Invest: Raleigh-Durham puts the Triangle’s future on stage
Key points:
- • caa will launch the fourth edition of Invest: Raleigh-Durham on Oct. 20, convening regional business, education, technology, finance, and transportation leaders.
- • Three panels will address the Triangle’s development model, education-to-career pipeline, and ability to turn research into commercial growth.
- • Executives will examine the systems that determine whether the region can convert talent and innovation into durable, inclusive scale.
October 2026 — caa will convene senior business, education, technology, finance, and transportation leaders at the Invest: Raleigh-Durham 4th Edition Leadership Summit + Report Launch on Tuesday, Oct. 20. The Raleigh-Durham leadership summit will put the region’s talent pipeline, research economy, and infrastructure capacity under one roof as executives assess what sustained growth requires next.
Join us at the Invest: Raleigh-Durham 4th Edition Leadership Summit! This premier event brings together hundreds of Raleigh-Durham’s business and regional leaders to discuss the challenges and opportunities for businesses and investors. Buy your ticket now!
The event runs from 8:00 a.m. to noon at Embassy Suites by Hilton Raleigh Durham Research Triangle in Cary. It marks the launch of the fourth edition of caa’s Invest: Raleigh-Durham report, which examines the people, institutions, and investments shaping one of North Carolina’s most important economic centers.
The agenda opens with a fireside chat with Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell, followed by an assessment of how the Triangle can align growth with the assets that built its reputation: talent, technology, and research. It then turns to the education leaders who prepare the region’s workforce and the innovation institutions that help bring ideas to market.
Growth systems under pressure
The opening panel, “The Next Triangle: Transforming the region as talent, technology, and sustainable development converge,” features Cheryl Richards, President and CEO of Catapult Employers Association, as moderator.
Nicole Sheedy, City Sales Manager at Delta Air Lines; Joe Milazzo, Executive Director of the Regional Transportation Alliance; Marq Conley, Market Leader at Verizon; and Brian Reid, President — Triangle, at TowneBank, will join Richards. Their conversation will focus on the relationships among connectivity, business investment, access to talent, and responsible development.
As the region expands across county lines, connectivity and transportation shape more than commutes. They affect recruiting radius, attendance, real estate decisions, and employers’ ability to connect staff with customers, suppliers, and research partners — while testing whether the Triangle can grow without sacrificing speed, quality of life, or institutional coordination.
From education to enterprise
The second panel, “Curiosity to Career: How education is shaping purpose, perspective, and potential,” brings together Kori Mackall, Head of School at The Piedmont School and John Yowell Academy, as presenter. Abby Lindenberg, Founder and CEO of caa, will moderate a discussion with Michael Ulku-Steiner, Head of School at Durham Academy; Adam Holden, Head of School at Saint Mary’s School; and Jami Woods, President of Wilson Community College.
The group will examine education as an economic operating system, not a separate social issue. Schools and colleges influence the skills, expectations, and career awareness that employers encounter years later. The panel will bring a leadership perspective to the same imperative: connect learning more closely to opportunity while preserving purpose and access.
From research to results
“Where Ideas Take Root: How Raleigh-Durham is turning talent and research into transformation” will close the program. April Bogard Pinder, CEO of Cranfill Sumner LLP, will present the panel, and Richard Warr, Associate Dean for Faculty and Research at NC State University’s Poole College of Management, will moderate.
Mike Carnes, Vice President of Emerging Company Development at NCBiotech; Bonita Brown, Chancellor of Winston-Salem State University; and Zac Schnell, President of Pamlico Community College, will join the conversation. Their discussion will focus on the pathway from research to companies, jobs, and broader regional impact.
That pathway will define the next chapter of Raleigh-Durham’s growth. Executives should watch how employers formalize education partnerships, how institutions support commercialization, and how infrastructure investment keeps pace with the movement of people and ideas.
Honoring the Triangle’s impact
The summit concludes with the caa Business Leadership & Innovation Awards, presented by the NC State University Poole College of Management. Four awards will recognize the leaders and institutions strengthening the Triangle’s economy: the Professional Services Leadership Award, honoring organizations that deliver expertise, innovation, and measurable value across the region’s business landscape; the Healthcare Advancement Award, recognizing leaders and institutions improving care, access, and health-sector innovation; the Excellence in Development Award, celebrating projects and leaders that advance thoughtful, sustainable growth; and the Legacy & Impact Award, honoring individuals or organizations whose long-term leadership has shaped Raleigh-Durham’s economic and civic future.
As Invest: Raleigh-Durham enters its fourth edition, caa is helping to sharpen the region’s identity as a center for research, talent, and business innovation. For investors and executives tracking where capital, talent, and institutional partnerships will shape the Triangle’s next phase of growth, the award categories spotlight the leadership and outcomes the Raleigh-Durham business community aims to advance.
Registration and event details are available at the Invest: Raleigh-Durham 4th Edition Leadership Summit + Report Launch event page. For media and sponsor inquiries, contact Lauren Nikides-Heacox at lnikides@capitalaa.com or (305) 824.2618.
Want more? Read the Invest: Raleigh-Durham report.
