Carolina (graduate of Appalachian State University with a BS in Business, focus in Accounting). Entered the electrical distribution industry in 2000 with a large national distributor, before joining Summit in 2022. Bulk of my career has been in finance and operations with experience across multiple geographies across the US (Central, Southeast and West Coast) with the bulk of my career being split between California (Los Angeles) and Texas (Dallas). Leadership philosophy is to be a strategic leader focused on building strong relationships with associates, customers, and supplier partners to create value across the supply chain. Key focus on utilizing performance analytics to maximize company resources in support of profitable market share growth, while ensuring cross-functional communication that seeks to remove ambiguity from the organizations core mission. Experienced in multiple vertical markets (Comm / Data – Private & Public, Commercial / Electrical Construction, Industrial, Government and Institutional) within wholesale distribution.
Stu Tisdale, Senior Vice President and Chief Experience Office
ADI Global
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Stu Tisdale is the Senior Vice President and Chief Experience Officer for ADI, responsible for setting the strategic direction and managing the company’s digital footprint to deliver a leading omnichannel customer experience across all touchpoints. He oversees the company’s e-commerce websites and apps, digital marketing, loyalty programs, strategic pricing, data science and analytics, creative services and technical sales support.
Focused on delivering an exceptional omnichannel customer experience, Stu drives initiatives to enhance the customer journey across all channels. He has played a key role in leading numerous strategic initiatives including online shopping and e-commerce platform enhancements, cloud-based pricing, touchless ordering, ADI Pro Rewards, analytics, AI/ML-powered sales tools and more.
Stu also leads all Voice of the Customer initiatives for the company, ensuring customer feedback is integrated into all product and services offerings. Additionally, he plays a vital role in cultivating M&A opportunities to accelerate ADI’s growth, resulting in seven acquisitions since 2020.
Stu is an accomplished leader with deep expertise in B2B marketing, digital strategy and commercial excellence. Previously, he served as Vice President, Strategy and Commercial and has held a variety of roles within the company’s marketing and category management functions. Prior to ADI, Stu held roles in product management and marketing at Henry Schein, Inc.
9:15 AM – 11:00 AM
Speed Networking
Maximize your conference experience with this fast-paced and fun speed networking session! This interactive event gives you the opportunity to make meaningful connections with solution partners. In a series of quick, one-on-one conversations, you’ll have the chance to exchange ideas, discuss industry trends, and explore potential collaborations.
11:15 AM – 12:00 PM
Closing Keynote | Continuous Improvement Meets AI: How Grainger Built Advantage Through Compounding Execution
Jonny LeRoy
Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer
W.W. Grainger, Inc
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Jonny LeRoy is the Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of W.W. Grainger, Inc., a $17.2 billion leading broad line distributor with operations primarily in North America, Japan and the United Kingdom. He is responsible for the technology systems, data, AI, security and operations that underpin Grainger’s business model.
Jonny joined Grainger in 2020 after a 15-year career at ThoughtWorks, where as Head of Technology for North America, he led their technology organization, growing new offerings and capabilities, while also helping to progress their talent, culture and delivery expertise. In prior roles at ThoughtWorks, Jonny served as Market Tech Principal for the West Coast and Lead Developer in the U.S. and UK. Earlier in his career, Jonny was a founder and CTO of a successful UK start-up.
Jonny holds CPE from Westminster University, and a MA, Literae Humaniores from the University of Oxford. Jonny is a 2022 Daniel Burnham Fellow with Leadership Greater Chicago and is on the governing body of the Evanta Chicago CIO community. He also serves on the Board of Advisors for the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) College of Computing.
Few companies understand profitable growth like W.W. Grainger. Now, it’s rewriting the playbook with artificial intelligence at the core.
In this keynote, Jonny LeRoy will share how Grainger is using AI to unlock hidden value—turning data, automation, and financial discipline into a performance engine.
Highlights include how Grainger is:
- Enhancing customer experience through intelligent search, conversational AI, and real-time data.
