the blend Conference
March 7, 2026
in stratford, ontario, canada
BLEND is an annual 1-day conference that lives at the intersection of business, design, and humans.
BLEND 2026 is about moving from what is to a hopeful vision of what could be, and finding the courage to make it happen in our community and our careers.
My sessions in Previous years
I love the conference and think it’s one of the best.
I’ve presented two keynotes in previous years, one on “Careers are Circuitous” in 2023 (see left hero image pic above) while I was still Global Vice President at IBM and “The Health of Our Discipline: Assessment, Diagnosis, Prognosis, and Prescription” last year in 2025 (see pic) after I retired and co-founded my nonprofit.
I was so impressed with the audience engagement with my talks, both during the sessions and especially afterwards in person and digitally, and with the conference as a whole that when Markus and Greg asked me to put on some sessions this year, I enthusiastically agreed!
My sessions This year
Title:
Habits for a Better World: The "Why Not Us?" Approach to Global Challenges
Description:
Join co-founders Karel Vredenburg and Carly Williams as they share the origin story of their nonprofit and the journey of mobilizing a 400-strong global powerhouse of designers, researchers, developers, and filmmakers to tackle some of the world's biggest challenges. In this session, they discuss their novel approach, their core principles, and their strategic use of specific methods and technologies.
Through a look at their work to date, Karel and Carly offer a case study in community building and career development, demonstrating how to spark the kind of bold, courageous action that drives real-world change. They will also use the BLEND stage to share a major announcement you won’t want to miss.
I’m doing two sessions this year. A keynote with my Habits for a Better World nonprofit co-founder Carly Williams and a workshop which I’ll detail here.
Title:
It’s Lonely at the Top: An Exclusive Workshop for Design Executives
Description:
This confidential, apply-only workshop is designed for design executives who rarely have a safe space to speak candidly. Together, we will surface the realities we cannot discuss openly at work: navigating pressure from above while supporting teams below; operating amid industry-wide erosion of support for design; and responding to growing pressure to incorporate AI. We will then work together to identify and workshop the best approaches to address the most pressing challenges. This is a closed-door session built on trust and mutual respect, designed to provide both immediate peer support and the strategic foundation for ongoing collaboration beyond the session.
Application form
I want to make this workshop a safe space so that we can authentically and personally dig into the challenges we’re facing. I’m therefore hosting the application form to be invited to participate in the session here on my own website so that I alone will see your responses. The organizers also suggested this additional level of privacy. Please complete the following form.