2025 Smart Woman Summit

  • Tampa, Florida

  • Friday, September 12, 2025

  • JW Marriott Tampa Water Street

Get Ready for The Most Empowering Day of Your Meetings Life

Make plans today to join the community of leaders at the original gathering of influential women in meetings: Smart Woman Summit. This is your chance to champion your career by being in the room where alliances are formed, problems are solved, and futures are made. By celebrating your greatness, we all rise up together.

 

Highlighted Sessions:

Ladies Who Lead Lunch

Join your fellow Smart Women in a brainstorming afternoon that tackles the biggest challenges in the meetings industry as you band together to solve shared problems. Trained “provocateurs” will lead your matched group through an exercise in discovery and innovation.

This is your chance to build your personal advisory board of experts to turn to for expert advice when you need it most.

Luxury “Me Time”

It’s pampering time as you will be treated to a personal development experience along with our wonderful sponsors and gifting partners. We pop the cork on an afternoon that celebrates your fabulousness.

Smart Women in Meetings Awards Gala

This is the most exclusive evening of the year in the meetings industry. Dress for the occasion as we celebrate the leaders who elevate our events and spread joy and transformation. The spotlight is on you and your allies as we sing the praises of the Rising Stars, Visionaries, Innovators, Stellar Performers, Industry Leaders, Entrepreneurs, and Hall of Fame. We invite winners from all years to join us as we celebrate greatness and encourage more of it in the years to come. This is where the movement happens.

INNOVATIVE IDEAS

Sherron Washington, M.A.

A dynamic force in the world of marketing and communication (marcom) and with over two decades of experience, Sherron has honed an extraordinary ability to craft simple, innovative, and results-driven strategies that transform brands and businesses. As the founder and CEO of The P3 Solution, a training and curriculum development firm based in Silver Spring, Maryland. Her energy is contagious! Sherron is a sought-after international speaker, trainer, facilitator, and professor, who has ignited audiences around the globe. Whether she’s on stage presenting for Event Executives or training with Alberta Economic Developers in Canada, her “simply communicate” philosophy leaves a lasting impression. Her books, Market Simple: The Blueprint to a One-Page Marketing Plan and The Oops Moment: Eliminating Marketing Mistakes, Mishaps, and Missteps, are must-reads for businesses looking to execute quick and effective marketing solutions.

Visibility Isn’t Vanity: Elevating Without Apology

In a world where women are often told to “stay humble” or “wait their turn,” this empowering session challenges that narrative. Visibility isn’t about ego—it’s about impact. Learn how to strategically show up, speak up, and stand out in your industry without second-guessing your worth. It’s not self-promotion, it’s leadership.

Shelley Brown

Shelley Brown is a former hospitality and event tech executive who turned into a leadership rebel. Now a sought-after keynote speaker, she challenges outdated leadership norms with bold, heartfelt talks that blend guts, grace, and grit. Known for her raw honesty, quick wit, and unforgettable stage presence, Shelley empowers teams to ditch performative culture and lead with real connection, emotional intelligence, and authenticity. Her message isn’t just inspiring, it’s transformational. If you’re building brave leaders and a purpose-driven culture, Shelley delivers the spark that makes people lead like they mean it.

Breaking The Hard Rules: Redefining Strength in Women’s Leadership

Shelley is committed to disrupting leadership norms, the ones that were never made by us or for us, ensuring they’re not just effective but bold enough to empower the next generation of game-changing leaders. As a speaker, she helps organizations and leaders tear down outdated playbooks and build leadership that’s unapologetically real. Shelley challenges the status quo, pushing leaders to show up with authenticity, courage, and power. With a background in hospitality, travel, and event tech, her approach is grounded in real-world experience and a deep belief in the future of leadership. As a Rebel in a Gown, she’s here to help us break the hard rules of leadership and create a new path for today and the leaders who will shape tomorrow.

Naomi Clare

Founder of Storycraft Lab and a recognized leader in audience engagement, event personalization and experience design, Naomi Clare Crellin teaches Engagement Strategy at NYU and has led innovative exhibit and experience design projects for global brands and organizations such as Google, Deloitte, Marriott International and NASA. Creator of the design thinking tools the Experience Profiles (TM) and the Wheel of Belonging, Naomi is passionate about leveraging behavioral insights to create experiences that foster belonging and meaningful connection. She is author of the recently published Belonging Playbook, created in partnership with Google’s Experience Institute, the Guiding Principles in Experience Design report from PCMA, CEMA and Marriott International, along with a follow-up publication, the Designing for Engagement Toolkit.

Belonging by Design: The Audience Engagement Equation

Belonging is central to the mission, meaning, and magic of the cultures we create. As experienced designers, we can build belonging with intention, curiosity, and creativity, and generate measurable impact for audience engagement. In this session, Naomi explores how stories connect us and how these stories can create strategies for building Belonging with your organization’s colleagues, teams, audiences, and experiences. You’ll learn how you can use the Wheel of Belonging framework as a design tool, and leave inspired to put Belonging into action for your teams, clients, and customers, too.

Amelia Rose Earhart

Amelia Rose Earhart is a daring pilot, author, and founder of the Fly With Amelia Foundation, which grants flight scholarships to girls. The former television reporter recreated her namesake's transcontinental flight from Oakland, California to Miami, Florida in a Cirrus SR22 and shares the lessons she learned along the way.

