Summit 2025

An invitation-only event of CEOs, Executives, and Investors shaping the future of Work

Park City | Utah

MAY 21, 2025

Agenda

Annual General Meeting

9:00 am

10:00 am

Fun Run

9:30 am

11:00 am

Outdoor Activities (optional)

Exploring the outdoors that that Park City offers. Group activities including fly fishing, mountain biking, hiking or just relaxing.

12:30 pm

1:30 pm

Lunch

1:30 pm

2:00 pm

The State of Acadian Ventures

A detailed update on the firm, our fund performance, recent additions to the team, and our outlook on the global seed stage investing landscape.

Presented by Jason Corsello

2:00 pm

2:30 pm

How AI is Changing the Workforce

A deep dive into our investment thesis and perspectives shaping AI at work.

Presented by Thomas Otter

2:30 pm

3:10 pm

AI Agents at Work with FORA, SquarePeg, and SmartRecruiters

A lively CEO panel discussion with portfolio companies including Joe Essenfeld (FORA), Claire McTaggart (SquarePeg), and Rebecca Carr (SmartRecruiters)

Moderated by Erin Yang

3:10 pm

3:40 pm

Break

3:40 pm

4:20 pm

AI and the Impact on Workers with Arist, Match2, and Worky

A lively panel discussion with portfolio companies including Maxine Anderson (Arist), Doug Berg (Match2), and Maya Dadoo (Worky)

Moderated by Thomas Otter

4:20 pm

5:00 pm

The New Infrastructure with Compa, Kombo, and datascalehr

A lively CEO panel discussion with portfolio companies including Charlie Franklin (Compa), Alex Kubel (Kombo), and Jerome Gouvernel (datascalehr)

Moderated by David Clarke

5:00 pm

5:30 pm

AMA with Acadian Ventures Team

Q&A session with Jason Corsello, Thomas Otter, David Clarke, Erin Yang, and Ryan McQueeney

6:30 pm

7:00 pm

Shuttle Pickup to Nelson Cottage

7:00 pm

8:00 pm

Cocktails & Whiskey Tasting

8:00 pm

10:30 pm

Dinner at Nelson Cottage by High West

4:00 pm

4:45 pm

An Absence of Accountability with Jeffrey Pfeffer, Professor of Organizational Behavior at Stanford University Graduate School of Business

Employers play a critical role in the escalating costs and underperformance of healthcare benefits in America. This session will explore where benefits programs go wrong, how healthcare costs are now starting to impact earnings, and discuss the massive opportunity for employers to play a role in fixing healthcare.t

In Conversation with Jerry Condon

8:00 am

9:00 am

Breakfast

9:15 am

9:50 am

Adam Godson on Pioneering AI and Exiting to Workday

Aaron Matos

A conversation with Adam Godson, former CEO of Paradox, a Workday Company, shares his story of pioneering AI, navigating a billion dollar exit, and what the future holds at Workday.

In Conversation with Jason Corsello

9:50 am

10:25 am

The Innovation Agenda at SAP with Josh Gosliner

A conversation with Josh Gosliner, VP of Product Strategy and Rebecca Carr, CEO of SmartRecruiters, A SAP Company, to understand how the incumbents are driving innovation across the HR and finance stack.

In Conversation with Thomas Otter

10:30 am

11:00 am

Break

11:00 am

11:40 am

Beyond SaaS: How CEOs and Boards Are Thinking About the Agentic Enterprise

A panel discussion with Sarah Franklin (CEO at Lattice), Scott Landers, (CEO at Achievers), and Tony Jamous (Executive Chairman at Oyster) on company building in a world of human and agent co-existence.

Moderated by Doug Melsheimer

11:45 am

12:20 pm

Building for the Next 50 Years at UKG with Gretchen Alarcon

Gretchen Alarcon

A conversation with Gretchen Alarcon, GM of Pro HCM and Pay at UKG, discussing the opportunities to transform a market leader.

In Conversation with Meg Bear

12:20 pm

1:45 pm

Lunch

1:45 pm

2:20 pm

Growing at Scale in an AI Era with Erik Zimmer of Dayforce

A conversation with Erik Zimmer, EVP of Corporate Development and Strategic Ventures at Dayforce sharing his views on Dayforce's build-buy-partner future in an AI era.

In Conversation by Josh Schwede

2:20 pm

3:00 pm

AI Agents and the Future of Software at ServiceNow with Dave Wright

A conversation with Dave Wright, Chief Innovation Officer at ServiceNow, discussing the evolution of ServiceNow and how the company is building opportuivbuild, buy, and partner strategy in a new world of AI.

