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About the event
Annual Leadership Conference 2026
Coril Holdings | Annual Leadership Conference 2026
About Coril Holdings
Coril Holdings Ltd. is a privately held Canadian investment firm with a diversified portfolio spanning energy, real estate, infrastructure, agriculture, and private equity. Coril is known for its long-term investment mindset, values-driven leadership, and commitment to responsible growth across industries and geographies.
Each year, Coril convenes senior leaders from across its global organization for an intimate leadership conference designed to foster connection, shared learning, and strategic alignment.
Event Overview
- Event: Coril Holdings Annual Leadership Conference
- Dates:
- June 24, 2026 – Full-day conference
- June 25, 2026 – Half-day focused on social connection
- Format: In-person
- Location: Canmore or Banff, Alberta (final venue to be confirmed)
- Audience Size: ~40 participants
- Audience Profile:
- C-suite executives
- Senior Vice Presidents
- Leaders across multiple business units and industries within Coril’s portfolio
This is a highly curated, senior-level gathering designed for depth of conversation rather than scale.
Conference Intent & Themes
The annual leadership conference brings together leaders from across Coril’s businesses to:
- Connect with one another across disciplines and geographies
- Exchange perspectives on leadership, strategy, and emerging trends
- Explore social, economic, and technological forces shaping the business landscape
While topics vary year to year, the 2026 conference will emphasize:
- Leadership decision-making in times of complexity and uncertainty
- Social and economic trends impacting global business
- The advancement of technology, including the role of AI within Coril’s businesses
- Creating shared context and language for senior leaders navigating change
Program Structure & Speaker Needs
Opening Keynote (Economy & Geopolitics)
Coril traditionally opens the conference with a keynote speaker who can set the stage for the entire program.
Focus of the Opening Keynote:
- Economic outlook and geopolitical context
- Insights relevant to Canada and global markets
- Framing macro trends that influence leadership and strategic decision-making
Coril is currently considering Todd Hirsch for this role.
Additional Speaker Considerations (AI, Business & Leadership Perspective)
In addition to an opening economist keynote, Coril is interested in a speaker who can help senior leaders translate today’s most pressing trends into clear, human-centered leadership insight.
Coril is open to speakers who approach these themes from different vantage points, including:
- AI and emerging technology experts who can cut through hype and focus on real-world business implications
- Inspirational speakers from outside the traditional business environment, provided they can clearly tie their experiences back to leadership, decision-making, and organizational impact
Former Head of Innovation, Mattel | AI Optimist | Author | Futurist
Ramy Nassar helps leaders stop reacting to disruption—and start designing the future. A futurist and former Head of Innovation at Mattel, Ramy brings over 25 years of hands-on experience helping organizations navigate AI and emerging technologies with clarity and confidence. His work includes building enterprise AI agents, advising AI governance teams, and launching innovation labs focused on real-world implementation.
Trusted by more than 250 organizations—including Apple, TD Bank, TELUS, New Balance, Verizon, and the Government of Canada—Ramy is known for cutting through hype to deliver practical, enterprise-ready insight. He is the author of The AI Product Design Handbook, teaches at universities in Canada and Europe, and is recognized for combining sharp strategic thinking with compelling storytelling that prepares leaders to act.
Speaking Fee: CAD $15,000 + travel expenses and hotel.
There is some flexibility in the speaker fee, and we’re happy to continue the conversation to ensure alignment with your budget and program goals.
Speaker fees are exclusive of applicable taxes. While Gravity Speakers does not charge GST, any applicable taxes related to the speaker’s services are handled by the speaker and reflected in the overall engagement cost.
Gravity Profile: https://www.gravityspeakers.com/speakers/ramy-nassar
Website: https://www.ramynassar.com/
Ramy is based in Bayfield, Ontario, Canada.
