August 6 Update: Thanks for your interest in PCMA PHL Education Day!  This page is currently under contruction. Complete details will be posted very soon. If you’d like to be added to our distribution list to ensure you receive the invitation, please send an email to [email protected].

Join us for the annual PCMA Greater Philadelphia Chapter Education Day on Thursday, September 17, at Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia!

Spend the day connecting with industry colleagues while gaining valuable insights during two engaging education sessions, building relationships over a networking lunch, and participating in interactive activations. Whether you’re looking to gain fresh insights, expand your professional network, or reconnect with fellow industry professionals, Education Day is the place to be. We can’t wait to see you there!

Agenda:
10:00-11:00 AM: Registration and networking coffee break
11:00 AM-12:30 PM: Opening remarks and Session One
12:30-1:30 PM: Lunch
1:30-2:30 PM: Session Two

Click here for quick access to register!

Session I: How High-Performing Teams Master Change, Pressure, and Dysfunction, with PCMA Leading Class Speaker, Kathryn Landis

Today’s leaders are navigating nonstop change, widening spans of control, and relentless demands—often with fewer resources and less clarity. When pressure rises, even capable teams fall into patterns that stall execution: decisions escalate upward, meetings multiply, and people wait for signals instead of acting.

In this highly practical session, executive coach and trusted advisor to senior leadership teams Kathryn Landis, an NYU Adjunct Assistant Professor, draws on Harvard research on team effectiveness and her advisory work with senior leadership teams to explain why capable teams lose momentum under pressure—and how leaders restore clarity, alignment, and forward progress. She introduces a practical framework teams can use to clarify decision ownership, reduce friction across teams, and address dysfunction before it slows execution.

Participants will learn how to:

• Clarify decision ownership to reduce confusion and accelerate execution
• Identify the hidden dynamics that drive team friction and stalled progress
• Strengthen collaboration when priorities compete and resources feel constrained

Session 2: Building Connection, Culture & Collaboration in Today’s Flexible Workforce­–Practical Strategies for Leading High-Performing Teams Anywhere

Leading teams has never been more complex. Between remote employees, hybrid schedules, freelancers, contractors, volunteers, and onsite event staff, today’s leaders must create cultures of trust and belonging without everyone sharing the same office. This highly interactive session moves beyond theory. Through live polling, peer-to-peer problem solving, fishbowl conversations, and rapid-fire idea exchanges, participants will discover practical ways to recruit, onboard, engage, mentor, and retain high-performing teams regardless of where they work.

Attendees won’t just hear best practices, they’ll build them together.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

• Identify the leadership practices that create trust, engagement, and accountability across remote, hybrid, and onsite teams.
• Design practical onboarding, communication, and relationship-building strategies that foster belonging from day one.
• Apply collaborative problem-solving techniques to real workforce challenges and leave with actionable ideas that can immediately strengthen their own teams.

Registration Information

• Membership in the PCMA Greater Philadelphia Chapter is not required to attend. Guests are welcome.
• If you are not a member, click here to learn more about membership.
• If you are a member of PCMA, but not a member of the Philadelphia Chapter, please contact [email protected] to add the Philadelphia Chapter to your account. The cost to add a chapter to your membership is $30.00.
• Early registration closes on Friday, September 11, 2026, at 11:59pm. After that, only onsite registration will be available beginning at 10:00 AM on September 17, 2026.
• If you are a planner in need of financial assistance in order to attend this event, please contact [email protected].
• Click here to register or click on the blue button below.

Education Credit
PCMA has been approved by the Events Industry Council (EIC) as a Preferred Provider of the above-listed continuing education course, which qualifies for CMP continuing education credit. Determination of continuing education credit eligibility or Preferred Provider status does not imply EIC’s endorsement or assessment of education quality. If you plan to claim education credit, please register for this meeting with the same email associated with your EIC account. You will receive an automated message to claim credit after the meeting when the final attendee roster is uploaded to the EIC.

Accessibility
Live! Casino Hotel is accessible. If you need additional accessibility services or have questions, please visit their website or contact [email protected].

A Message from the Community Service Committee
The Work Group operates the New Jersey Youth Corps of Camden, which helps young adults ages 16 to 25 earn their high school diplomas while gaining workforce experience, career exploration opportunities, and essential life skills. Through programs like the Thrift Works Resale Boutique, participants receive hands-on retail training that builds confidence and prepares them for successful, self-sufficient futures. PCMA PHL members can support this mission by donating gently used clothing, shoes, accessories, and personal hygiene items, with all proceeds helping fund educational and job training opportunities for at-risk youth.

Promotion & Solicitation Policy
To ensure a fair experience for all sponsors, the distribution of promotional materials, event invitations, tickets, giveaways, or other marketing items, as well as the solicitation or promotion of products, services, organizations, or events, is limited to the PCMA Greater Philadelphia Chapter and confirmed event sponsors. Non-sponsoring organizations and attendees may not promote or distribute materials without prior approval from the Chapter.

Room Block at Live!
Live! is offering a room block with an industry friendly rate. Rooms are available on September 16th and 17th at $189++, and the cutoff date is August 17th. Click the link below to make your reservation:

PCMA Education Day – Start your reservation