In Conversation with David Clarke

3:00 pm

3:30 pm

Break

3:30 pm

4:05 pm

The Future of Oracle Fusion Applications with Ognjen Pavlovic

A conversation with Ognjen Pavlovic, Group Vice President of Fusion HCM Product Management at Oracle to share Oracle’s vision of Fusion and how they are leveraging the massive Oracle infrastructure investment.

In Conversation with Jason Corsello

4:05 pm

4:40 pm

The Future Payroll, Payments, and Systems of Record with Eynat Guez

A conversation with Eynat Guez, founder & CEO of Papaya Global, to discuss the complexity of global payroll, what AI can and can’t do, and what the future holds with new technologies.

In Conversation with Thomas Otter

4:40 pm

5:15 pm

What Does HR Look Like in 2030?

A conversation with Kelly Cartwright (Shield AI), Alexis Fink (formerly META), and John Renfro (formerly Disney) on the future role of HR, what needs to happen to get there, and how the HR technology ecosystem needs to evolve.

Moderated by Cara Allamano

6:00 pm

10:00 pm

Dinner, Tequila Tasting & Casino Night

CEO Summit

8:00 am

9:00 am

Breakfast

9:00 am

9:15 am

Welcome Address

9:15 am

9:45 am

Reinventing the Future of Work...Tech with David Blake, Andreas De Neve & Sarah White

A panel discussion with leading CEO and executives from Degreed, TechWolf, and SAP, respectively, discussing company building during a time of uncertainty and opportunity.

Moderated by Doug Melsheimer

9:45 am

9:50 am

Q&A with Doug Melsheimer and panelists

9:50 am

10:25 am

Going Public - What to Expect Before, During and After the IPO with Adam Miller

A conversation with Adam Miller, founder and former CEO at Cornerstone OnDemand, one of the largest HR Tech companies over the last 20 years, shares his experiences going public.

Moderated by Jason Corsello

10:25 am

10:30 am

Q&A with Adam Miller

10:30 am

11:00 am

Break

11:00 am

11:35 am

Reinventing Work at ServiceNow with Amanda Vinson

A conversation with Amanda Vinson, corporate development and ventures executive at ServiceNow, discussing ServiceNow's approach to Worktech and how they are leverage employee workflows to disrupt the market.

Moderated by Thomas Otter

11:35 am

11:40 am

Q&A with Amanda Vinson

11:40 am

12:15 pm

Empowering Frontline Workers with Jason Lee

A conversation with Jason Lee, founder of DailyPay and Salt Labs, on creating categories (earned wage access), building equity for frontline workers, and how that is now translating into building a market leader in employee financial wellness at Chime.

Moderated by Erin Yang

12:15 pm

12:20 pm

Q&A with Jason Lee

12:20 pm

1:45 pm

Lunch

1:45 pm

2:20 pm

An Inside View into Workday's Product Strategy with David Somers and Jim Stratton

A fireside chat with David Somers, Chief Product Officer, and Jim Stratton, Chief Technology Officer, discussing the CPO-CTO relationship in a world of AI.

Moderated by David Clarke

2:20 pm

2:25 pm

Q&A with David Somers and Jim Stratton

2:25 pm

3:00 pm

Taking the Saddle of a Unicorn with Rebecca Carr

A conversation with Rebecca Carr, CEO of SmartRecruiters. Rebecca led nearly every function at the company before taking the reins as CEO in 2024.

Moderated by Thomas Otter

3:00 pm

3:05 pm

Q&A with Rebecca Carr

3:05 pm

3:30 pm

Break

3:30 pm

4:00 pm

Steering the Entrepreneurial Rollercoaster with Mark Newman

A conversation with Mark Newman, founder and CEO of Nomi Health, an ambitious startup leading the revolution to fix the broken healthcare system in the US.

Moderated by Jason Corsello

4:00 pm

4:05 pm

Q&A with Mark Newman

4:05 pm

4:35 pm

Scaling ARR from $50M to $500M with Jeff Perry

A conversation with Jeff Perry, CRO at Carta, discussing what it takes to transform a market (equity management) and scale it to $500 million in ARR.

Moderated by Zac Posner

4:35 pm

4:40 pm

Q&A with Jeff Perry

4:40 pm

5:10 pm

Regulation, Compliance, and Trust in an AI World with Keith Sonderling

A conversation with Keith Sonderling, newly appointing US Deputy Secretary of Labor, on trust and compliance in a world of AI.