“Ramy’s energy & expertise when it comes to the role of emerging technology are unrivalled. He brought a passion & enthusiasm to my team that helped drive us to new heights in terms of data-driven digital transformation.” - Rob Fodor, Chief Data Officer, Interac
“This presentation was the first that helped our executive team understand how we drive AI initiatives forward and build the right metrics into our strategic technology roadmap. The outcomes will directly and positively impact the ROI of our investments into AI.” - Robert Bricker, TD Bank
Speaker Highlights
Why Ramy Is a Strong Fit for Coril
Following an opening economist keynote by Todd Hirsch, Ramy provides the strategic “what now?”—helping senior leaders translate macroeconomic and geopolitical context into clear, actionable decisions about AI and emerging technology.
Ramy is particularly well suited for Coril’s intimate, executive-level audience because he:
- Speaks directly to C-suite and senior leaders, not technologists
- Grounds AI in business impact, governance, and risk, not hype
- Brings experience working with regulated, complex, multi-industry organizations
- Helps leaders move from experimentation to measurable, responsible adoption
For Coril’s leadership conference, Ramy’s perspective complements Todd Hirsch’s macro lens by equipping leaders with frameworks to assess where AI truly creates value, where it introduces risk, and where restraint is the smarter strategic choice.
Recommended Keynote:
AI Now, Next, Never: Cutting Through Hype to Drive Measurable Impact
AI has become an executive priority — but between inflated promises and rapid advancements, most leadership teams struggle to know where to begin. Futurist and former Head of Innovation at Mattel, Ramy Nassar, equips organizations to move beyond curiosity and pilot projects, toward responsible, measurable adoption of artificial intelligence.
Drawing on decades of hands-on experience building and deploying emerging technologies with some of the world’s biggest brands, Ramy brings clarity to the hype. He shares practical use cases and scalable frameworks that demystify the AI landscape — helping executives identify opportunities, avoid common pitfalls, and responsibly build solutions.
In this presentation, Ramy delivers a grounded, enterprise-focused view of AI: what matters now, what’s coming next, and what leaders can confidently set aside.
Audiences will learn how to:
- Separate hype from reality and identify AI use cases with measurable ROI
- Recognize risks, hallucinations, and governance challenges — and adopt responsible practices
- Apply practical tools, advanced prompting methods, and strategic frameworks that drive growth
This presentation can be delivered as a keynote or interactive workshop. Sessions often include live AI demonstrations and provide participants with a post-session toolkit (sample prompts, adoption frameworks, governance checklists) to inspire action the very next day.
Additional Program Context & Relevance
Ramy’s work is especially well suited to Coril’s senior executive audience, as it situates AI and emerging technologies within the broader economic, geopolitical, and business landscape leaders are navigating today. In recent engagements with global leadership teams—including a leadership exchange summit for senior executives at a multinational organization—his sessions have focused not on AI in isolation, but on how accelerating technology intersects with leadership judgment, decision-making, and long-term strategy. A core theme of this work is what Ramy refers to as The World After AI—a framework that explores why many organizations struggle to translate AI investment into durable impact. Rather than a technology gap, Ramy helps leaders understand this as a context and leadership challenge, addressing how work is redesigned, how decisions are made under uncertainty, and how organizations adapt when technology evolves faster than operating models and governance. This perspective strongly aligns with Coril’s goal of helping leaders move from macro insight to practical, executive-level application.
Highlights
- Former Head of Innovation, Mattel (Barbie movie contributor)
- Closing keynote, CPA Canada National Conference 2024
- Trusted by 250+ organizations across public and private sectors
- Author, The AI Product Design Handbook
- Faculty member at universities in Canada and Europe
- Active advisor on AI governance and real-world implementation
- Recognized for practical, non-hype AI leadership frameworks
Leading Through Turbulence: AI, Disruption, and Executive Decision-Making
Jim Harris is one of North America’s foremost thinkers on AI, GenAI, disruption, and innovation. A globally recognized keynote speaker, Jim presents at more than 60 in-person and virtual events each year and has been ranked by Association Magazine as one of North America’s Top Ten Speakers.
Jim works closely with executive teams on strategic planning and leadership decision-making in times of rapid change. His clients include American Express, Barclays Bank, Canon, GM, IBM, SAP, Munich Re, Swiss Re, Walmart, Zurich Insurance, the UK Cabinet Office, and the Top 200 CIOs of India. In 2024, Jim was named Speaker of the Year by TEC Canada, part of Vistage, the world’s largest CEO peer advisory organization, recognizing his impact on senior leaders through his work on AI.
