The Most

AWAITED

Conference of the Year

July 31, 2026 | 7:00am - 4:00pm

ELEVATE | Next Level Leadership is the most anticipated leadership experience of the year, built for leaders who refuse to plateau. This is where high-performing leaders come to sharpen their leadership, to strengthen their emotional resilience, to expand their influence, and to move with strategy, not stress.

On July 31, 2026, the most powerful entrepreneurs, executives, and emerging leaders will be at VEA Newport Beach — A Marriott Resort & Spa from 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM, then Party with a Purpose.‍ ‍

If you are ready to have bold conversations, command rooms, make powerful decisions, and elevate how you lead at work and at home, you belong here.

Last year set the standard. This year, we are raising the bar.

ELEVATE

Next Level Leadership

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Sponsorship

What is ELEVATE?

It’s a full-circle collision with your highest self. You’re not just attending, you’re STEPPING into POWER.

ELEVATE

has been described as first class, elite, life-changing, and unlike anything Orange County has experienced, because it is built with precision and led with power.

This one-day, five-star leadership experience is designed for those who lead hard, live big, and love deep, but need space to refocus, recharge, and reignite.

Born from over a decade of impact through Leadership in Heels, this conference is one of Orange County’s most explosive, best-in-class events that brings together powerful minds, bold voices, and change-agents across every industry.

Expect to Experience:

A five-star curated experience designed for leaders who expect excellence.
Unfiltered conversations from dynamic leaders who are building, scaling and deciding.
Breakthrough strategies for life, leadership, and legacy.
Breakout Sessions that deliver strategy you can execute immediately.
A dynamic panel of experts that strengthens the internal leadership most people ignore, mind, body and soul.
A keynote that will shift the trajectory of your life.
The Signature Party with a Purpose, where collaboration turns into opportunity.

ELEVATE is the culmination of over 10 years of service, transformation, and leadership through the nonprofit Leadership in Heels (LIH), a 501(c)(3) organization committed to developing high-performing leaders from every walk of life.

Here’s what the net proceeds of your ticket, sponsorship, or support help empower:

Leadership training and scholarships for underserved women and emerging leaders
Entrepreneurial and financial literacy and mastery programs
Empowerment for survivors of abuse, human trafficking, and injustice
Mental and emotional resilience workshops for youth and adults
Holistic coaching and mentorship for leaders rebuilding their lives
Confidence Camp for the next generation of leaders

Real Impact. Real People. Real Transformation. Over 10,000 lives served. And we’re just getting started!

What to Expect on the Day?

CHAMPAGNE BREAKFAST ON THE LAWN with trailblazing women and influential leaders from across the country for intentional networking, inspiration, and clarity.
Transformational Sessions that Shift lives. Every session is designed to meet you where you’re and take you where you’re destined to go. Designed to dismantle your doubts and ignite your next mov.
Hear from Powerhouse Panelists and speakers who don’t just speak to success, they embody it.
THE UNSHAKEABLE CODE | Scharrell Jackson Unleashes her brand new Keynote. There comes a moment where leadership isn’t learned, it’s embodied. The Unshakeable Code™ isn’t theory. It’s a strategy. It’s legacy. It’s the standard for how powerful women lead, live, and rise without apology.
This is executive truth-telling and full-blown personal ignition that is raw, unfiltered, and life-altering. Scharrell Jackson is unlocking the Unshakeable Code that pierces through hesitation and calls every woman to decide with clarity, lead with conviction, and live unshakably aligned. This is not inspiration. It’s a full-blown activation of the woman who refuses to shrink, settle, or stand still. Raw. Bold. Unfiltered. This keynote will shake foundations, shift mindsets, and call every woman to rise in power, own her presence, and build a legacy that cannot be erased. History doesn’t remember the silent. It remembers the Unshakeable.
Be a part of the 2nd Annual Victoria Collins Woman of Impact Awards: Power & Profit, Heart & Hustle, Love & Legacy.
Party with a Purpose | Where Purpose Meets Celebration!

After the fire of the day….We Party with a Purpose

When the conference ends, the connection begins. Join us for an elevated celebration designed for collaboration, community, and next-level relationships, featuring music, cocktails, heavy hors d’oeuvres, and the energy that makes ELEVATE legendary.

ELEVATE attendees may bring an invited guest.

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SPONSOR EVENT

AWARD NOMINATION

Our Speakers

Built for the Bold

Redefining Success, Power and Leadership — with Martha Daniel

Success isn't scripted — it's forged in fire. This session dismantles limits and unveils how life's hardest moments become the launchpad to your greatest elevation, leading with Gratitude, Unity, Trustworthiness, and Spirituality.

Discover how to turn adversity into authority, pain into purpose, and breakdowns into bottom-line impact — an invitation to own your evolution and lead with excellence that multiplies.

Martha Daniel is Founder & CEO of Information Management Resources, Inc. (IMRI), a nationally recognized cybersecurity firm that has secured more than $400 million in contract awards. An award-winning entrepreneur and #1 international bestselling author of You Gotta Have G.U.T.S., she was named one of the White House's "10 Women Veteran Champions of Change."

