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An immersive conference for early-to-mid-career food industry professionals.  Built around real skills, real conversations, and real results. 

Experience 🔹 Experiment 🔹Excel

 November 5-6, 2026  |  Lexington, KY

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9:45 AM
Transportation

Catch the bus to begin your Cultivate experience.  Departing from both hotels. Don't be late!

10:00 AM
Cultivate Circle Formation & Connection

Using your DiSC communication style, seek out peers who think differently;  form a small group that becomes your learning community and accountability network throughout Cultivate.

10:30 AM
Opening Leadership Experience
with Jason Burke

Explore leadership lessons through growth, resilience, and entrepreneurship with Jason Burke, founder of The New Primal. Then begin connecting those lessons to your own leadership journey. 

11:30 AM
Leadership Roundtable
with Jason Burke

Continue the conversation with your Cultivate Circle as you reflect on Jason's experiences, exchange perspectives, and connect leadership lessons to your own career.

12:30 PM
Lunch

Recharge, connect with fellow participants, and continue conversations before the afternoon leadership labs. 

1:30 PM
Lab: Leadership Under Pressure
with Emma Hossack

Experience a fast-paced leadership simulation where evolving scenarios challenge you to communicate, collaborate, and make decisions under pressure using DiSC-informed communication insights.

2:30 PM
Lab: Difficult Conversations
with Amy Goodson

Build confidence navigating feedback, accountability, and challenging workplace conversations through practical discussion and applied exercises.

3:30 PM
Lab: Leading Without Authority
with Leslie Minchin

Discover how to build credibility, gain buy-in, and influence others even when leadership isn't defined by title.

4:45 PM
Cultivate Circle Reflections & Leadership Commitments

Solidify the day's learning by identifying key leadership insights and committing to actions you'll continue practicing throughout Cultivate and beyond. 

6:30 PM
Welcome Reception
at RD1 Distillery

Reflect on the days learnings, create new connections, explore RD1's distillery forest, wood finishing lab and research and development center.

10:00 AM
Travel + Leadership Observation Briefing

Prepare to experience leadership through a new lens as your Cultivate Circle receives observation prompts before visiting a working food production facility. 

11:00 AM
Challenge: Leadership Observation
with Site Leadership

Go beyond the production process and observe operations through the lens of leadership, teamwork, decision-making, quality, and continuous improvement. Capture observations to fuel the afternoon challenge. 

1:00 PM
Lunch on the Go

Use the return trip and lunch to gather your thoughts before transforming observations into leadership insights.

1:30 PM
Circle Debrief & Leadership Insight Exchange
with Donald Woolridge

Compare observations, challenge assumptions, and discover how different perspectives can lead to different leadership insights.

2:30 PM
Challenge: Operational Leadership
with Donald Woolridge

Put everything you've learned into practice as your Cultivate Circle works through evolving operational challenges requiring communication, collaboration, adaptability, and leadership

4:00 PM
Final Reflection & Leadership Action Planning

Transform insights into action by creating a personal leadership plan and identifying the commitments you'll take back to your organization.

4:30 PM
Program Conclusion

Celebrate your Cultivate journey and leave with greater confidence, practical leadership tools, and a network of peers committed to your continued growth.