12:00-1:00 PM
Registration and Executive Lunch
Registration 2nd Floor, Riverbend Pre-Function Lunch 2nd Floor, Riverbend
Kick things off with an energy-packed meal and fellowship with colleagues new and old from across the industry.
Working Schedule
Executive Leadership Forum Schedule
Aligning Industry Priorities for the Next Decade
A dialogue-first executive working forum that moves senior industry leaders from shared context to alignment, action, and follow-through.
Back to Forum OverviewExecutive Arc
1. DiscoverIdentify the forces shaping the future.
2. AlignFind common priorities and shared concerns.
3. ActDevelop practical solution pathways.
4. LeadTranslate the work into a WDMA leadership agenda.
Day 1 · Wednesday, October 7
Discover & Narrow the Field
1:00-1:20 PM
Welcome, Guardrails and the Assignment
2nd Floor, Riverbend
Purpose
Establish the Forum as a candid, senior-level, discussion-driven working session that will lead to greater focus and direction for the industry.
How it will work
Facilitators will clarify rules and expectations to support a positive and productive experience.
Why it matters
Sets the tone and provides clarity with the purpose and intent of the Forum.
1:20-1:45 PM
The WDMA Starting Point
2nd Floor, Riverbend
Purpose
To provide context on current WDMA activities and industry challenges.
How it will Work
A concise briefing on market conditions, advocacy results, emerging risks, and WDMA capabilities.
Why it Matters
Limit time spent on current activities and prevent scope creep.
1:45-2:00 PM
Break
2:00-3:00 PM
Executive Steering Conversation: What Is Changing?
2nd Floor, Cedar Grove
Purpose
Surface the forces, risks, and opportunities shaping the window, door, and skylight industry.
How it will work
Moderated “fishbowl” experience with a select group of CEOs in the inner circle and one rotating open seat for inclusion of non-CEO perspective on certain topics.
Why it matters
Creates the shared starting point for the Forum and gives the room a common fact pattern before moving into prioritization.
3:00-3:10 PM
Break
3:10-4:00 PM
Priorities Mapping: Where Can Collective Action Matter?
2nd Floor, Riverbend
Purpose
Identify which issues executives believe matter most and where urgency or alignment is greatest.
How it will work
Participants rotate through short facilitated stations on regulation and policy, workforce and productivity, technology and innovation, and market/customer dynamics.
Why it matters
Turns broad conversation into visible patterns and begins to show where common priorities may be forming.
4:00-4:10 PM
Break
4:10-5:00 PM
Strategic Choices Workshops
2nd Floor, Riverbend
Purpose
Move beyond topics and force executives to wrestle with tradeoffs that will shape the future.
How it will work
Small groups work through tensions such as regulation as defense vs. offense, labor scarcity vs. productivity, technology improvement vs. business model change, company advantage vs. industry alignment, and short-term performance vs. long-term investment.
Why it matters
This is the main strategy work of Day 1. It pushes the room toward insight, not generic brainstorming.
5:00-5:15 PM
Day 1 Convergence: The Candidate Priorities
2nd Floor, Riverbend
Purpose
Consolidate the strongest signals from the first day.
How it will work
Facilitator presents emerging themes without attribution. Participants react to what feels right, what is missing, and what needs sharper definition on Day 2.
Why it matters
Prevents Day 1 from becoming a series of disconnected discussions and creates continuity into the full working day.
5:15-6:15 PM
Executive Networking Dialogue
2nd Floor, Riverbend Pre-Function
Purpose
Toast to new friends or catch up with colleagues during this brief networking break to wrap up our day together.
How it will work
Unstructured time together with cocktails and appetizers.
Why it matters
Leverages the “happy hour” end to the day that we all know and enjoy.
Day 2 · Thursday, October 8
Align, Decide and Commit
7:45-8:30 AM
Breakfast Fireside Chat: AI and the Upstream Manufacturer
3rd Floor, Canopy B
Purpose
Andrew Ackerman of Zero RFI.ai explores how AI is reshaping construction—from specifications and RFIs to procurement and delivery.
