Catalyst 26 - Chicago Summit

Join partnership leaders from Chicago for a half day of insights, networking, and hands-on learning at the Okta Offices.

The Catalyst Summit Chicago is your opportunity to connect with top partnership, alliance, channel, and GTM leaders who are building the next generation of ecosystems for their companies. Share strategies, exchange ideas, and explore what it takes to build modern, high-impact partner programs. Whether you're focused on ecosystem growth, co-selling, or unlocking new channels, you'll find valuable perspectives from peers and pioneers in the field.

Leave with more than just ideas—walk away with real strategies, actionable takeaways, and new relationships to fuel your work in 2026 and beyond.

1:00 pm – 1:30 pm

Registration and Networking

1:30 pm – 2:00 pm

Catalyst Summit Keynote

A high-energy opening session designed to kick off the Summit with the latest insights and trends from the Partnership Leaders team and a special guest speaker.

2:00 pm – 2:30 pm

Thought Leadership

Ron Piovesan - From Integrated Products to Integrated Outcomes

The next era of technology partnerships isn’t just about making products work together—it’s about making them easier to buy and better at delivering outcomes. Start with anchor partners to create integrated commercial models—marketplace, embedded/OEM and reseller—and then scale those motions across the ecosystem. The result: less friction for customers, better outcomes, and more revenue for both partners.

2:30 pm – 3:15 pm

Power Circles

Hosted by industry leaders, Power Circles are deep-dive group discussions focused on a specific topic. Participants can ask questions, share real challenges, and exchange practical insights with peers and leaders.

• Dan Sandler - Run the Program You Have. Build the Agent-Ready One You'll Need.
• Steve Hellin - From Recruitment to Revenue: AI Across the Partner Lifecycle
• Bill Mariani - Optimizing your Partner Organization Roles & Responsibilities
• David Meyer - Bigger Number, Same Team: How Partner Leaders Are Using AI to Close the Gap
• Wendy Wen - Buy vs. Build: Tools to Power Your Partnerships

3:15 pm – 3:45 pm

Break

Take a moment to recharge and connect with peers during these dedicated networking breaks.

3:45 pm – 4:15 pm

Thought Leadership

Todd Odess - A View from Both Sides of the Table: What switching from ISV to SI Taught Me about Partnerships

Most partnership advice comes from one side of the table. After years managing SI relationships for various technology companies, I thought I knew what was best. I have read all the books, talked to colleagues. Then I flipped sides of the table and now manage ISV relationships at an SI, and I realized what I didn’t know. This session is a candid debrief on what that switch actually revealed: the assumptions I made, the things that turned out to be unsurprisingly and sometimes shockingly the same and different, and the advice and gotchas that only become obvious once you've lived both roles. I will share what I did, what I'd do differently knowing what I know now, and the practical takeaways partnership leaders on either side of the table can put to use immediately.

4:15 pm – 4:30 pm

Closing Remarks

4:30 pm – 6:00 pm

Catalyst Mixer

Finish the day with a celebratory happy hour. Spend time with the community, meet our wonderful sponsors, and keep the energy going over delicious food and drinks.