A #1 international bestselling author, Jim’s book Blindsided! is published in 80 countries and has been recognized by Soundview Executive Summaries as one of the best business books of the year. Known for his high-energy, insight-rich presentations, Jim helps leaders translate disruption into opportunity and act with confidence in uncertain environments.
Speaking Fee: CAD $15,000 + Travel and hotel expenses + Canadian tax (GST)
There is some flexibility in the speaker fee, and we’re happy to continue the conversation to ensure alignment with your budget and program goals.
Speaker fees are exclusive of applicable taxes. While Gravity Speakers does not charge GST, any applicable taxes related to the speaker’s services are handled by the speaker and reflected in the overall engagement cost.
Gravity Profile: https://www.gravityspeakers.com/speakers/jim-harris
Website: https://www.jimharris.com/
Jim is based in Ontario, Canada.
“Jim Harris did a great job! He knocked the ball out of the park talking to a crowd of 350 construction industry people here at the Ottawa Construction Association. I got a lot of great feedback that it was actionable items, something they were going to move on right away and they were going to pursue so you can't do better than what Jim did at our annual general meeting. Jim was a pleasure to work with him and his supporting team, easy to coordinate, did a great job of research in our group, researching with my board of directors. He really invested time and effort to deliver a A-Plus presentation. What Jim did for a construction crowd was bang on for the times. Everyone's questioning "What's the impact of AI in construction?" We're all on the same level of learning and Jim provided us that education and a path to go forward.” --John DeVries - Executive Director - Ottawa Construction Association
“I launched the Center of Excellence for Sales Leadership at York University's Schulich Executive Education Centre with the 13-day Masters Certificate Program and the 5 day Executive Sales Management Program. Jim Harris was one of my faculty for both programs. He is exceptional. Jim engages the minds and hearts of participants with his informative content, style and humour. Jim is able to create a complete shift in participants' outlook in just a single session. I always learn something new every session I attend with Jim because it is never canned content. He is exceptional at refreshing and adding current and relevant content to his programs. In all my years in sales I've never met anyone who can create such a shift in such a short time. I would highly recommend him to any executive team looking to shift the outlook, behaviour and outcomes they are seeking from a sales team or sales organization.” -- Lorella DePieri - Program Director - York University, Schulich School of Business
Speaker Highlights
Why Jim Harris Is a Strong Fit for Coril
- Cross-sector relevance: Jim’s work is designed for executive audiences overseeing diversified portfolios, making his AI and disruption insights highly applicable across financial services, energy, infrastructure, technology, manufacturing, and other investment sectors.
- Executive-level lens: Rather than focusing on tools or tactics, Jim helps senior leaders understand how AI reshapes strategy, decision-making, risk, and leadership expectations across industries.
- Macro-to-micro perspective: Jim connects AI and technological disruption to broader economic, geopolitical, and market forces—complementing an economist keynote and helping leaders translate context into action.
- Proven credibility with CEOs: Recognized as Speaker of the Year by TEC Canada (Vistage), Jim regularly advises CEOs and executive teams navigating high-stakes decisions in volatile environments.
- Highly customized approach: Jim tailors each session to the organization’s priorities, ensuring examples and case studies reflect the realities leaders face across multiple sectors.
Recommended Topics:
The AI Revolution: The Most Transformative Technology of Our Time
Designed for senior leaders overseeing diverse businesses and industries, this keynote positions AI not as a single-industry solution, but as a foundational force reshaping organizations, markets, and leadership itself.
Rather than narrowing the focus to one sector, Jim draws from cross-industry case studies—including financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, construction, energy, and government—to illustrate how AI is driving dramatic gains in productivity, speed, and value creation. Executives gain clarity on where AI is delivering measurable impact today, where risks and limitations remain, and how leadership teams can begin responsibly—regardless of industry.
Key takeaways include:
- How AI is transforming productivity, decision-making, and competitiveness across sectors
- Where to start—and how to prioritize AI initiatives at the executive level
- How leaders can balance innovation, risk, and governance in rapidly evolving environments
- Why AI success is ultimately a leadership and strategy challenge, not a technology one
This session is particularly effective for diversified leadership groups seeking a shared framework for understanding AI’s implications across multiple businesses and investment areas.
