WIN Annual Conference Looks to Empower Leadership and Innovation

The Women’s Industry Network (WIN) 2026 Annual Conference will feature expert collision repair industry programing and professional development opportunities. WIN members can save their seat for the sessions with a special early bird rate until March 16. 

The keynote address by Dare Rosebery points out that Excellence starts with you and exceptional leaders grow by understanding who they are and how their thinking drives results. The session explores the six disciplines of uncommon performance, offering a practical framework to strengthen self-leadership and achieving more with your skills and talents so you can lead others more effectively. 

Other sessions include: 

• Industry Insights into Parts Dynamics: Parts pricing and material costs continue to shift, but the real story behind margin pressure in collision repair is more nuanced than most headlines suggest. In this session, OEC leaders Tanya Sweetland and McKinley Thompson will share data-backed insights into how pricing dynamics, repair complexity, and repair procedure utilization, along with certification adoption and evolving vehicle technology, are reshaping profitability.  

• Introducing W.A.V.E.– Wonder, Adapt, Value, Evolve: The closing session features Nick Davis, founder & CEO of ShopSite, focusing on AI and Collision Repair. Accelerating change is redefining leadership, and leaders need a practical framework for leading through disruptive technology shifts such as advanced AI, quantum, and CRISPR. Attendees will learn how to separate signals from noise, make better decisions faster, turn trends into measurable outcomes, and build teams designed to learn and evolve continuously. 

• All Star Industry Panel – Reflections from WIN’s Founding Mothers: Meet and hear the words of wisdom and experiences from six women pioneers in the collision repair field that blazed the trail for so many women in the industry. WIN is honored to assemble and present a roundtable discussion with plenty of insight, forward-thinking, and many stories that will make you laugh and maybe cry a little. The panel will feature Frederica Carter, Geralynn R. Kottschade, Kathy Mello, Patricia Serratore, Marcy Tieger, Gigi Walker, and be moderated by Kristen Felder.

Breakout Sessions will focus on two paths; one for professional and leadership development, and the second for the latest trends and hands-on, technical updates on the shop floor: 

• What’s It Going to Take? A follow up session by Rosebery, which will describe how success looks and reveals critical elements necessary to realize consistent, repeatable, and sustainable results. 

• Professional Development Plans that Work: Learn a simple framework to create clear, actionable development plans for yourself and your team. Join Wendi Kroll from Essential HR Inc., and walk away with practical tools to build accountability, improve performance, and support employee growth. 

• From Imposter to Influencer: Take in the teachings, experiences and learn to build trust from leadership strategist and executive advisor Chrissy Dunlap. 

• Good Weld, Bad Weld: What Would You Call It? Learn how to identify errors and defects, and what it takes to make necessary repairs when comes to the art of welding from Jason Bartanen of Collision ProAssist. 

• Unlocking Repairability Through Modern Glue Pull Repairs: Join Chris and Emma White from Keco to discover how modern Glue Pull Repair (GPR) helps collision technicians repair more panels with greater control, less invasiveness, and better results. You’ll leave knowing when and how to use GPR to increase repairability, improve quality, and streamline shop workflow. 

• Smarter Collision Repair Estimating when Combining AI with Human Expertise: As AI becomes a standard tool in collision-damage estimating, knowing how to leverage it effectively is key. This session with Dune Pagaduan from Mitchell, highlights the real-world strengths and limitations of AI, along with proven strategies for implementation and change management. Learn how to deploy AI-powered estimating solutions that enhance performance and accuracy while preserving a human-in-the-loop model that empowers appraisers and estimators  

 The conference theme is “Empowering Excellence – 20 Years of Driving Change and Building Leadership,” and will be held from May 4-6 at the JW Marriott Tucson Starr Pass Resort & Spa in Tucson, Arizona. 

Ticket registration for the entire conference for WIN Members is $795, and an early bird rate of $695 ends March 16. The ticket price for non-members is $950. Registration for in-person attendees closes on April 21. The daily rate for attendance is $325. More pricing details are available on the registration site, as well as sponsorship opportunities at the event.

Interested attendees can join WIN as a professional member any time for just $125, and then take advantage of the discounted attendance as a WIN member.