The Power of Customer Service in Building a Strong Business
The 2026 RISE Summit brought entrepreneurs, business owners, innovators, and community partners together for a full day of learning, connection, and new ideas at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville.
This year’s Summit focused on innovation in business, manufacturing, and agriculture, with sessions designed to give attendees practical information they could take back to their businesses and communities.
And the numbers tell part of the story:
19 localities represented. 18 speakers. 18 industries represented. 12 exhibitors. 8 sponsors. 15 sessions.
Most importantly, the Summit created countless opportunities for people to meet, share ideas, and make connections across Virginia and North Carolina.
A Summit Built for Entrepreneurs
Business owners and entrepreneurs made up 57% of Summit attendees, making them the largest group represented. Another 10% were considering or planning to start a business, while 10% were employees of businesses. Economic developers and entrepreneurship support organizations made up 23% of attendees.
Throughout the day, attendees could choose sessions across Business Skills, Access to Capital, and Innovation, with speakers bringing their own experience and expertise to the conversation.
Peter Raines of Get YOU Found helped attendees identify practical ways to put AI to work in their businesses, while Jocelyn Forest of the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center worked with aspiring entrepreneurs on moving from an idea to a business model. Crystal Hairston of SocializeMe LLC explored how stronger messaging can move customers from awareness to action.
Karen White of the Virginia Small Business Financing Authority and DaShanna Carr of Community Investment Collaborative tackled questions around money, growth, and access to capital. Kathy Deacon of the Virginia Department of Small Business & Supplier Diversity led sessions on Virginia’s eVA procurement system and SWaM Certification, helping businesses better understand opportunities to do business with the Commonwealth.
Taurean Russell of the Institute for Advanced Learning & Research shared practical lessons on cybersecurity and operational resilience, while Dr. Scott Lowman of IALR explored entrepreneurial opportunities in Controlled Environment Agriculture and led a tour of the CEA Innovation Center.
Innovation, Resources, and Opportunities
Innovation was a major focus of this year’s Summit.
Adam Reeves of SOVA Fab Lab joined Amy Reed of P&HCC Dalton IDEA Center, Autumn Evans of The Spark Innovation Center, Dana Knott of Longwood SBDC, and Evan Jones of SEED Innovation Hub for a conversation about makerspaces, product development, and resources available to help entrepreneurs turn ideas into products.
Dr. Scott Lowman of the Institute for Advanced Learning & Research also gave attendees a closer look at innovation happening in the region through a tour of IALR’s Controlled Environment Agriculture Innovation Center.
The day also included a conversation with Kelsey Robertson of TECHnista and a regional innovation panel featuring Gretchen Clark of Hurt & Proffitt, Dr. Scott Lowman, and Angela Yancey of Hitachi Energy, moderated by Kiana Dillard of the West Piedmont Planning District Commission.
More Than a Day of Sessions
The RISE Summit is about more than what happens at the front of the room.
It’s about the conversation with another business owner between sessions. The introduction to a resource you didn’t know existed. The idea sparked by a speaker. The connection that turns into a collaboration months later.
With people representing 19 communities across Virginia and North Carolina, those connections stretched well beyond the walls of IALR.
The goal was for attendees to leave not only with new information, but also with clear next steps, new relationships, and resources they can continue to use after the Summit.
Thank You for Making the 2026 RISE Summit Possible
A day like this takes a lot of people working together.
Thank you to our 18 speakers for sharing their knowledge and experiences, and to our exhibitors and resource partners for connecting directly with attendees.
We are grateful to our 2026 RISE Summit sponsors: Locus, Controlled Environment Agriculture Innovation Center, Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC), GO Virginia Region 3, RetirePath Virginia, Southern Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, Community Investment Collaborative (CIC), and SOVA Innovation Hub. Their support helped make this year’s Summit possible.
And, of course, thank you to everyone who attended, asked questions, introduced themselves to someone new, and brought their own ideas and experiences to the day.
We can’t count every conversation, introduction, idea, or future collaboration that started at the Summit.
Some of the most important numbers are the ones we can’t measure: the connections made along the way.