Leading in Turbulent Times (VUCA): Building Agility & Resilience
Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity (VUCA) – is the defining reality of modern business. For today’s executives, mastering VUCA is essential to navigating the turbulence and turning uncertainty into opportunity.
The Age of Accelerated Change
We are witnessing the fastest, most disruptive period in corporate history. Markets shift overnight. Technologies leapfrog decades. Consumer behaviors evolve in real time. The scale and speed of change are without precedent:
- On April 3-4, 2025, US markets lost $6.6 trillion in value following President Trump’s announcement of tariffs on 90 countries. Five days later, after the decision was paused, markets rebounded by $5.4 trillion – a staggering single-day recovery.
- On January 27, 2025, China’s DeepSeek unveiled its R-1 AI model, instantly disrupting global tech. U.S. high-tech firms lost $1 trillion in a single day. NVIDIA alone dropped $600 billion, the largest single-day market cap loss in US history.
- It took the airline industry 68 years to reach 50 million users. It took Pokémon Go just 19 days.
These events aren’t anomalies – they’re signals of a world in permanent flux. Leadership strategies must evolve accordingly.
The Executive Imperative in a VUCA Landscape
For C-suite executives, this moment demands more than operational excellence. It requires visionary leadership, systemic thinking, and a willingness to experiment at scale. Key questions every executive team must address:
- How can we adapt faster?
- What systems will allow us to pivot, scale, and sustain momentum?
- How do we build organizational resilience at every level?
- How do we make bold, high-stakes decisions amid uncertainty?
- What kind of leadership is required when there is no clarity?
- How do we lead through crises (economic shocks, pandemics, geopolitical upheaval?
- How do we keep our people engaged, aligned & inspired amid constant change?
- How can we future-proof our business in the face of accelerating disruption?
VUCA as a Strategic Advantage
Leaders who understand the nature of VUCA don't just survive—they thrive. They create adaptive organizations, nurture courageous cultures, and lead with both decisiveness and humility. In a world where transformation is not optional, mastering VUCA is essential. Those who develop the capacity it will outpace disruption—and shape the future of business.
Associated Topics -
Geopolitics & Global Risk
- Trade wars & tariffs (US-China)
- Regional conflicts (Ukraine-Russia)
- Sanctions & economic upheaval
- Deglobalization
- Shifts in global alliances
- Supply chain
Technological Disruption
- AI and automation (GenAI, job loss fears)
- Cybersecurity & ransomware
- Quantum computing
Highlights
- #1 international bestselling author of Blindsided!, published in 80 countries
- Named 2024 Speaker of the Year by TEC Canada (Vistage CEO network)
- Recognized as one of North America’s Top 10 speakers on AI and disruptive innovation
- Trusted advisor to global organizations including American Express, IBM, SAP, Swiss Re, Walmart, and the UK Cabinet Office
- Leads executive strategy sessions on AI, disruption, and resilience for senior leadership teams
United Nations AI Advisor, IBM Master Inventor, CEO of ACSI Labs AI & Technology Expert, Author
Neil Sahota (萨冠军) is the CEO of ACSI Labs, a United Nations AI Advisor, IBM Master Inventor, Professor at UC Irvine, and bestselling author of Own the A.I. Revolution. With more than 20 years of experience advising organizations on strategy, innovation, and emerging technology, Neil works with executive teams to translate AI from concept into real business impact.
His work spans multiple industries including financial services, healthcare, life sciences, retail, energy and utilities, transportation, telecommunications, media, and government. Neil has advised global enterprises such as American Express, Barclays Bank, IBM, SAP, Swiss Re, Zurich Insurance, Walmart, and the UK Cabinet Office. He is also deeply involved in the innovation ecosystem as an advisor to venture funds, mentor to startups, and co-creator of the UN’s Innovation Factory.
Known for his ability to bridge technology, leadership, and organizational change, Neil helps senior leaders navigate complexity and make better decisions in rapidly evolving environments.
