Why We Attend Ignite: Business Leaders Share Thoughts on Conference’s Impact
There are hundreds of stories of people who have learned, grown and shaped their business and Sheridan County community through the annual Ignite Conference over the last decade.
From receiving advice on maintaining priorities to learning new marketing tools, the benefits of Ignite are endless and difficult to fully capture in a short article. But we’ve tried to capture a few of them with the help of some local business leaders and longtime conference attendees.
Read their stories below and get excited for the 11th annual conference coming to the Ramada Plaza on May 19!
Why do you attend the Ignite conference?
Cody Sinclair, Chief Development Officer, Sheridan Memorial Hospital and Sheridan Memorial Hospital Foundation: The Ignite Conference is a great place to network and learn new skills to improve your business.
Ryan Gregory, Chief Clarity Officer, Resilient Guides: Investing in local development for your business is a smart and economical choice, allowing you to gain valuable insights and skills without the time and expense of traveling for lengthy conferences.
Danae Brandjord, Owner, Epiphany: I attend Ignite to network with other businesses and learn tips and techniques from others that I may not have known.
Wanda Kerns, Owner, Expressions Art Gallery and Framing: To increase my ability to run a good business. I love to learn more strategies for marketing, efficiency, leadership, budgeting, planning to scale and exit strategies.
What do you see as the benefit or value of the conference, for both your personal professional development and your business?
Chad Reed, Branch Manager, WWC Engineering: For me personally, aside from the networking, it’s a great opportunity to pick up new ideas around leadership and communication. From a WWC standpoint, it helps us bring back practical takeaways that improve how we manage projects, support our team and work with clients.
Brandjord: (In addition to myself,) I like to send staff to the conference as well. It empowers them to think outside the box, make suggestions and gets them out of the office for a day. I also like to think about things from different perspectives, and this event is helpful for this.
Stephanie Ellis, Alumni and Communications Director, Sheridan College Foundation: The value of Ignite, both personally and professionally, comes from being able to walk away with something tangible. I always learn something new that I can bring back and apply — whether that’s with my team, my coworkers or the students I work with. It pushes me to think differently and try new approaches.
Kerns: Each instructor’s specific experience is great to learn from. I really appreciate that the classes are offered locally and that travel expenses and time are not a big factor in getting to go. The local experience (provided by the speakers) is also precious as they are familiar with our economy and demographics and can guide us with realistic solutions for our area.
What is something that you’ve learned at a past Ignite conference that you’ve implemented in your business?
Sinclair: We’ve continued to work on our retention around many different topics presented at the conference, but I recall getting great information on stay interviews in particular.
Gregory: The most significant impact I experienced was from a keynote presentation delivered by Jen (Crouse) at Sheridan College (Foundation), which focused on the importance of maintaining one’s priorities. The insights shared during this session were remarkably influential.
Ellis: One of the biggest takeaways I’ve implemented is strengthening my leadership style, especially in how I connect with and support students. I’ve also been able to bring in speakers from the conference to share their knowledge directly with our students, which has been incredibly impactful. There’s something special about learning from people within our own community.
Tiffany Ash, Owner, Powder River Party Rentals : I implemented Pinterest into our social media strategy following a previous session.
What is the value of having a conference like this here in Sheridan County?
Reed: Having Ignite here locally is huge. It brings in speakers and sessions focused on how people lead, communicate and work effectively together without having to leave Sheridan. It also helps strengthen the business community by bringing people together across industries and giving them ideas they can take back and use.
Kerns: Having the workshops offered locally is really valuable to me. The cost of missing two days of business is nothing compared to flying to Las Vegas or even traveling to Cheyenne where meals and hotels and transportation are also a factor along with missing multiple days of work for travel time alone.
Ash: There is immense value in having this event locally. Sheridan is home to many business owners and professionals with unique talents and having a platform to share that knowledge helps drive the progression and continued growth of our community.
Ellis: Having a conference like Ignite here in Sheridan County is so valuable. It really highlights the strength of our community — people want to see each other succeed, and they’re willing to share ideas, support one another and grow together. That’s what makes this place so special.
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The 2026 Ignite Conference will be held Tuesday, May 19, 2026 at the Ramada Plaza. For more information, visit https://sheridanwyomingchamber.org/programs-events/ignite-conference/.
Registration costs $175 for chamber members and $210 for non-chamber members. Additional registrations from the same company will receive a $10 discount per registration. Your registration includes five breakout sessions, morning and breaktime refreshments, lunch and bonus keynote and wrap-up sessions.
For any questions, contact the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce at 307-672-2485 or email info@sheridanwyomingchamber.org.
