XBO Schedule
Integration for the Next Generation
NSCA is excited to bring the XBO Experience to Tempe Mission Palms in Tempe, AZ on Nov. 10–11, 2026! Join us for two days of interactive learning, career insights, and next-gen leadership training designed to help integrators thrive.
Registration is now open—reserve your spot today!
Level Up Your Career
Whether you’re new to the industry or rising fast, XBO offers industry-specific development and networking opportunities made for the next generation of integration leaders.
Next-Gen Speakers
Hear from the thought leaders and innovators driving today’s trends.
View SpeakersDynamic Sessions
Bounce ideas and learn leadership skills in a truly energized setting.
View ScheduleNext-Level Fun
Build relationships in a fun, energetic environment you’ll actually enjoy.
XBO Schedule
The XBO Experience brings a new focus to ongoing and emerging trends, as well as educates newer professionals about the industry’s best practices and most proven methods.
Powered by NSCA’s Next Gen Academy curriculum with support from NSCA’s tried-and-true business insights, we’ve built this schedule to aid in prepare new leaders for the generational shift underway now.
Check out what the NSCA team has planned with the schedule below.
XBO’s schedule is chock-full of great content. Here’s what you can expect:
- Emotional intelligence
- Communication styles
- Workplace conflict
- Organizational culture
- Trust and vulnerability
- Organizational behaviors
- Change management
- Financial literacy
View Schedule Below!
7:00 am
8:00 am
9:00 am
9:15 am
10:30 am
10:45 am
12:00 pm
1:00 pm
2:15 pm
2:30 pm
Breakfast
Opening Session: Leading an Integration Company When Business Rules Are Changing
Presenter: Lindsay Martinez, Avidex
Commercial integration is moving so fast that many trusted leadership approaches and business models from just a few years ago aren’t relevant or effective anymore. Industry pressures like talent shortages, margin compression, supply chain instability, and rising customer expectations are changing how integration firms operate. Responding requires a new set of technologies and business models—AV/IT convergence, cloud, AI, and managed services, for example—which also change how leaders structure teams and deliver value so their companies can compete. Attendees will leave with a better understanding of how to navigate ambiguity and lead their organizations through increasingly complex operational and market realities.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Change and uncertainty navigation
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Confidence and decision-making
- Systems thinking
- Customer-facing communication
- Leadership transition
Breakout 1: Manage Capacity Before Burnout Manages You
Presenter: Graham Kelly, TD SYNNEX
When commercial integration leaders experience burnout, it’s usually due to unmanaged capacity, not weakness (which is what many leaders incorrectly think). Unrealistic expectations, compressed timelines, travel demands, and constant availability can’t be sustained. In this session, emerging leaders learn how to recognize the warning signs of capacity drain so they can apply practical strategies long before they reach a breaking point. They’ll leave with plans to better manage their time, emotional energy, and decision fatigue for long-term effectiveness.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Accountability under pressure
- Personal growth and self-awareness
- Leadership transition
- Confidence and decision-making
- Cross-functional collaboration
Breakout 2: What Changes When You Start Leading?
Presenter: Jon Kiley, Red Thread
Many rising stars are promoted because they’re great at the work they do. And along with that promotion comes the opportunity to lead people. But just because you can handle technical work or manage projects doesn’t mean you know how to lead well—yet. In this session, we’ll talk about what changes when stepping into a leadership role for the first time: the mindset shifts, relationship dynamics, communication skills, and leadership habits required to move from “doing the work” to “owning the outcome of the work” when it’s delegated. Attendees will leave with a plan for navigating the first 90 days in a new leadership position, including how to establish expectations and avoid the trap of jumping back in to fix everything.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Leadership transition
- Confidence and decision-making
- Building trust and credibility
- Accountability under pressure
- Conflict resolution
- Personal growth and self-awareness
Sponsor Table Talks
Lunch
Keynote Session: How High-Impact Leaders Think and Operate
Presenter: Mark Fenner, RISE Performance Group
Strong leadership is about building discipline, structure, and habits that help teams be effective long-term. In this session, emerging leaders get to explore the operational structures and intentional communication rhythms that high-impact leaders rely on to create clarity, accountability, and consistent performance. We’ll also talk about the importance of continuing to grow as a leader through peer accountability and coaching. New leaders can become trusted stewards who shape team results for years to come when they focus on making others successful.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Accountability under pressure
- Project and workflow management
- Turning ideas into execution
- Confidence and decision-making
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Systems thinking
Breakout 3: The Difficult Conversations that Build Better Teams
Presenter: Justin Bailey, Lone Star Communications
Avoiding difficult conversations may feel easier in the moment, but it often creates a whole new set of problems: deeper dysfunction, weakened trust, and an environment that allows small issues to turn into big problems. In this session, emerging leaders will learn how direct communication, vulnerability-based trust, and the willingness to address tension early can build strong teams. We’ll share practical frameworks to use for leading honest, constructive conversations. Then, we’ll walk through real-world examples of how leaders have handled awkward or emotionally charged conversations to improve team dynamics.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Difficult conversations and assertiveness
