Below you will find important information and step-by-step instructions to help you prepare for go-live and beyond
Date(s)
October 26th & 27th 2026
Venue
Rogers Place | 10220 104 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T5J 0H6
| OCTOBER 25th |
| Arrival to Edmonton |
| OCTOBER 26th | ||
| Time | Session | Speaker |
| 8:00 – 8:35 AM | Breakfast | ALL |
| 8:35 – 8:45: AM | Value Story | Karl Ducasi, Hospitality Manager |
| 8:45 – 9:30 AM | Welcome | Angela Grottoli, COO |
| Vision 2030 & Setting the Course for Hospitality Excellence | Farid Damji, Co-Founder & Principal Handoff to Ali, Nat, Angela, Lauren, and Karim for UH Conference Presenter Summaries | |
| Intro of Speaker | Karim Kassam, Co-Founder & Principal | |
| 9:30 – 10:30 AM | The Business of Belonging: Building a Culture of Exceptional Hospitality | Mo Jessa, Earls |
| 10:30 – 10:45 AM | Break | |
| 10:45 – 10:50 AM | Intro to Optima Way | Farid Damji, Co-Founder & Principal |
| 10:50 – 11:50 AM | The Optima Way: Let Us Welcome You Home | Todd Ketteringham, Senior Director, Operations Marie Concepcion, Regional Operations Manager |
| 11:50 – 12:35 PM | Hospitality Excellence Framework and Unreasonable Hospitality | Rajeev Arora, Director Hospitality Bhushan Negi, Regional Manager, Hospitality Ryan Marvin, Operations Co-op (Hospitality) |
| 12:35 – 1:35 PM | Lunch | |
| 1:35 – 2:35 PM | Stronger Together: Leadership, Teamwork and a Culture of Service | Drew Coles, President N49 |
| 2:35 – 2:40 PM | Wrap-Up | |
| OCTOBER 27th | ||
| Time | Session | Description |
| 8:00 – 8:30 AM | Breakfast | |
| 8:30 – 8:45 AM | Value Story | Nitin Sachdeva, Food Services Manager |
| 8:50 – 9:00 AM | Opening | Nimeera Shamji, Head of Resident Services |
| 9:00 – 10:00 AM | More Time for What Matters: Creating Kitchen Efficiencies That Elevate the Resident Experience | Letitia Rowley, Nutritional Resource Centre Manager at Gordon Food Service |
| 10:00 – 10:25 AM | NAT Presentation | |
| 10:25 – 10:40 AM | Break | |
| 10:40 – 11:25 AM | SPARK: Your Wellness Your Way | Rajeev Arora, Director Hospitality Bhushan Negi, Regional Manager, Hospitality Ryan Marvin, Operations Co-op (Hospitality) |
| 11:25 AM – 12:25 PM | SPARK Lunch | |
| 12:25 – 1:25 PM | One Team, One Goal: Lessons in Leadership, Performance and Culture | A surprise hockey guest shares lessons on teamwork, leadership, performance, and culture. |
| 1:25 – 1:35 PM | Hockey Hall of Fame | |
| 1:45 – 1:55 PM | Value Story | |
| 1:55 – 3:15 PM | Optima Hospitality Shark Tank | General Managers Food Services Manager Residents |
| 3:15 – 3:45 PM | Commitments, Awards & Closing Remarks | |
