2026 Business & Leadership
Development Conference
Speakers
Keynote Speaker
Throughout his military career, Christian completed ten combat deployments. Notably, in 2016, he led a Special Operations Task Force comprised of Marine Raiders, U.S. Army Special Operations Forces, and Navy SEALs during the battle to retake Mosul from ISIS. He is a graduate of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College and Stanford University Graduate School of Business, where he focused on Corporate Innovation.
Christian’s distinguished military service earned him numerous accolades, including two Bronze Star Medals for combat valor, the Navy and Marine Corps Heroism Medal, the Legion of Merit for combat valor, and two Marine Corps Commendation Medals for combat valor. Outside of his professional accomplishments, he is a passionate endurance athlete, having completed ten Ironman triathlons, as well as an avid cyclist and mountaineer. Christian currently resides in Austin, Texas.
Master of Ceremonies (MC)
Krista is one of those people who, once you meet her, is hard to forget. She has taken her 30 years of domestic and international experience as a leadership and organizational development expert to become an ICF-certified coach and founder of CHOICES Coaching & Consulting. Her passion is to partner with individuals to get unstuck and then guide them in discovering who they are meant to be and living it. Krista draws upon her strength to stand with others through their growth and transition.
Krista commands an inside-out journey of discover thy self, know thy self, grow thy self, lead thy self. The journey on the outside is a powerful result of the story on the inside. When the outside doesn’t work, Krista goes deep to understand the story on the inside. That’s where the nuggets of wisdom and change often hide.
As a speaker she brings the audience out of their seats and into the topic. There is no sitting on the sidelines with Krista in the room. Krista brings energy, laughter, reflection, and inspiration to all her engagements. Whether through coaching, consulting, speaking, or her riveting The Power Of Your Journey women’s weekend retreat, you will not forget your interaction with Krista.
Break Out Sessions
Dave Molenda — Founder, Speaker, Author, and Podcast Host
Positive Polarity
Breakout Topic: Leading Through Adversity: Empowering Teams in Challenging Time
Bio: After building his own company from the ground up and growing it to over $10 million in annual sales before selling it, Dave Molenda discovered his true passion: helping other businesses thrive. Drawing on more than 30 years of entrepreneurial experience, Dave founded Positive Polarity, a Midwest-based business coaching firm that challenges the “easy way” of doing business — the way it’s always been done — by inspiring leaders and business professionals to face challenges head-on and create meaningful, lasting growth.
As the author of the #1 Amazon Best Seller “Growing On Purpose”, Dave shares proven strategies to strengthen teams, improve communication, and elevate the customer experience. His approach blends positivity, accountability, and real-world insights to help organizations move from stuck to unstoppable.
Dave is also the host of the acclaimed Positive Polarity Podcast, now with over 300 episodes and ranked in the top 2% of podcasts globally (according to Listennotes.com). Each week, Dave and his guests explore the intersection of business growth and personal growth — diving into the habits, mindset, and purpose-driven actions that fuel success.
Whether he’s on stage or behind the mic, Dave’s mission is simple: to empower leaders, business professionals and teams to grow — on purpose.
Maggie Maylor, ACC, CPLC (Gallup Certified Strengths Coach)
True Forward Coaching
Breakout Topic: The Power of Decision – Change begins with a decision. In this hands-on workshop, you’ll identify a meaningful area for growth and design one recurring decision that will move you forward with purpose and confidence.
Bio: I know every person already has what they need to succeed, lead well, and love their life. The challenge isn’t a lack of talent, potential, or capability—it’s that we’re not fully tapping into what we already possess.
As an ICF Credentialed Life and Leadership Coach (ACC) and Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, I partner with individuals and teams to uncover what is uniquely powerful about them. Through coaching, reflection, and practical action, I help people recognize their natural talents, build confidence, and lead from a place of authenticity, purpose, and genuine care for others.
My purpose is helping people move from self-doubt and uncertainty to living and leading from a place of confidence. I believe that when people understand and intentionally develop who they already are, they become who they are meant to be.
Eric Feinendegen
Breakout Topic: Being a person of Influence
Eric Feinendegen is an award winning and internationally recognized speaker, trainer, and executive coach. He is a two-time Finalist in the World Championship of Public Speaking, TEDx speaker, professional emcee, and a certified coach, speaker, and trainer with Maxwell Leadership.
He is the President and Founder of Inspire to Empower, LLC, a leading communication and leadership development company. His individual clients range from solopreneurs to corporate CEO’s and has spoken to organizations ranging from start-ups to Fortune 100 companies.
Eric is a proven business builder with experience across franchises, start-ups, technology, and the financial service industry. His focus is on creating thriving businesses, from concept to scale, through intentional leadership and strong operational foundations.
He is the author of the best-selling book, “The FEIN-er Things: A 52-Week Guide to Living an Inspired Life” and the newly released book, “Culture at Its FEIN-est.” His greatest claim to fame, however, is trying Stand-Up Comedy once and living to tell about it!
Eric spends his time with family, coaching his kid’s sports teams, attending his daughter’s
recitals, volunteering at Feed My Starving Children, and playing golf whenever he can squeeze in a round.