- Conflict resolution
- Building trust and credibility
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Personal growth and self-awareness
- Leadership transition
Breakout 4: Structured Thinking to Overcome Tough Problems
Presenter: Chase Fairchild, Fairchild Communications
In commercial integration, troubleshooting requires critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and the ability to stay calm when pressure is high. Success is equal parts quick response and careful judgement. In this interactive workshop, attendees will explore structured problem-solving methodologies to help them work through challenges more strategically by asking better questions. Participants will get to practice what it means to slow down reactive thinking and expand solution possibilities in real-world troubleshooting scenarios so they can balance speed with thoughtful analysis.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Problem-solving methods
- Asking the right questions
- Communicating complex ideas simply
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Accountability under pressure
- Confidence and decision-making
7:00 am
8:00 am
9:00 am
9:15 am
10:30 am
10:45 am
12:00 pm
1:00 pm
Breakfast
General Session: Leading the Way You Expect Others to Follow
Presenter: Lisa Page, SVT
Leadership begins with evaluating yourself. Are you consistent in your actions? Holding yourself accountable? Leading by example? Teams naturally reflect the habits, discipline, and accountability modeled by their leaders, and rising stars have an opportunity to set the standard. In this session, emerging leaders will discover how discipline, consistency, follow-through, humility, and accountability can shape team trust and credibility. Attendees will learn how to audit their own leadership behaviors and strengthen the habits they want reflected in their teams.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Building trust and credibility
- Personal growth and self-awareness
- Ethics and integrity
- Accountability under pressure
- Leadership transition
Sponsor Table Talks
Breakout 5: Knowing the Difference Between Busy and Profitable
Presenter: Ryan Staner, CEC
High activity doesn’t automatically translate into profitability. Seemingly small day-to-day decisions about labor, scope, communication, and escalation can significantly impact whether business is profitable—or not. In this session, attendees will uncover how actions like delaying difficult conversations, over-servicing customers, project management decisions, or failing to escalate issues early enough can erode margin. Then, they’ll learn how to avoid these mistakes by following specific operational disciplines and habits. Emerging leaders will be ready to think more strategically about profitability instead of worrying about staying busy.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Accountability under pressure
- Project and workflow management
- Delivering client value
- Turning ideas into execution
- Confidence and decision-making
Breakout 6: Mastering the Art of Reading Data Critically
Presenter: Xzavia Killikelly, Kinly
Having access to dashboards that report on performance and AI-generated insights that summarize trends are valuable in many ways, but they’re only starting points. Leaders need to be able to slow down and dig deeper, analyzing information critically and determining how trustworthy it is. Then, they must know how to connect it to meaningful action to move business forward. In this session, attendees find out how to properly evaluate, question, manage, and interpret data so they can identify misleading metrics and translate insights clearly so different audiences can understand it.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Problem-solving methods
- Confidence and decision-making
- Communicating complex ideas simply
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Identifying bottlenecks and constraints
- Adapting to change and uncertainty
Lunch
Closing Session: Why People Behave the Way They Do—and How to Change It
Presenter: Brandon Conick, CTI
People and teams usually take action based on what their environment rewards, even when those rewards are unintentional: applause for speed, credit for shortcuts, praise for always saying “yes.” These rewards aren’t about money; they often have to do with respect, clarity, and trust. During this session, attendees will investigate how incentives shape behavior, culture, accountability, communication, and operational outcomes. By understanding how small signals can produce results that are different from what they expect, leaders can shape behavior more intentionally. Attendees will understand how to create environments where the right behaviors happen more naturally because the system supports and reinforces them—and rewards them.
Inspired by These Next-Gen Academy Concepts:
- Adapting to change and uncertainty
- Turning ideas into execution
- Communicating complex ideas simply
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Accountability under pressure
- Leadership decision-making
Register for XBO Today!
Don’t miss your chance to experience this new must-attend event for emerging professionals in the system integration industry
Substitutions and Cancellations:
- Substitutions can be made at any time.
- Cancellations received in writing at least 30 days before the event will be refunded, minus a 25% cancellation fee.
- For cancellations made less than 30 days but at least one week before the event, a 50% cancellation fee will apply.
- No refunds will be given for cancellations made less than one week before the event.
NSCA is not responsible for weather-related interruptions that may affect attendance. By submitting payment, you agree to these cancellation terms for XBO.
