About Execs 2026

Welcome Dinner at Thalassa Restaurant (venue)

Open Registration & Welcome Coffee

Event Opening

How Clients are Redesigning the Future of Localisation

Localisation is no longer a downstream service that starts after Show more...product decisions are made. At Spotify, localization has evolved into a strategic function embedded in product development, growth strategy, and market expansion planning.

In this session, I will share how we have transformed localisation from an execution layer into a product-led capability. I’ll walk through how Localisation teams can transform their function by integrating earlier into product roadmaps, aligning with business Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and growth metrics, and responsibly leveraging automation and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Furthermore, they can design scalable systems as a replacement for manual processes, thereby shifting their role from a simple “language provider” to a “strategic enabler.” This session will provide a behind-the-scenes look at what it means to build localisation as infrastructure, not as a reactive service.

Coffee Break

How Buyers Decide Today: What Really Drives Decisions

Buying decisions in 2026 are rarely about price alone, and often Show more...not even about quality in isolation. They are about risk mitigation, strategic alignment, predictability, and trust. In this session, I'll unpack how decision-making actually works on the buyer side by exploring who influences decisions behind the scenes, why Request for Proposal (RFP) outcomes are often decided before the final pitch, the role of procurement versus product versus localisation leadership, what "value" truly means internally, and why vendors sometimes lose deals despite strong proposals. This is not a sales tutorial. It’s an honest look at the structural and psychological factors that shape buying behavior today.

Lunch

The AI Moment: Choosing Curiosity over Fear

AI is not coming — it is already embedded in how we work. The Show more...real question is not whether to adopt AI, but how. In this session, I will explore how buyers are evaluating AI solutions today, where AI creates real value versus artificial hype, and why fostering an experimentation culture matters more than tools. I will also discuss the risks of defensive positioning in a transformative moment and how vendors can align with buyer AI strategy instead of competing against it. This is a mindset conversation. The organisations that thrive in the AI moment will not be those with the most tools, but those with the clearest strategic intent.

Coffee Break

The Partnership Reset: Beyond the RFP

Workshop
The traditional RFP model often creates transactional Show more...relationships built on short-term metrics and rigid expectations. But the future of localisation demands adaptive, trust-based partnerships. In this interactive workshop, participants will map the buyer–vendor journey from both sides, identify friction points that erode collaboration, redesign engagement models for shared accountability, explore what “strategic partner” truly means in practice, and define behaviors that strengthen long-term impact.

This session moves beyond theory. Together, we will challenge assumptions and design more sustainable collaboration frameworks.

Networking Dinner at Sapel Hall

Morning Coffee

From Credibility to Choice: How Decisions are Shaped under Uncertainty

This session explores how personal and organisational credibility Show more...influence decision-making long before price becomes the focal point.
Once inbound interest has been created and the first meeting goes well, a familiar executive challenge emerges: why do strong opportunities still fail to convert?
Participants leave with a clearer understanding of how to strengthen their position ethically and create decision-making frames that allow clients to commit to the best option—not simply the easiest or safest one.

Coffee Break

Executive World Café: Reframing Value and Choice in Complex Decisions

Participants will experience a collective intelligence process Show more...to share and identify good practices regarding needs and perceived value of their clients.

Lunch

As Hard as it Gets: From Good Practices to Specific Situations

LSP’s are navigating increasing pressure on value as AI narratives, Show more...procurement processes, and internal client uncertainty reshape how decisions are framed. In many cases, expertise and quality are acknowledged early in conversations but become harder to defend once decisions move beyond the room. Therefore we will work and debate on the right or different ways to deal with difficult situations.

Coffee Break

Panel Session: Clash of the Titans: Who Shapes the Decision—Seller or Buyer?

Recap and Closing