YOU’LL WALK AWAY WITH

Adversity as advantage

Leading from lived wisdom

Turning Obstacles into Strategy

Power Under Pressure

The Leadership Advantage — with Dr. Kumkum Patel

Your body is not separate from your leadership. Dr. Kumkum Patel helps women understand why health, nervous system, sleep, and energy are the foundation required to lead at the next level — the next level cannot be sustained in a depleted body.

Dr. Kumkum Patel is a double board-certified gastroenterologist and women's gut-brain-hormone health expert who built a thriving concierge practice with three Orange County locations.

YOU’LL WALK AWAY WITH

Biology’s role in leadership

Strategies to regulate under pressure

Health as infrastructure, not maintenance

The Pivot

Power, Change and the Courage to Shift — a panel conversation

Change is not the enemy — staying stuck in what no longer fits is. Jocelyn King, Michelle Chen, and Janine McClintock bring a dynamic conversation on fear, reinvention, disruption, technology, and the courage required to move differently.

Jocelyn King speaks to digital safety, cyber awareness, and future-readiness. Michelle Chen brings the executive and business-transformation lens. Janine McClintock brings leadership execution and communication. Spring Eatmon brings the wisdom of transforming life’s greatest disruptions into purpose-driven leadership.

YOU’LL WALK AWAY WITH

A new relationship with fear

Tools for uncertain decisions

Permission to pivot without shame

Undaunted

Capacity, Clarity and the Courage to Lead Without Losing Yourself

This is the conversation women need but rarely give themselves permission to have.

UNDAUNTED is not about burnout as a buzzword.

It is about the real pressure of carrying leadership, career, family, caregiving, parenting, relationships, community, digital noise, social media, self-talk, and the emotional weight of trying to hold everything together.

Michelle Chen, Nadra Williams, Shelby Long, and Dr. Jas Tighman will bring a powerful, honest, and deeply necessary conversation about what it means to lead without losing yourself.

This is for the woman who is still showing up — but knows something has to change.

YOU’LL WALK AWAY WITH

Language for the invisible load

Recognizing digital-noise overload

Support over self-abandonment

The Power of Intention

Junior Leadership Voice — with Avery Crumrine

At ELEVATE, the next generation will not simply be talked about.

They will be heard.

In The Power of Intention, Avery Crumrine will remind us that leadership begins long before a title. It begins in how we choose to show up, how we treat people, how we make decisions, and how we use our influence.

This is a powerful junior leadership moment that speaks to the future we are building.

YOU’LL WALK AWAY WITH

Bold, intentional leadership

Ignite future leaders

Next-generation purpose

Leading with Empathy

Seen, Heard and Still Rising — with Ava Joyce Hammond

Ava’s message will remind every adult in the room that young people are carrying more than we often realize.

In Leading With Empathy, she will speak about youth mental health, social media pressure, loss, suicide, peer leadership, and the courage to listen.

This is one of the reasons ELEVATE matters.

Because the next generation does not just need motivation.

They need leaders who will listen, engage, guide, and create spaces where they can rise.

YOU’LL WALK AWAY WITH

Deeper youth mental insight

Empathetic, caring leadership

Safe spaces for youth

She Decided

The Rise of the Unshakeable Woman: Next Level Leadership

with International Keynote Speaker, Global Executive Coach, Author, and CEO of Leadership in Heels — Scharrell Jackson

This is the moment where the room shifts.

In She Decided | The Rise of the Unshakeable Woman, Scharrell Jackson will deliver the keynote that calls every woman in the room to decide.

Not later.
Not when life gets easier.
Not when fear gets quieter.
Not when everyone understands.

Now.

Because the next level is not waiting on permission.

It is waiting on a decision.

YOU’LL WALK AWAY WITH

Unshakeable leadership standards

Decisive, fearless execution

Clear next-level identity

Victoria Collins

Women of Impact Awards

She doesn’t just show up, she SHIFTS rooms

In honor of the late Victoria Collins, an extraordinary leader, mentor, and catalyst for Leadership in Heels, we proudly introduce the Victoria Collins Woman of Impact Awards. The Women of Impact Awards honor extraordinary women who are redefining power in leadership, service, business, advocacy, and community. Nominate the woman who leads with strength, walks with vision, and inspires legacy.

Award Categories

POWER & PROFIT: Impact Through Business

Celebrating a woman who has redefined leadership, shattered ceilings, and created extraordinary impact through business and entrepreneurship.

HEART & HUSTLE: Impact through Community

Recognizing a woman whose devotion to service has ignited change, uplifted communities, and left an undeniable mark on the lives of others.

LOVE & LEGACY: Impact through Family

Honoring a woman who has selflessly shaped lives, nurtured futures, and created a lasting legacy through the power of love, influence, and family.

Nomination Deadline: All nominations must be submitted by June 15, 2026, at midnight Pacific Time. Nomination forms must be submitted by the deadline.

Selection Announcement: Award recipients will be honored at ELEVATE | Next Level Leadership on July 31, 2026, at VEA Newport Beach. Nominees must be present to win and receive the award.

Every name submitted is more than a candidate; it’s a reflection of the impact we believe in, the leadership we celebrate, and the future we’re building through Leadership in Heels. We are deeply grateful for your voice in this process. Thank you for helping us honor the women who are changing the world, one bold step at a time.

Submit Your 2026 Nominations