2026 Speakers

Emily is the founder and CEO of Evergreen. Launched in 2020, Evergreen's frozen waffles are carried in 9,000 grocery stores nationwide. Prior to Evergreen, Emily attended Harvard Law School, swam Division I at Yale, and is an Ironman finisher and Boston Marathon qualifier. She lives in Chicago with her husband and two daughters, Evergreen's biggest fans.

Rick Desai is a Managing Partner at Listen, a consumer-focused venture capital firm. At Listen, Rick has invested in Factor_, Calm, Kiwi Crate, Jolie, and other leading consumer brands. Prior to Listen, Rick founded Dashfire, a startup studio that built and invested in 40+ companies. He is also an Adjunct Entrepreneurship Lecturer at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management.

Wael Aburida is an investor and operator with more than two decades of experience building and backing technology companies across the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. He is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Fikra Ventures, a UAE-based venture builder focused on creating and scaling AI-driven companies. He holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Patty Riskind is a seasoned leader in healthcare SaaS and services companies, known for driving growth by achieving product-market fit and inspiring teams and customers. She has experience working with VC and PE investors and took a company public. Riskind is currently the CEO of Blue Horse Ventures LLC, helping healthcare technology, data analytics, and services companies develop innovative growth strategies.

Cale Werder is a Partner at Shore Search Partners and an active board member and advisor. Prior to joining Shore, Cale served as Chief Growth Officer at Mission Veterinary Partners from 2018–2024, where he helped scale the company from $20M to $1.2B in revenue. During his tenure, the business completed 250+ acquisitions and was ultimately exited through an $8.6B sale and merger, delivering 10x+ MOIC to investors. Cale has 20 years of operating experience spanning M&A, organic growth, marketing, and analytics.

Elliott Hyman is the CEO of Lyra Technology Group, a portfolio of over 110 managed service providers operating across the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. Under his leadership, Lyra serves approximately 16,000 contracted organizations and employs roughly 4,000 people. Elliott is currently leading a company-wide AI transformation initiative aimed at reshaping how IT services are delivered at scale. He holds a degree from Vanderbilt University and lives in Winnetka, Illinois.

Jai Shekhawat is part of the Founding Team of Natural Machine, an AI foundation model startup for biological function design, where he serves as CEO and Board member. He is the Founder and former CEO of Fieldglass, which was acquired by SAP for $1 billion. He currently serves as Chairman of the Technology Advisory Board at Madison Dearborn Partners. He was previously a consultant at McKinsey & Company and a senior executive at Syntel. His board roles include Four Kites, Somrus, HealthEngine, BlueCat Networks, Utopia, and Signal. He serves on the Executive Committee of the Field Museum of Chicago, is a Trustee of the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, and is a Board member of 1871. Jai was Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the Midwest in 2012 and holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management.