Leadership Conference
Client
Corporate Retail
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Project Type
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Location
Toronto as Host City
Project Overview
An annual two-day corporate leadership conference designed to bring together head office executives and store operations leaders from across Canada. The conference served as a critical alignment moment ensuring shared understanding of corporate strategy, future direction, and brand priorities while fostering collaboration across regions.
Scope of Work
As part of the Operations Team, Connie Cay-Santos held responsibility for the planning and execution of this annual leadership conference, including:
End-to-end conference planning and delivery for 300 attendees
Budget ownership and financial management
Executive collaboration on event theme, vision, and strategic objectives
Strategic partnership and sponsorship development
Program design featuring keynotes, panels, regional boardrooms, and breakouts
Awards gala production and recognition strategy
Vendor, venue, and partner sourcing and negotiation
Communications planning and stakeholder coordination
How I Lead the Project
As a leader member of the Operations Team, leadership conferences became part of my core responsibilities. This annual conference was one of several I led, with full accountability for budget management, planning, execution, and cross-functional coordination.
I worked closely with senior executives to shape the theme, vision, and narrative of the event ensuring head office leadership could clearly communicate strategic priorities, future business direction, and brand initiatives to store operations teams across the country.
I also designed and secured strategic partnership and sponsorship opportunities, creating financial support through aligned brand activations that added value to the attendee experience while offsetting event costs.
My role encompassed all communications, logistics, and execution from sourcing venues and partners, managing timelines and vendors, and overseeing on-site delivery, to ensuring the experience reinforced alignment between corporate strategy and store-level execution.
Throughout the process, I acted as a connector between executives, operations, brands, and partners. Ensuring clarity, consistency, and confidence across all touchpoints.
Impact & Why It Matters
Delivered a national leadership conference for 300 retail leaders, strengthening alignment between head office executives and store operations through clear communication of business strategy and brand direction.
The experience created structured dialogue between regions and corporate leadership, addressed local needs, and was executed with full ownership across planning, communications, vendors, and venues. Strategic sponsorships enhanced the experience while ensuring strong financial stewardship.