Evolve 2023 Attracts Record Attendees and Sponsors
In its second year, the Evolve 2023 Growth Summit by Anglin Reichmann Armstrong has doubled in size, attracting government contracting and construction attendees as well as a record number of sponsors. Co-hosted by ABC of North Alabama and The Catalyst Center for Business Entrepreneurship, the event was held at the beautiful Huntsville Botanical Garden on April 20, 2023. Our distinguished keynote speakers were Major General Vincent Boles and Dr. Anirban Basu.
Major General Boles is a highly decorated and esteemed leader who served in the U.S. Army and the Pentagon, including 33 years in deployed and stateside assignments that led to his formation of a leadership and logistics consulting practice after retirement. His keynote highlighted several leadership practices that form the foundation of a growing enterprise and a successful team.
Dr. Basu is Chairman and CEO of Sage Policy Group, Inc., and he serves as Chair of the Baltimore County Economic Advisory Committee and as Chief Economist for several national construction and financial trade associations. Serving as state-appointed Chair of the Maryland Economic Development Commission until 2021, Dr. Basu is a professor of economics and economic policy consultant. He presented an economic forecast, noting pitfalls, trends and opportunities for business leaders.
The morning opening session included a panel of M&A professionals from business law, valuation, wealth management and tax. Moderated by Ryan Campbell, CPA, CGMA, CVA, MAcc, Partner at Anglin, the panel featured Jeremy Mosteller, CPA, CGMA, and Tax Partner at Anglin, Corey W. Jenkins, Shareholder at Lanier Ford Law Firm, and Dustin Mendenhall, Financial Advisor at Avantax® Planning Partners.
After lunch, attendees were segmented into separate educational tracks for government contracting and construction. Each track offered three breakout sessions. Topics ranged from the Secure Act 2.0, cloud platforms, what to know as an aspiring government contractor, meaningful business metrics and financial benchmarking from a tax perspective.
A popular highlight of the event included owner panel discussions with real business stories shared by leaders and owners in the government contracting and the construction industries. The government contracting owner panel was moderated by Meg Hampton, CPA, Audit Manager at Anglin. The construction owner panel was moderated by Tiffany Brightwell, President of ABC North Alabama.
Feedback on the event complimented our speaker lineup as well as food choices and happy hour networking. Food was catered by Panera (breakfast) and JW Steakhouse (lunch). Happy hour, hosted by Anglin, was enjoyed in the HBG Carriage House, which opens to the outside and surrounds visitors with beautiful botanical plants. Several attendees commented that they were able to secure meetings with potential clients or collaborators as part of their networking time.
A few attendee comments:
“The event had a lot of knowledge and great people attending.”
“Anyone who can keep a large crowd entertained and engaged with economics is amazing.”
“I liked that it touched on all aspects of business and not just the accounting portion.”
Best takeaway? “Networking with companies I had not connected with previously.”
Second best takeaway? “I should have joined the Army like I wanted after high school.”
We offer many thanks to our esteemed keynotes, co-hosts and sponsors, speakers, moderators and panelists. We couldn’t do it without you. A special thanks goes to our gracious attendees, too! Based on your evaluation forms, the next Evolve Growth Summit is primed for incredible educational content, networking and inspiring ideas for government contracting and construction leaders…and so much more.
For details, follow our social channels or subscribe to our newsletter at anglincpa.com.