FPSA In The News: Launching Cultivate: Leadership Growth Lab to Close the Manufacturing Leadership Gap

New two-day conference gives early-to-mid-career food production and manufacturing professionals hands-on leadership experience.

McLean, VA – The Food Production Solutions Association (FPSA) today announced the launch of Cultivate: Leadership Growth Lab, a new two-day leadership development conference built for early-to-mid-career professionals in food production and manufacturing. Cultivate will take place November 5–6, 2026, in Lexington, Kentucky.

FPSA created Cultivate to respond to a leadership gap the association has watched widen across the industry. The U.S. workforce is undergoing a significant generational transition. As Baby Boomers continue to retire and younger workers enter the labor force, Millennials and Gen Z are becoming the dominant generations in the workplace, reshaping leadership pipelines, workplace expectations, and talent development strategies. FPSA's own 2025 Member Research: Trends in U.S. Workforce Gap and Solutions study found that 75 percent of fabricators and 64 percent of service technicians have leadership skill deficiencies at the time of hire or promotion, yet only 48 percent of companies currently have formal leadership training programs in place.

Cultivate is designed to close that gap by giving rising leaders real leadership practice, not just leadership theory. The program is organized around three pillars — Labs, Challenges, and Accountability — and unfolds as a connected two-day journey, moving participants from self-awareness and communication into observation, application, and accountability. Attendees complete a DiSC assessment before the event and are placed into small, DiSC-balanced peer groups called Cultivate Circles, which serve as their learning community throughout the program and continue as an accountability network long after the conference ends.

The event opens with a keynote from Jason Burke, Founder and CEO of The New Primal, who shares the leadership lessons that shaped his career—from his first job selling frozen ices in the stands at Tampa Stadium to leading a rapidly growing national food company. Through stories of building teams, navigating adversity, and developing people, Burke will challenge attendees to think differently about what it means to lead long before they have the title. From there, participants move through interactive labs on communication, difficult conversations, and leading without authority. Day two takes attendees on a tour of a local food production facility, where they'll see leadership and production in action, followed by an operational leadership challenge where Cultivate Circles apply everything they've learned to a realistic, evolving business simulation.

“Food production and manufacturing companies are about to hand the keys to a generation of leaders who have never been given a real chance to practice leading,” said Chris Lyons, CEO of FPSA. “Cultivate exists to close that gap. We built an experience where early-career professionals don’t just hear about leadership — they practice it, get feedback on it, and leave with a network of peers holding them accountable to keep growing. That’s how we build the bench our industry needs moving forward.”

Registration is now open, starting at $995 for FPSA members and $1,495 for non-members, and includes a complimentary DiSC assessment, all conference sessions, transportation to and from event venues, and an Opening Reception at RD1 Spirits. Companies that register two attendees can bring a third for free. Registration closes October 30, 2026, giving every attendee time to complete their DiSC assessment before the program begins. Space is limited to approximately 80 attendees, and because everyone is paired into small peer groups called Cultivate Circles for the full two days, attendees should plan to stay for the entire event.

Full event details are available at fpsa.org/cultivate, with the complete schedule at fpsa.org/cultivate-schedule and a full look at the Cultivate journey in the Cultivate Experience Guide at fpsa.org/cultivate-experience-guide.

About FPSA

The Food Production Solutions Association (FPSA) unites the entire food production industry across all segments, creating a collaborative environment for OEMs, service providers, and food producers. Through meaningful education, industry engagement, and philanthropy, FPSA and its members are building a sustainable future for food production. Cultivate: Leadership Growth Lab is part of FPSA's broader investment in leadership development, alongside the Food Industry Technician Program (FIT) and the new FPSA Emerging Leaders Program.