The Center for Governance and Markets and the School of Business at the University of Pittsburgh are offering a no-charge educational conference to help small business owners develop their succession plans and preserve the legacies they have worked so hard to build.
Small businesses are vital to our community — employing neighbors, anchoring business districts, and sustaining relationships with customers, suppliers, and partners built over many years. This conference is designed to help protect everything they have created.
This isn’t just a day of lectures. It’s a tactical workshop where owners can:
- Listen to business owners who transitioned their companies share their experiences.
- Explore planning tools to better understand your succession options.
- Develop strategies to protect your biggest financial asset and provide for your family’s future.
- Talk with service providers to understand the legal, financial and other assistance available.
- Better understand the full range of legacy-focused succession pathways, including employee ownership, purpose trusts, multistakeholder partnerships and main street business legacy planning.
Who should attend
- Owners of small businesses
- Family members of small businesses
- Nonprofits
- Foundations
- Regional governments
- Financial institutions
Schedule
Keynote Speaker
Confirmed Panelists
- Mayor Corey O’Connor
- Joe Massaro and Joel Burstein, Beam Collaborative
- Kim Snyder, New Normal Advisors
- Kevin McPhillips, PA Center for Employee Ownership
- Albert Ciuksza, Solutions 21
- Ron Gaydos, Keystone Development Center
- Sonali Kothari, Zolidar IQ
- Chris Gassman, University of Pittsburgh Center for Sustainable Business
- Patrick Gallagher, Management Science Associates
Registration closes on May 1, 2026
Register here. Must register to attend.
Questions? Email us!Â