(First time to a Forum? Please read this!)
Forums are not like other conferences you may have been to. They are designed to maximize the free exchange of experiences and interests amongst its participants in a balanced way. You will find three types of engagement in three different ways:
- General Sessions with everyone in a ballroom setting and a more formal, directed conversation, with audience participation.
- Breakout Sessions are a mix of topics and deep dives that are entirely participant-driven discussions and working sessions.
- Social Settings such as meals, receptions, and activities to allow more self-directed interaction and networking.
These represent the three key mechanics we use to help you and your organizations learn and grow at our in-person Forums. Every breakout session at the Forum is a dynamic conversation and discussion between members in which to share best practices and successes along with learning from one another about beginning, implementing, and improving on your own efforts. The breakout sessions are purposely succinct in their titling and description to allow the participants to drive more of the content, priority, and overall direction of the discussions. Facilitators for each session you register for will be reaching out to you in advance to gain your input for that session and help ensure that you are able to maximize your participation in it. Please be sure to provide them with your needs, interests and perspectives when they reach out.
In addition to member participants from a broad spectrum of asset management firms, a curated selection of Vendor Partners and Solution Providers has been invited for showing deep understanding and dedication to this space in the financial services industry and in particular to Sales, Marketing, Client Servicing and the tools, technologies, and practices that enable them. However, unlike other conferences, they do not have booths, tables, or other dedicated space at the events. On the contrary, we invite them to participate in the sessions as a means for them to continue learning about what we are tasked with, how they may be of help and how they have assisted others in similar situations as us. They are forbidden from making sales pitches but encouraged to share their accomplishments and experiences with us as sources of expertise and broad exposure to our industry. As such please be open to learning and sharing with them as well.
Still not sure? Just call us at +1-917-561-9553 or write to SMEForum@TheSMEForum.net for help thinking through who best to attend based on content, opportunity and what is happening at your firm. Let’s get the right people to participate.
Agenda and Session Descriptions
Download Agenda to Share and Print (pdf)
View and Download Breakout Session Descriptions (pdf)
Monday, April 6
All Day: Arrivals and Check-In
5:30 – 8:00 PM: Welcome Reception – Christopher’s Bar – The Heldrich Hotel
Tuesday, April 7
8:00 AM: Registration and Networking Hot Breakfast
8:30-9:00 AM: Welcome, Registration & Opening Remarks:
9:00 – 9:45 AM: Opening Keynote, Stephen Alepa, CEO – Olmstead Consulting
9:45 – 10:00 AM: Networking Break
10:00 – 11:30 AM: Tuesday Morning Breakout Sessions (Choose one when registering):
Session 1 The Near-Term Automation Opportunity: What Distribution Can Hand-Off to AI Now
Session 2 What Sales Teams Actually Want from AI and Technology
Session 3 Institutional Focus Session: What’s Unique—and What Isn’t
Session 4 Data Management Strategy: Preventing the CRM “Data Black Hole”
11:45 – 12:30 PM: Speed to Strategy: A Day-in-the-Life Approach to Modern Enablement” for The Future of Analytics Capabilities, Synfinii
12:30 – 2:00 pm: Networking Lunch
2:00 – 2:45 PM Panel Discussion – Innovations that Improve the External Sales Process. A practitioner-led discussion on what sales & client service teams are asking for, what’s being ignored, and what actually drives automation and adoption of sales applications and platforms.
2:45 – 3:00 PM: Networking Break
3:00 – 4:30 PM: Tuesday Afternoon Breakout Sessions (Choose one when registering):
Session 5 Activity Capture in CRM: Getting Sales to Log What Actually Matters
Session 6 Data Integration Challenges and Solutions
Session 7 CRM for Institutional Distribution: Data Models, Integration, and Best Practices
Session 8 AI, Compliance, and Control: What’s Allowed, What’s Risky, What’s Next
4:30 – 4:45 PM: Networking Break
4:45 – 5:30 PM: Peer Exchange: Structured Networking: Fast, Focused, Peer-Driven
5:30 PM Evening Reception – Catherine Lombardi, 3 Livingston Ave, New Brunswick
Wednesday, April 8
7:30 AM: Registration and Networking Hot Breakfast
8:15 AM: Welcome and Morning Kickoff
8:30 – 9:15 AM: Panel Discussion – The Challenge of the AI Build Out – Insource or Outsource? SS&C moderates a panel of asset management executives discussing the benefits and drawbacks of insourcing versus outsourcing AI initiatives. Panelists share how their firms approached the decision, including key drivers and questions that guide the choice, where internal teams add the most value and how vendors fit into current and future strategies, and real-world feedback on success, challenges, prioritization, and measuring outcomes.
9:15 – 9:30 AM: Networking Break
9:30 – 11:00 AM: Wednesday Morning Breakout Sessions (choose one when registering):
Session 9 Data Integration Without a Channel Lens
Session 10 Alternatives Distribution in Asset Management
Session 11 How to solve the Institutional Onboarding challenge?
Session 12 Data ROI Reality Check: Why No One Can Prove It (Yet)
11:00 – 11:15 AM: Networking Break
11:15 – 12:00 PM: Panel Discussion: Are Your Data Foundations Ready for AI? Description: AI promises transformational value in asset management—but only for firms with the right data foundations. This session examines the critical steps asset managers must take today to modernize distribution data, eliminate silos, and unlock AI-driven insights without compromising governance or compliance.
12:00 – 12:45 PM: Member Survey Results Business Intelligence Organizational Alignment and Initiatives, Loren Fox, Fuse Research
12:45 – 2:00 PM: Networking Lunch
2:00 – 3:30 PM: Wednesday Afternoon Breakout Sessions (choose one when registering):
Session 13 AI Metrics That Matter: How KPIs Are Evolving
Session 14 Improving Sales Conversations with Marketing Content
Session 15 AI Agent Use Cases: Vendor Solution – HSO
3:30 – 4:00 PM: Closing Session: From Ideas to Action: What Are You Taking Back? Participants share one initiative, one experiment, or one mindset shift they plan to implement after the conference
4:00 PM: Closing Reception
4:30 PM: Conference Concludes
Thursday, April 9 (SME Leadership Council – by invitation only)
8:00 AM: Leadership Council Breakfast and Meetings
11:30 AM: Meeting Concludes and Departures
To confirm your firm’s membership status please visit https://thesmeforum.net/membership/. While Forums are primarily reserved for any employee of a member firm, we welcome any request for guests and others who would enrich the experience for the community. If you need any help with your registration, please feel free to call us at +1-917-561-9553 or email smeforum@thesmeforum.net and we will address any questions you may have promptly.
Register for the Forum
Please select your tickets and procced through form to complete registration and payment.
Please email smeforum@thesmeforum.net if you have any questions or to request information about registering at the event
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Notice: Some sessions and other portions of the event may be video and/or audio recorded. By registering for this event, you grant consent to The SME Forum for the use of your image, video, audio, or any combination of the three by the SME Forum on behalf of the membership.