How it will work
A breakfast fireside chat with Stefanie Couch with GRIT Blueprint and executive Q&A connects those shifts to manufacturers’ products, data, and technical expertise.
Why it matters
If architects, contractors, and owners work with AI-native project information, will your products and expertise become more visible—or disappear from the decision chain?
8:30-9:40 AM
Leadership Circles: What Must the Industry Get Right?
3rd Floor, Canopy A
Purpose
Create candid small-group dialogue among senior leaders across functions and companies.
How it will work
Mixed tables of 7-9 participants under Chatham House Rule. Prompts include: What disruption are we not ready for? Where does fragmentation hurt us most? What capability will determine winners?
Why it matters
Moves the Forum from shared context to personal executive judgment and surfaces the issues leaders are most concerned about.
9:40-9:50 AM
Break
9:50-10:50 AM
Alignment and Ownership Workshop
3rd Floor, Canopy B
Purpose
Push from individual concerns toward areas where the industry may need a common voice or shared action.
How it will work
Participants are remixed. Prompts focus on what should remain company-specific, what requires industry alignment, and what happens if the industry does nothing.
Why it matters
Addresses the central reason for the Forum: determining where alignment actually matters.
10:50-11:00 AM
Break
11:00 AM-12:00 PM
Solutions Labs: From Priority to Action
3rd Floor, Canopy B
Purpose
Convert the strongest themes into possible action pathways.
How it will work
Cross-functional labs on Policy & Industry Voice, Workforce & Productivity, Technology/AI & Innovation, and Sustainability/Codes/Market Expectations. Each lab defines the problem, proposes responses, and separates WDMA-led work from company-led collaboration.
Why it matters
This is the Act phase. It turns insight into practical pathways and begins to define what WDMA should lead.
12:00-1:00 PM
Lunch
3rd Floor, Canopy B
Take a little time to call the office, check e-mail, or confer with a colleague on the discussions. Then sit down to recharge and refresh for the rest of the afternoon.
1:00-1:30 PM
Segment and Perspective Check
3rd Floor, Canopy A
Purpose
Full-room review focused on architectural doors, skylights, smaller companies, suppliers, and any perspective at risk of being overshadowed.
How it will Work
Guests from across the industry landscape get to speak out about any concerns or gaps they see that might limit the impact of WDMA actions.
Why it Matters
Ensures that all corners of the industry have a stake in the outcome of the Forum.
1:30-2:30 PM
Resolution Session: The Three to Five Priorities
3rd Floor, Canopy B
Purpose
Create a single room-wide view of the strongest ideas, force prioritization, and produce the core outcome of the Forum.
How it will work
The facilitator reports themes from the labs, and participants clarify, combine, or challenge the draft priorities before ranking them using dots, cards, or mobile polling. The final 3-5 priorities are written in plain language and categorized as industry-wide priorities, WDMA-led initiatives, or voluntary company-led collaboration opportunities.
Why it matters
Bringing synthesis and resolution into one session prevents the labs from becoming silos and ensures the Forum produces clear priorities that can influence WDMA advocacy, programming, and leadership.
2:30-3:15 PM
Leadership Agenda and Commitments
3rd Floor, Canopy B
Purpose
Translate the Forum's output into WDMA follow-through.
How it will work
WDMA leadership outlines the next 90 days: outcomes brief, Board discussion, member communication, possible working groups, and timeline for re-engagement.
Why it matters
Shows that the Forum is meant to change what WDMA does, not merely generate discussion.
Design Notes
Built as a leadership process, not a traditional conference agenda.
Every session is intentionally structured to protect candor, surface patterns, test alignment, and move the room toward a small number of actionable priorities.
Join the conversation
Help shape the priorities that move our industry forward.
Request your invitation to the WDMA Executive Leadership Forum today.