Moderated by Jason Corsello

5:10 pm

5:15 pm

Q&A with Keith Sonderling

5:15 pm

5:30 pm

Closing Remarks

6:00 pm

9:00 pm

Official Afterparty

A lively afterparty at Daly's Pub & Rec, located at the Montage Deer Valley, featuring music, bowling, cocktails, and great food

9:00 am

12:00 pm

Group Activities

12:30 pm

1:30 pm

Lunch

1:30 pm

1:50 pm

Opening Keynote - Building an Enduring Venture Capital Firm

Presented by Jason Corsello

1:50 pm

2:15 pm

AI, Agents & The [Re]birth of Software

A deep dive into our investment thesis and perspectives shaping AI at work .

Presented by Thomas Otter

2:15 pm

2:45 pm

Panel Discussion - Selling AI Agents in 2026

Charlie Franklin (Compa), Chris Bruce (Origin), and Michael Ioffe (Arist) share how they are using new go-to-market strategies and forward-deployed experts to drive sales and net dollar retention.

Moderated by Audrey Handem

2:45 pm

3:15 pm

Networking Break

3:15 pm

4:00 pm

Breakout #1 - Vibe-Coding Work

A working session how portfolio companies are utilizing vibe-coding platforms in their product and product strategy.

Moderated by Lars Ettrup

3:15 pm

4:00 pm

Breakout #3 - Working with Strategics

A session how best to partner with the large platform vendors and how to effectively build the channel relationships.

Moderated by Josh Schwede

5:15 pm

6:00 pm

Meet & Greet with Founders

Meet the founders from the Acadian Ventures portfolio.

7:00 pm

9:00 pm

Dinner & Drinks at the Topgolf Swing Suite

Enjoy an evening of food, drinks, and music with an immersive premium gold experience.

Location

Montage Deer Valley

An authentic yet elegant mountain getaway, Montage Deer Valley provides year-round opportunities for adventure, with unrivaled hiking, mountain biking, andfishing. Montage Deer Valley is a unique destination and the perfect locationfor an executive retreat.

Location Details

Montage Deer Valley is located at 9100 Marsac Avenue in Park City, UT 84060. This luxurious alpine retreat offers unmatched access to the serene beauty of the Wasatch Mountains.

About the Location

Nestled in the heart of Park City, Montage Deer Valley is surrounded by breathtaking mountain views and offers ski-in/ski-out access, making it a perfect destination for outdoor enthusiasts year-round.

Book Reservation Now

Featured Guests and speakers

Tony Jamous

Founder & CEO

Oyster

Maxine Anderson

Founder and CPO

Arist

Rebecca Carr

CEO

SmartRecruiters

David Somers

Chief Product Officer

Workday

Jim Stratton

CTO

Workday

Jason Lee

Chief of Chime Enterprise

Chime

Erin Yang

Entrepreneur in Residence

Sutter Hill Ventures

Doug Melsheimer

Managing Director

J.P. Morgan

Sarah White

SVP, Head of Innovation & Transformation

SAP SuccessFactors

David Blake

Founder & CEO

Degreed

Jeff Perry

CRO

Carta

Erik Zimmer

EVP, Corp. Dev. & Strategic Ventures

Dayforce

Gretchen Alarcon

GM, Pro HCM & Pay

UKG

Keith Sonderling

Deputy Secretary of Labor

United States of America

Amanda Vinson

Head of Corporate Development

ServiceNow

Michael Ioffe

Founder & CEO

Arist

Audrey Handem

Principal

Acadian Ventures

Jeffrey Pfeffer

Professor of Organizational Behavior

Stanford University

Josh Gosliner

VP, Product Strategy

SAP

Laura Schroeder

Former Head of Brand, Product Marketing and Comms

Personio

Josh Schwede

Founder

Aventura Growth Labs

Lars Ettrup

Founder & CEO

Palette

Eynat Guez

Founder & CEO

Papaya Global

Ognjen Pavlovic

Group Vice President Fusion HCM Product Management

Oracle

Chris Bruce

Founder & CEO

Origin

Cara Allamano

Founder

PeopleTech Partners

John Renfro

Former CHRO

Disney

Alexis Fink

Former VP, People Analytics

FAQs

Who attends the CEO Summit?

Summit 2025 is an invitation only event for CEOs, entrepreneurs and investors who are leading the work revolution. Attendance will be limited to approximately 125 guests to ensure a high level of interaction and networking.

What does it cost to attend the event?

There is no cost for attendees. Registration will be extremely limited and available until we reach capacity.

Where should I stay for the event?

We have a room block available at the Montage Deer Valley on a first come, first serve basis. Room reservations will be available shortly.

Will transportation be provided?

No. Transportation is available either through the hotel or via our preferred shuttle provider.

What is the recommended attire?

The dress code for the Summit 2025 is business casual, but don’t forget comfortable footwear.

Will meals be provided?

Yes, meals will be provided throughout the event. Specific meal information for the Summit 2025 will be forthcoming.

Still have questions?

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