2026 WPO Entrepreneurial

 Excellence Forum

May 7 - 8, 2026

ABOUT THE ENTREPRENEURIAL EXCELLENCE FORUM

WPO's signature annual event brings together hundreds of extraordinary women business leaders from around the world for two days of inspiration, collaboration, and growth.

Designed to give women entrepreneurs a transformative experience away from daily operations, the 2026 Forum will feature inspiring keynote speakers, interactive breakout sessions, peer-to-peer learning, and unmatched networking opportunities. Attendees will leave with actionable insights, renewed energy, and strategies to elevate their businesses.

The Forum will also celebrate the remarkable achievements of women-led enterprises, including the annual recognition of the 50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned/Led Companies, honoring the innovators driving business growth and industry transformation.

Join us for this unparalleled gathering of women entrepreneurs shaping the future of business. Click here to register.

2026 FORUM AGENDA

2026 FORUM KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Dorie Clark has been named one of the Top 50 business thinkers in the world by both Thinkers50 and Inc. Magazine. She is a keynote speaker and teaches executive education at Columbia Business School. She is also the Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of The Long Game, Entrepreneurial You, Reinventing You and Stand Out, which was named the #1 Leadership Book of the year by Inc. Magazine. A former presidential campaign spokeswoman, she writes frequently for the Harvard Business Review and Fast Company.



Kim Scott is the author of Radical Respect and Radical Candor, and the Co-Founder and CEO of a company that helps leaders build a culture of feedback. Kim was previously a CEO Coach at Dropbox, Qualtrics, Twitter, and other tech companies. She was a member of the faculty at Apple University and before that led AdSense, YouTube, and DoubleClick teams at Google. Earlier in her career she was an analyst at the Soviet Companies Fund, started a diamond cutting factory in Moscow, and was Director of Operations of a pediatric clinic in Kosovo.

 

Charles Duhigg is a Pulitzer prize-winning investigative reporter at The New Yorker Magazine, and previously at The New York Times Magazine, authoring or contributing to multiple series, including “The Reckoning” (2008), which studied the causes and outcomes of the financial crisis, and “The iEconomy”, which examined the global economy through the lens of Apple, and which won the 2013 Pulitzer prize in explanatory journalism. He has also won the George Polk Award (2007), the Gerald Loeb Award (2008), the National Journalism Award (2009), was a Business News Visionary Award recipient (2020-2021), and other honors. In addition to his reporting, Charles Duhigg is a regular contributor to television and radio, including the PBS Newshour, Frontline, CBS Sunday Morning and various programs on CNBC and NPR. He is a graduate of the Harvard Business School and Yale College.

2026 FORUM WORKSHOP TRACKS

Choose from three tracks:

  • Exit by Design: Planning with the End in Mind
  • Leading with AI: Strategy, Growth & What to Do Next
  • The Successor Shift: Building Authority in Family Business


2026 FORUM REGISTRATION

To register for the Forum, please click here.

Please note that early bird pricing, as well as cancellations with a partial refund, ended on March 27, 2026.

2026 FORUM REGISTRATION PROMOTIONS

Forum attendees who are not WPO members and attend the WPO EEF at the non-member registration rate are eligible to receive the following discounts:

  • If the non-member submits an application before the Forum ends (May 8), they will receive $1,000 off their initiation fee.
  • If the non-member submits an application within 30 days after the Forum ends (by June 7), they will receive $500 off their initiation fee.
  • The non-member must join the WPO by July 31, 2026.

2026 FORUM ACCOMMODATION INFORMATION

The Diplomat Beach Resort, 3555 South Ocean Drive, Hollywood, Florida 33019

The rate is $339 + $35 resort fee per night. Click here to reserve your accommodation.

The booking deadline for WPO's group rate is April 3, 2026.

Please plan to arrive by Wednesday, May 6th and plan to depart on Saturday, May 9th.

Please note that a one-night deposit is required and will be refunded if canceled at least six weeks prior to arrival; cancellations after that time will incur a one-night charge.

2026 SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

2026 WPO Entrepreneurial Excellence Forum sponsorship spots are almost filled. Please reach out here by to express your interest by March 27th.

Planning your EEF presence just got easier. Start with WPO's preferred partner. Download the MAD Studio Sponsor Guide .

2026 MARY LEHMAN MACLACHLAN AWARD APPLICATION

This award is presented at the annual Entrepreneurial Excellence Forum and is named for the esteemed WPO advisory board member who provided the seed capital to fund the start of the organization.

Mary Lehman MacLachlan cared deeply about women in positions of leadership and business ownership and strongly believed women need to support other women in their communities.

In her memory, this award is given each year to one WPO member who embodies economic independence by running a financially sound business, providing financial benefits for staff, and supporting other businesswomen in the community.

Applications closed on Friday, March 20, 2026. 

2025 Forum Highlights

 

 

The 2025 WPO Entrepreneurial Excellence Forum (EEF) was held on May 7-9 at Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort in San Antonio, Texas. Featured Keynote speakers included Cassandra Worthy, Dan Heath, and Misty Copeland.