Agenda
Hear novel perspectives about the workforce challenges that are causing critical talent to go untapped across the workforce — and what it will take to find and develop individuals into the resilient workforce we all need. This opening session will lay the groundwork for connecting over courageous ideas to see talent differently at Opportunity Summit 2025.
Join us for a casual reception, just a 5-minute walk from the hotel, on board the iconic USS Midway! We'll be sharing heavy appetizers and cool refreshments amidst amazing harbor views, as you meet and reconnect with other attendees before the full program begins.
As workforce challenges mount — driven by demographic shifts, rapid tech advancement, and policy change — leaders must think beyond their own walls to build talent strategies that can weather change. Hear from the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Labor, who will unpack how shifts in federal priorities may affect your workforce and how to engage with policymakers, learning providers, and community partners to build skilled, future-ready, and resilient talent pipelines.
PANEL DISCUSSION & CASE STUDY
As workforce disruptions accelerate and budget pressures grow, public-private partnerships can accelerate talent development strategies. Economic development organizations are stepping up, partnering with employers and learning institutions to fund and build regional talent systems that fuel skilling pathways into in-demand roles and drive job creation and long-term economic growth.
Hear from economic development leaders from innovative states and cities who are managing cross-sector workforce initiatives and funding strategies in industries like healthcare and manufacturing. They'll share how they're building partnerships that meet employer demand, advance broader economic goals, and tap into public-private funding sources to scale what works.
Whether you're a workforce leader or an employer looking to strengthen your outside-in talent pipeline, you’ll leave with real-world examples and tools to support impact in your region.
FIRESIDE CHAT & LIVE Q&A
Join us for a candid conversation with one of HR’s most respected leaders. They’ll share how to elevate your profile inside your company and across the industry to drive the outcomes you believe in. From earning a seat at the table to reshaping how the HR function drives business and serves the people inside it, hear hard-won lessons on growing as a leader in today’s shifting landscape and defining your voice. Whether you're early in your exec journey or shaping your legacy, you’ll come away with advice to build a lasting legacy of impact.
CASE STUDY & LIVE Q&A
The real workforce crisis isn’t talent scarcity - it’s misalignment of supply and demand. Join to hear how one leading organization rewrote its approach to workforce planning. Learn how they tapped into overlooked talent sources, used market data to align that talent to future job demand, and even evolved their Guild policies and programs as a result. You’ll walk away with a new blueprint for using labor insights to prioritize investments, build resilient talent ecosystems, and drive real business outcomes, not just check boxes.
CASE STUDY & BRAINSTORMING ACTIVITY
Too many in-demand roles are going unfilled. Not because talent isn’t out there, but because that talent isn’t job-ready…yet.
On-ramp programs offer a bold solution. They build readiness by helping hidden talent develop the skills to step into in-demand roles.
You’ll hear real examples, swap ideas, and leave with practical ways to use on-ramp programs to turn untapped potential into job-ready talent.
As companies look inward to unlock untapped talent, questions about what truly drives mobility are more urgent than ever. Which skills and roles open the most doors? What barriers still hold workers back? And how does educational attainment shape real-world outcomes? Join Guild and Lightcast for fresh research into the state of mobility in the American workforce — and what it could mean for your organization.
PANEL & WORKSHOP
What makes skills data meaningful?
After years of investment in skills taxonomies and internal skilling programs, what’s actually working for companies who are making progress — and where do we go from here? Industry leaders in the skilling movement will share their lessons learned and value they’ve gained. Then we’ll get into workshop mode: you’ll take stock of your own organization’s approach and think fresh about how learning can drive business strategy and fill discrete skill needs.
PANEL & PEER DISCUSSION
Unlocking career advancement for working adults means delivering real learning outcomes, in the classroom and workplace. Join leaders and innovators from some of Guild’s Learning Partners as they share how differentiated strategies and skills-based programs drive exceptional student success. Panelists will showcase their best-in-class strategies and innovations within the Guild Learning Marketplace, linking learning to mobility and ROI through outcome-driven design and employer alignment. Leave with candid insights, proven examples, and actionable ideas for your organization to create agile, equitable talent pipelines through groundbreaking education partnerships.
