2026 Agenda
9:00–10:00
Registration
James Moore Theater
Live Music with M’Gilvry Allen
10:00–10:15
James Moore Theater
Welcome
Opening Remarks
Welcome to the Snafu Conference!
Robin Zander, Executive Director
10:15–10:45
James Moore Theater
Opening KeyNote
Sales as Service: An Immersive Experience
Robin Zander
Executive Director, Snafu Conference
In this interactive opening keynote, Robin Zander reframes sales as an act of service — the practice of helping the right people make clear, aligned decisions. Through a series of fast-moving, immersive group exercises, you’ll experience what ethical influence actually feels like, and not just in theory.
11:00–12:00
Breakouts
James Moore Theater
Coaching is Selling: How To Unlock Human Potential
Jeff Jaworski, Ex- Sales Executive, Google
Founder, The Shift Coaching
Marie Szuts, Ex- Chief People Officer, Figma
Founder, Marie Szuts Coaching & Consulting
Jeff Jaworski will join Marie Szuts in a fireside-style conversation exploring the intersection of coaching and sales. Drawing on decades of experience building Google’s global sales coaching program and leading teams to peak performance, Jeff will highlight how coaching principles can enhance sales execution—and how sales realities can sharpen coaching practices.
This session will reveal how empathy, guidance, and connection fuel both individual and team performance. Attendees will leave with practical strategies for coaching others, improving influence, and applying human-centered principles to leadership and sales alike.
Women’s Board Lecture Hall
Everything Is Sales (and It’s Really Quite Simple)
David Shackelford
Head of Product, Enterprise and Platform
Asana
David will debut a new talk on the often-unstated reality inside every company: decisions don’t move forward on logic alone. They move through people — through alignment, persuasion, and the ability to earn support.
David challenges the assumption that politics is a distraction. Instead, he frames it as a skill: a way of working that turns good ideas into shared priorities.
California Room
How To Raise Money: Systems, Stories, and Relationships
Eric Bahn
Co-founder and General Partner, Hustle Fund
Eric Bahn will pull back the curtain on fundraising as a sales discipline. In this workshop, he’ll show the tactical processes he uses to raise capital from LPs, recruit team members, and convince startups to partner with Hustle Fund—all while keeping relationships human and high-performing. Eric will share real stories, including how he recruited his first LP, the dentist who helped kick off Fund One.
Attendees will gain a rare look at venture capital as sales in practice, learning actionable techniques for pitching, relationship-building, and consistent follow-ups. This session is perfect for anyone who wants to understand the mechanics of selling without compromising integrity or connection.
12:00-1:30
Garden
Lunch
Enjoy lunch in the garden, but expect a few surprises!
1:30-2:30
Breakouts
James Moore Theater
Relationship-Driven Selling: A Father-Son Fireside Chat
Dan Cavenaugh
Market Maker, Accenture
Jackson Cavenaugh
Senior Sales Development, Snowflake
Dan Cavenaugh will bring over 35 years of experience building trust-based partnerships at Accenture, where he helped open the Silicon Valley market and led sales for companies including Google and Meta. He knows firsthand that the best business outcomes are rooted in relationships, not pressure or quick wins.
Joining him on stage is his son, Jackson Cavenaugh, Sales Development Lead at Snowflake, who manages hundreds of conversations a day to drive meetings and opportunities. Together, they’ll explore two very different perspectives on sales — one seasoned and strategic, the other fast-paced and operational — in a family fireside-style conversation.
Women’s Board Lecture Hall
Non-Sales Selling: Building Community to Drive Impact
Ha Nguyen
Founder, NextStep Consulting
Former Chief Experience Officer, Swimply
Ha Nguyen will explore how community can be used as a tool for influence and growth. She will share her methods for operationalizing startup communities to foster collaboration, recruit talent, and achieve business outcomes without relying on traditional sales tactics.
The session will highlight the principles of trust, shared purpose, and engagement that make community-driven approaches effective. Attendees will leave with actionable frameworks for building and leveraging communities to generate tangible results.
California Room
Authenticity at Work: Lessons from Experience
Mandy Mooney
Vice President, Internal Communications, Prologis
Mandy will explore how to show up authentically while driving engagement and impact, sharing insights from her career in global communications and from her upcoming book, Corporating. She’ll discuss frameworks for building culture, influencing teams, and amplifying your voice—helping professionals stand out without compromising who they are.
Through personal anecdotes, interactive discussion, and her signature theatrical flair, Mandy demonstrates how authenticity, creativity, and strategy intersect to unlock engagement and inspire action. Attendees will leave with practical tools to communicate more effectively, build stronger relationships, and start thinking about navigating their careers with confidence and purpose.
2:45-3:45
Breakouts
James Moore Theater
Unapologetically You: Sharing Your Story Online
Danielle Strachman
Co-founder and General Partner, 1517
Niels Hoven
Founder, Mentava
Danielle Strachman will lead an interactive fishbowl session with Niels Hoven, and two additional founders navigating the digital spotlight. She’ll discuss how to share your story online authentically, build a reputation without losing yourself, and leverage social platforms for impact. Participants can actively engage, ask questions, and offer insights in this dynamic format.
This session explores the highs, lows, and unexpected lessons of putting yourself out there. Attendees will walk away with actionable strategies for storytelling, audience engagement, and staying true to themselves in a fast-moving online world.
Women’s Board Lecture Hall
Selling Through Community: Lessons from a VC Playbook
Robby Peters
Co-founder, SemperVirens Venture Capital
Robby Peters will share his playbook for selling—first as a Sequoia team member, then as a founder of PeopleTech Partners, and now as a venture capitalist. He’ll explore the principles of community-based selling, showing how building networks and facilitating connections between entrepreneurs and CHROs can create value for both sides.
Attendees will leave with actionable strategies for using community, relationships, and structured processes to drive sales, influence, and growth. Robby’s session highlights that selling is not just transactional—it’s about connecting people, creating trust, and delivering mutual benefit.
4:15-5:00
James Moore Theater
Closing Keynote
The Art of Asking: Learn to Sell Like Yourself
Robin Zander
Executive Director, Snafu Conference
Most of us were never taught how to ask clearly — without shrinking, posturing, or trying to control the outcome.
In this closing interactive session, Robin Zander reframes closing as a practice of respect for the other person’s autonomy, attention, and boundaries.
This session ties together experiments, language, and lived experiences from throughout the conference to help you apply what you’ve learned going forward.
5:00-7:00
Mad Oak Bar and Grill