The IMEX Frankfurt 2026 edition of Association Focus, the dedicated day of learning, connection and strategic insight for association planners, will emphasize purpose-driven leadership, the transformative impact of AI, and the evolving role of events in a rapidly-changing world.

The education program will take place on Monday, May 18 – the day before the opening of the trade show – at Kap Europa. It is organized in collaboration with ASAE and sponsored by Amsterdam Convention Bureau.

With membership retention and engagement still the number one challenge for association professionals (according to ASAE’s Insight Update report), Sofya Abramchuk, co-founder of the Originate Institute and advisor at the Gaudi World Foundation, will open with a keynote exploring how revisiting an association’s mission—its “origin story”—can ultimately help strengthen relationships and fuel business growth.

Toby Bassford, founder and managing director of change management consultancy Tillon, delivers the second keynote around AI and the future of work. He’ll demonstrate how rapidly advancing AI tools can support rather than disrupt, empowering staff to reclaim time for higher‑value work and restoring a sense of purpose.

Two tailored tracks for association leaders and planners

A dedicated track for association leaders examines how associations can harness AI as a strategic advantage. Hosted by ASAE president & CEO Michelle Mason and Amy Hissrich, ASAE’s vice-president, International Affairs Global Operations, sessions include a dive into the role of AI to help drive member engagement and revenue diversification.

“Associations today face continuous disruption, tighter margins and rising expectations,” explains Mason. “Resilience means more than managing through change; it means using tools like AI strategically to extend our reach, improve efficiency and personalize engagement. The real task for association leaders now is to move beyond experimentation and adopt AI intentionally, in ways that strengthen mission, governance and long-term sustainability.”

The track for association planners – curated by Martin Sirk, owner of Sirk Serendipity – offers a practical look at how to embed societal impact into event design and secure stakeholder buy‑in along the way. A crowd‑sourced segment on future‑focused event practices invites attendees to share in advance the new innovations, experiments, or interesting strategic changes their associations have introduced into their events over the past few years.

Sirk shares more detail: “With the help of our pre-event survey, we’ll be giving association innovators a chance to showcase what’s new and impressive at their events—in only 90 seconds each! Attendees will also be all hands-on-deck during our provocative take on what networking really is all about, led by meeting design guru Bo Krüger, and we’ll be helping associations identify their own unique ‘impact-opportunities’ in a workshop-style session led by Meet4Impact’s Genevieve Leclerc.”

IMEX Frankfurt runs May 19-21, 2026 at Messe Frankfurt.