By Dana Williams, CPSM | senior marketing manager, Hyder Construction | conference chair, SMPS SWRC 2026
The theme wasn’t planned. It was discovered.
Last summer, a group of AEC marketing and business development professionals sat around a table at an SMPS event, trying to land on a theme for the 2026 Southwest Regional Conference. Conference Chair Dana Williams, CPSM, senior marketing manager at Hyder Construction, had pages of ideas. Nothing felt quite right — until the conversation turned to something more honest.
“We reflected on how much had changed. There was a time in our careers when maybe we weren’t getting everything done, but we at least had a concept of what could be done. Today, technology is changing. Roles are changing. Expectations are changing. It’s an exciting time to be a marketing and business development professional — but it’s also a scary time.”
Someone suggested a Yeti. The room laughed. But the more they talked, the more they realized the Yeti wasn’t the point — the Yeti was pointing the way. Mythical, unfamiliar, strange. A reminder that everyone at that table was navigating territory without a map.
Somewhere in that conversation, Uncharted was born.
“The theme didn’t come from one person,” Williams says. “Or from AI. It came from a group of marketers talking through the challenges and opportunities facing our profession and charting a path forward together.”
Join Us in Denver, September 16–18
The 2026 SMPS Southwest Regional Conference — Uncharted — gathers AEC marketing and business development professionals from across the Southwest region for three days of keynotes, sessions, hands-on workshops, and the kind of conversations that don’t happen over email.
This year’s program was built around a simple premise: when the terrain is unfamiliar, you need guides, not just directions. Every speaker and session was selected to help attendees navigate uncertainty — through practical tools, fresh perspectives, and hard-earned lessons from people who’ve been in the same terrain.
Opening Keynote: Navigating Change with Clarity
Skot Waldron | communication strategist, author, podcast host | GiANT
Most people aren’t actually change-averse. What looks like resistance is usually something more personal — fear of the unknown, fear of losing competence, fear of what change says about them. Communication strategist and leadership coach Skot Waldron opens the conference Thursday morning with a keynote on how to move through change with clarity and confidence, reduce friction within teams, and turn uncertainty into forward momentum. His central argument: successful change management isn’t a technology problem. It’s a trust and communication problem — and those are things every person in the room already has the capacity to work on.
Closing Keynote: Lessons from the Roof of Africa
Stacy Stout | founding principal, BRANDiac Strategies
Dena Wyatt | president, Marketing Evolutions, Inc.
Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro — the world’s tallest free-standing mountain — turned out to be about more than reaching a summit. For Stacy Stout and Dena Wyatt, the journey revealed that the principles that carried them to the top of Africa are the same ones that define exceptional leadership. Their closing keynote brings vivid storytelling and practical insight to questions every AEC leader is navigating: How do you lead when the path isn’t clear? What does a high-performing team actually look like under pressure? And what happens when you discover that careers — like mountains — are a lattice, not a ladder?
Two Tracks. One Journey.
The main conference program runs Thursday and Friday, September 17–18, across two tracks designed to meet attendees where they are.
The Seeker Track is built for those looking to expand their thinking — exploring new ideas, emerging tools, leadership development, and the big-picture questions shaping the profession. Sessions cover topics including AI and communication, professional identity, firm differentiation, and strategic storytelling.
The Trailblazer Track goes deep on craft and execution — practical, skills-forward sessions for marketers and BD professionals ready to sharpen their tools and improve their workflows. Topics include client relationship strategy, proposal development, CRM optimization, and more.
Pre-Conference Learning Labs: September 16
Before the main conference begins, the Uncharted Pre-Conference Learning Labs offer a full day of hands-on Adobe InDesign training — available as a standalone, separately ticketed experience. You don’t need to be registered for the full conference to attend. For Colorado-based AEC marketing professionals, this is a rare opportunity to access expert-led professional development right in Denver.
Morning | InDesign: Back to Basics
Alex Mielke & Jessica Richards, JP Cullen
Core tools, layout fundamentals, styles, and efficiency workflows — a stronger foundation you’ll use immediately.
Afternoon | Design with the Lines (of Styles)
Julie Shaffer, FSMPS, CPSM — Shaffer Creative
An advanced deep dive into Paragraph, Character, Object, and Table Styles — how to carry your firm’s brand through every document and dramatically reduce manual editing time.
Sun Deck Social
Join us Thursday evening, September 17, for the Sun Deck Social — an outdoor networking reception with views of the Denver skyline. It’s the kind of gathering that reminds you why showing up in person still matters. The Sun Deck Social is an optional add-on to conference registration.
Register for Uncharted 2026
The 2026 SMPS Southwest Regional Conference takes place September 16–18 in Denver. Registration is open now. Learning Labs and Conference Registration are separate and must be completed in two transactions.