Learn to Love the Turbulence

In this inspiring keynote, Amelia Rose shares how her 28,000-mile flight around the world in a single-engine aircraft became a powerful symbol of determination, courage, and empowerment. Her journey invites audiences to explore what’s possible when we dare to pursue bold dreams.

 

Amelia’s story has moved Fortune 500 companies, the U.S. Air Force Academy, and universities nationwide. With contagious energy and authentic leadership, she brings audiences along for the ride—turning her global adventure into a blueprint for navigating challenges, embracing risk, and leading with purpose.

 

This isn’t just a story about aviation—it’s a call to action for anyone ready to break barriers, take flight, and reach new horizons.

Lisa Kaszubski

Lisa Kaszubski, CMP, MCLC transitioned from restaurants to hotel management, focusing on meetings and events. In her earlier career, she planned more than 600 weddings, then hundreds of corporate and nonprofit events, trade shows and medical meetings. She is a 2024 Industry Leader, Smart Women in Meetings Award winner and now a certified coach with Sister, We Hear You. Kaszubski will be presenting Women Winning Out Loud! She will be Helping women to shine a spotlight on their internal wins, free of the expectations or validation of others. Wins don’t have to be monumental to be considered a win, you are winning when you act authentically and in alignment with your values.

Women Winning Out Loud! By Sister, We Hear You

Helping women to shine a spotlight on their internal wins, free of the expectations or validation of others.  Wins don’t have to be monumental to be considered a win, you are winning when you act authentically and in alignment with your values.

Quinn Conyers

As a high-energy keynote speaker and public speaking expert who teaches entrepreneurs and business owners how to make their message memorable, leverage luxury language, Quinn Conyers uses speaking as a strategy for accelerated business growth. With over 20 years of experience, she has transformed hundreds of individuals from public speakers into powerful presenters allowing them to have conversations that convert into clients, customers and contracts. A trusted voice in the business and speaking industry, Quinn has spoken for leading brands such as Nike, Walmart, PayPal, Visa, UPS, the United Nations, and Meeting Professionals International.

Turn Conversations into Clients

Many women in the events and meetings industry struggle to verbalize their value with clarity, confidence, and conviction. As a result, they miss revenue opportunities due to ineffective, unclear, or uninspired communication.

Networking functions, in-person industry events, and even casual conversations can trigger anxiety when you’re unsure how to differentiate your services. Whether you’re a planner, venue, or vendor, you MUST be able to explain who you are and what you really do truly reflects the transformation you offer.

This high-impact, interactive session encourages event professionals to retire their boring and basic elevator pitch and replace it with a clear, concise, and compelling Verbal Business Card™.

You’ll also discover how to strategically leverage Luxury Language as a competitive advantage to convert conversations into contracts and clients.

In Partnership with JW Marriott Tampa Water Street

COUNTDOWN TO THE EVENT

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Thursday, September 11, 2025 - All Times Local Standard Time

5:00 pm - 7:00 pm Welcome Reception
7:30 pm to 10:00 pm Optional Offsite Reception

Friday, September 12, 2025 - All Times Local Standard Time

8:00 am- 9:00 am Breakfast: Check in and fuel your day with tasty morning bites
9:00 am - 10:30am Welcome Remarks & Opening Speaker
10:30 am - 11:15 am Keynote Speaker Session
11:15 am - 11:30 am Coffee Break
11:30 am - 12: 30 pm Keynote Speaker Session
12:30 pm - 2:00 pm Ladies Who Lead Lunch: Provocateurs' Roundtable
2:00 pm - 4:00 pm Smart Woman Experiential Boutique Lisa Kaszubski & Quinn Conyers
4:00 pm - 6:00 pm #MeTime
6:00 pm - 7:00 pm Awards Gala Welcome Reception
7:00 pm - 10:00 pm Smart Woman Summit Awards Gala & Dinner

MORE FEEDBACK FROM OUR ESTEEMED ATTENDEES

FAQ'S

Full Smart Woman Summit Conference and Smart Women in Meetings Awards Gala pass (including a 1-year membership in Smart Woman VIP Club [a $199 value], welcome reception on September 12, gourmet meals, workshopping with peers, career-boosting speakers [see below], gala dinner and entertainment): Smart Woman Full Conference Pass & Awards Gala $799 Smart Woman Summit (conference only): $499 Smart Women in Meetings (Gala only): $499 Guest of Smart Women in Meetings Awards (Gala only): $249 Table for 8 for Smart Woman Summit and Awards Gala: $4,995

Full-Day Conference Attendee Welcome Reception on Thursday and all scheduled conference meals, General Sessions, Education Sessions, Gifting Experiences, and SWAG bag are included in your conference pass. Full-Day Conference Attendee & Gala & Awards Dinner Everything is included in the full-day conference pass and the awards gala and dinner. Travel and Hotel Accommodations are not included.

We ask that you RSVP for the Thursday evening welcome reception in your event profile. We assume you will be participating in all other scheduled events included in your purchased conference ticket.

Dress Code Casual Cocktail - Welcome Reception Business Attire - Conference & Education Sessions Prepare yourself for a day of Inspiration, Motivation, and Goal Setting. Formal - Reception & Gala Glam up for an elegant evening and walk the red carpet!

Yes! You will receive CEU credits for each Keynote session that you participate in. Our event team will submit them on our behalf within 7 days of the event.

Tampa International Airport TPA

SPONSORS

Host Sponsor

Platinum Sponsor

Gold Sponsors

Table Sponsors

Annual Sponsors