The Advancement Foundation Virginia Innovation Accelerator and AFCEA Rockbridge Shenandoah Chapter will co-host a networking event on “AI in Business and Workforce Development” on Monday, Oct. 19.
The event will run from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the VIA at 245 W. 21st St., Buena Vista. Admission is free.
The program will bring together cybersecurity experts, academia, artificial intelligence specialists, and community leaders for an evening of keynote presentations, expert questions and answers, and open networking. The event is designed to serve IT professionals, small business owners, nonprofit organizations, government, federal and state contractors, technology entrepreneurs, and all those with a professional or strategic interest in the rapidly evolving fields of artificial intelligence and modern workforce development.
A defining theme of this year’s event is “AI for Small Business Workforce Transformation” — a timely examination of how small and mid-sized enterprises can harness artificial intelligence to modernize workforce operations, drive productivity, and sustain competitiveness in an accelerating digital economy while also building digital resilience.
Five speakers will be featured, including Dr. Hank Costa, a cyber technology researcher consultant who will discuss “AI in Cyber Workforce Development: Risks, Opportunities, and the New Career Arc.”
Tom Perry, founder and CEO for VG Systems, will speak on “AI as a Leadership Amplifier: Humanizing Internal Communications,” while George Neighbors, principal with X-Roads Advisory, will discuss how leaders and teams in transition can harness AI as a co-pilot for coaching, career navigation, and professional growth, without losing the human edge that matters most.
Ellen Runno, deployment strategist with GovSignals, will detail how artificial intelligence is transforming the government contracting pursuit lifecycle — from opportunity identification and capture planning to proposal development and submission.
And the fifth keynote speaker, Curt Wilbur, president, of AI Advantage, will speak on “AI for Small Business Workforce Transformation.”