Speaking Fee: Typically US$20,000 but due to our relationship, he's happy to reduce his fee to meet your buddget - CAD$15,000 + Travel Expenses + Hotel
There is some additional flexibility in the speaker fee, and we’re happy to continue the conversation to ensure alignment with your budget and program goals.
Speaker Profile: https://www.gravityspeakers.com/speakers/neil-sahota
Speaker Website: https://www.neilsahota.com/
Neil is based in Southern California.
"Your deep understanding of AI and its potential applications within our work provided us with a comprehensive perspective on the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. The clarity with which you articulated complex concepts and your ability to connect them to real-world scenarios was particularly impressive and greatly appreciated by all in attendance." - Darrell Johnson, CEO, Orange County Transportation Authority
"The presentation was great. Neil was able to take examples of what is happening in other industries and bring it back to what we should be looking at in our industry." - Kristin Keller, SVP Real Estate Lending, Amplify Credit Union
“Neil clearly knows his stuff - the content was great. Neil shared information I'd never heard before. He went deeper than most on the topic and I really appreciated that.” - Sarah Hogan, Senior Director, Learning Products, CalCPA
Speaker Highlights
Why Neil Sahota Is a Strong Fit for Coril:
- Portfolio-level relevance: Neil’s work is designed for executive audiences overseeing diverse businesses across sectors, making his insights highly applicable to Coril’s multi-industry investment portfolio.
- Leadership-first AI perspective: Rather than focusing on tools or hype, Neil frames AI as a strategic, cultural, and leadership challenge, aligning well with Coril’s senior leadership audience.
- Macro to execution bridge: Neil connects AI adoption to broader forces such as market volatility, workforce change, governance, and decision-making—complementing an economist opening keynote.
- Credibility with global institutions: As a UN AI Advisor and former IBM Master Inventor, Neil brings both global perspective and enterprise credibility to discussions of emerging technology.
- Clear, practical frameworks: Neil is known for giving leaders language and structure to understand where their organization is today—and what must change to move forward responsibly.
Recommended Keynote:
AI Failure to Fortune: A leader’s path from AI awareness to real business value
Most leaders know AI matters. What they don’t know is how easily it goes wrong.
Organizations invest in tools, pilots, and automation only to find themselves stuck—overwhelmed by options, uncertain where to focus, and frustrated by the lack of meaningful return. Some move too fast, chasing AI without strategy. Others move too slowly, waiting for “best practices” while competitors quietly build advantages that are hard to undo.
In AI Failure to Fortune, Neil Sahota reframes the AI conversation away from tools and trends and toward what actually determines success: how an organization thinks, decides, and evolves.
Drawing from his work advising global enterprises, teaching executive leaders, and the frameworks behind his latest book, The AI Activation Code, Neil reveals why most AI initiatives fail long before technology becomes the issue. The problem is not AI capability—it’s that organizations attempt transformation without the strategic, cultural, and operational foundations required to support it.
This keynote introduces leaders to a clearer way forward: understanding where their organization truly is in the AI transformation journey—and what must happen next. Rather than jumping straight to automation or experimentation, Neil shows how successful organizations progress deliberately from awareness, to adoption, to adaptation, and ultimately to autonomy—becoming businesses that sense, learn, and adapt faster than conventional operations ever could.
The result is not just better use of AI tools, but a more responsive, intelligent organization—one that makes decisions earlier, reallocates resources faster, and builds durable competitive advantage.
This is not an abstract vision of the future. It is a practical, leadership-driven session designed to help organizations stop wasting investment, reduce risk, and begin activating AI in ways that deliver real business value.
Audience Takeaways
Participants will leave with:
- A clear understanding of why most AI initiatives fail—even in well-run organizations
- Insight into the four stages of AI transformation and how to identify where their organization is today
- Clarity on what must be in place before scaling AI or investing further
- A practical leadership lens for moving from AI awareness to sustainable business impact
Ideal for: senior leaders, executives, strategy teams, innovation leaders, and organizations that know AI matters—but want a clear, grounded path forward.
While Neil offers industry-specific programs, this keynote is designed for senior leaders overseeing diverse businesses, drawing on cross-industry examples to help executive teams develop a shared framework for AI decision-making across sectors.