- Optimizing supply chains with predictive forecasting and computer vision automation.
- Rewiring operations by consolidating systems and empowering employees with AI-driven insights.
12:15 PM – 2:15 PM
Workshop 1: Build Your AI Roadmap
Brian Hopkins, Chief Operations Officer
Distribution Strategy Group
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Brian Hopkins is recognized for his expertise in customer service and operational efficiency within the industrial distribution sector. His career trajectory showcases a series of impactful leadership roles, marked by innovation and strategic growth.
Notably, at W.W. Grainger (2002-2011), Brian significantly enhanced call center operations, and deployed the Grainger strategy by leading an operational staff of 7 direct reports and more than 800 employees in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa Call Centers. His tenure as District Branch Operations Manager and Branch Manager demonstrated his proficiency in managing large-scale operations, overseeing 18 branches with $200 million in revenue, and effectively running a $25 million branch operation.
Subsequent roles include driving operational and customer service transformation at HD Supply Power Solutions (2011-2015), leading customer experience innovations at Hisco (2015-2020), and enhancing multi-site customer service strategies at Redi Carpet (2020-2022) and AZP Multifamily (2022-2023).
Brian Hopkins’ career is a reflection of his unwavering dedication to customer service excellence and operational efficiency in industrial distribution. His tenure, especially at W.W. Grainger, has had a lasting impact, showcasing his capacity to innovate and lead in complex, multi-site operational environments. His academic background, including an MBA and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management, complements his extensive practical experience.
Brian has consistently demonstrated his ability to lead, innovate, and drive sustainable growth across various operational landscapes.
$499 | Boxed lunch included
Stop guessing. Start planning.
Work through a facilitated process that maps AI applications directly to your operations—your workflows, your bottlenecks, your quick wins. You’ll use our AI Roadmap tool and ROI Calculator to build a customized implementation plan you can present to leadership.
You leave with:
- A prioritized AI roadmap tailored to your business
- ROI projections for your top 3 use cases
- Exclusive access to the AI Roadmap tool (yours to keep)
No fluff. No theory. Just the plan you need to get budget approved and execution started.
Best Suited for C-Suite, VP, Directors
*Add this Workshop to your cart during the registration process
12:15 PM – 2:15 PM
Workshop 2: Hands-On With Agentic AI in Distribution
Nick Pericle, Founder
Tenexity
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Nick Pericle has spent the last decade working with distributors across the country, from branches to boardrooms. As founder of the AI Enablement Firm, Tenexity, he focuses on helping distributors understand and implement artificial intelligence in practical and impactful ways. He’s a podcast host of the show Distribution At the Crossroads, a fellow with the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors, and a user of most AI tools available on the market today.
$499 | Bring your laptop | Box lunch included
We find the best way to understand AI agents is to build them yourself.
In this session, we’ll start by walking through common terminology—what agents actually are, how they differ from simple automation, and why the distinction matters. We’ll look at specific distribution use cases where agents make sense: transaction processing, product information, sourcing and procurement, customer service, and sales support.
Then we’ll get practical. Together, we’ll build the core architecture: the bones that handle input, reasoning, and tools integration. You’ll see how an agent receives a request, decides what to do with it, connects to external systems, and produces a useful output. We’ll provide sample datasets so you can experiment with real scenarios (customer inquiries, purchase orders, product lookups) and see the workflow in action.
By the end, you’ll have a working framework you can take home and extend. The patterns we build together apply whether you’re automating order entry, answering product questions, or routing customer requests. The architecture is the same; the application is yours to shape.
There are a few prerequisites: we’ll ask you to sign up for some technology platforms beforehand so you’re ready to build when we start. Details will be provided in advance.
Bring your laptop, fully charged. Are you in?
Limited to 50 seats. Laptops required.
Best Suited for CIO, CTO, IT, Technical professionals, or anyone interested in Agentic AI
*Add this Workshop to your cart during the registration process