As a co-founder of Apple and a pioneering engineer who values thinking outside constraints and artificial limits, Steve Wozniak understands what it takes for companies to innovate around challenges and break their industries open. During his 60-minute fireside chat at the FEDA conference, Wozniak shared pragmatic insights into how companies can foster innovation and leverage technology to drive growth. Attendees heard about lessons Wozniak has learned over his 50-year career in technology, including how building the first Apple I prototypes and his continuing work with students have informed his perspective on the potential and trajectory of today's artificial intelligence breakthroughs.

Session from the 2026 FEDA Annual Executive Leadership Conference.

As the FEDA Future of Distribution Council (FDC) works toward a more interconnected supply chain, the FEDA Tech Talks session assessed where technology stands today and how other supply chain segments are maximizing digital tools and data. Todd Florence, chief information officer for Estes Express Lines, shared how carriers are using AI, automation, and real-time data to improve transparency and address freight damage claims, priorities that closely mirror the FDC's own subcommittee work. Distributors and manufacturers will want to view this rare inside look into how a key supply chain partner is tackling the same challenges their organizations are working to solve.​ Following Florence’s presentation, Jason Hein, vice president of B2BEA Academy and global director of programming at the B2B eCommerce Association, shared why clean product data is more than an IT issue —it’s a business necessity. In just 20 minutes, Hein demonstrated how bad data affects search, e-commerce, customer experience, and decision-making. With more companies turning to artificial intelligence to analyze their data, Hein explained the limitations of depending on those tools to compensate for poor-quality product information. But it’s not just the shortcomings Hein covered. He also showed attendees what “good” product data looks like and provided practical steps distributors and manufacturers can take to turn their data into more reliable and usable information.

The State of the Industry presentations featured new insights from Jameel Burkett, president and CEO of Burkett Restaurant Equipment, and Aaron Brown, CEO of Refrigerated Solutions Group, into the key challenges and trends dealers and manufacturers are tracking. The information covered in the reports set up the themes that permeated the conference and teed up presentations from FEDA's educational partners on critical topics.

Jason Boomer, vice president of technology for Burkett Restaurant Equipment & Supplies; Rory Clarke, president of Avanti Restaurant Solutions; and Kevin Brink, vice president of LTL solutions for Kuehne+Nagel, shared strategies distributors can put into action to overcome constraints and drive growth. The conversation was guided by J Schneider, managing director at the Dorn Group. A global strategist for industrial manufacturers and distributors, Schneider connected panelists' insights to the FEDA Future of Distribution Council's efforts to drive operational transformation.

The Profit Report and Financial Outlook for Foodservice Equipment and Supplies Distributors pairs FEDA's own industry data with the broader U.S. and global economic picture. Informed by the 2026 FEDA Profit Survey, presenter Robert Spendlove, senior economist at Zions Bank, explained top-line industry trends, then widened the lens to the macro indicators and economic forces shaping where the industry is headed. This presentation provided a clear, connected read on where the numbers point for 2026–2027 planning.

A leading authority on strategic growth, Verne Harnish has spent more than four decades helping companies translate vision into disciplined execution. Closing out the FEDA conference’s General session, Harnish explained how to apply his 4D framework (drivers, demands, disciplines, and decisions) across the four critical areas of people, strategy, execution, and cash.

Financial professionals are frequently tasked with creating effective models that are accurate and dynamic. The power of a financial model comes from the ability to change the inputs and analyze the impact on outputs — factors that can benefit significantly from the greater data processing scale and deeper analytics offered by artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as Microsoft Copilot and ChatGPT. This three-part course, offered in partnership with the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP), will equip finance practitioners in the foodservice equipment and supplies industry with the knowledge and skills needed to implement best practices for financial modeling, lead in analytics, harness AI technologies, and drive sustainable organizational change. Once they’ve mastered the tools and techniques, the course will guide participants on how to put their newfound expertise into action to build from-scratch financial models that produce baseline and dynamic outputs in response to changes in real-world scenarios.

This two-part webinar series examines how leading organizations use collaboration and agility to navigate uncertainty, reduce risk, and create new opportunities for growth.

FEDA has partnered with The Association for Finance Professionals (AFP) to deliver customized finance education courses to members. This two-part education series provides finance professionals with a practical understanding of how data analytics can be used to support better business decisions and improve organizational performance. Participants will explore both foundational and advanced analytical techniques, learning how organizations use data to identify trends, uncover insights, forecast outcomes, and drive strategic decision-making.