PANEL & PEER DISCUSSION
Today’s leadership pipelines are broken—built for a workforce that no longer exists. Join this session to challenge outdated ideas of “high potential,” uncover overlooked talent in your organization, and learn how to fast-track the next generation of leaders before your bench runs dry.
DATA INSIGHTS & PANEL
Take a deeper dive into the newly released Talent Resilience Index with Guild and Lightcast and hear from companies who are driving results for their employees. We’ll help you workshop the data to identify specific ideas you want to implement when you get back home based on what’s worked and failed for others.
Hear how Guild and our partners are innovating to meet the moment with investments ranging from AI-driven talent insights to ways to make critical roles newly accessible. We’ll give you visibility into the ways we can help you see talent differently — and build it for growth.
Discover how Guild is innovating its education benefit and Learning Marketplace so that your company can meet business and employee needs at scale — and without compromise. From targeted skilling to AI investments to smarter career pathways, Guild is matching people to opportunity,and helping organizations move forward with confidence.
Expect a look into the latest developments, what’s coming next, and how to build a future-ready workforce.
Too often, training is generic, outdated, or disconnected from the business problems it’s meant to solve.
Meet Guild Academy — Guild’s newest offering that builds on our Learning Marketplace by helping companies launch cohorted, company-tailored programs. Your employees learn together through interactive peer discussions and videos of your leaders — driving real behavior change, not just participation.
You’ll see a live demo, get a look at upcoming innovations like credit-bearing programs and AI-powered simulations, and hear how leading companies are using Academy to build high-performing teams.
Across industries, employers are facing urgent staffing challenges in roles that keep operations running—challenges that require scalable, yet locally rooted learning solutions.
Learn how Guild’s latest innovation will help you grow pipelines for hard-to-fill licensed roles, reduce manual administrative work, and support employee engagement and career growth. You’ll explore how this can become a new tool for your workforce strategy — one that gives your employees access to a meaningful, guided education experience.
We're all working to build organizations that can adapt and thrive no matter what the future holds. But what if the biggest threat to your company’s resilience isn't the competition or the economy, but the quiet friction inside your own walls? This keynote digs into the science of workforce angst—the unmet human need for security, growth, and significance—and shows how it's secretly holding back innovation. Drawing on original research and real-world examples, you'll get a practical framework for applying Psychological Ergonomics. You'll explore how empowering employee growth transforms that internal friction into a powerful competitive advantage that directly impacts the bottom line. This is about making a strong business case that investing in your people is your most powerful strategy for growth.
The companies that are seeing outsized results are the ones where CHROs and L&D leaders are aligning learning initiatives with business strategy. We’ll surface actionable data to guide how to rethink metrics, align with the business, and make learning indispensable to the bottom and top line.
In this fast-paced session, you'll work with peers to diagnose the hidden human factors holding back your organization’s top priority. Get a new lens for turning friction into fuel.
As workforce needs evolve and skilling demands rise, CHROs face mounting pressure to deliver business impact through learning—with limited time and resources. In this panel, senior HR leaders share how they’re navigating competing priorities while keeping workforce development aligned to business goals. You’ll leave with practical strategies for influencing the C-Suite, demonstrating ROI on learning investments, and leading confidently in a rapidly changing environment.
Despite investing millions in education benefits, 67% of companies struggle to align these programs with tangible business outcomes. This session reveals how innovative employers have partnered with Guild to transform their education benefit into a strategic talent engine, powering internal mobility, global expansion, and skills-based workforce planning. Leave with a practical roadmap to extract maximum value from your Guild partnership and measurably accelerate your organization's talent development goals.
Manufacturing. transportation, and logistics companies have always been a force for progress and innovation - but the next generation of talent doesn’t always see it that way. In this peer discussion, we’ll tackle a critical question: With seasoned talent aging out, new hires harder to find (and harder to keep), and technology changing what skills matter - what kind of Employer Value Proposition actually reaches the people who build and power your business?