Date/Time

October 17, 2025 | 9:00 AM - 3:30 PM ET

Location

Kossiakoff Center

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory

11100 Johns Hopkins Road

Laurel, MD 20723

Event Agenda:

9:00 am—10:00 am: Registration, Networking, & Vendor Tables Open (Continental Breakfast Provided)

10:00 am—10:15 am: Welcome & Announcements

10:15 am—11:15 am: Keynote Sessions

Elevating the Customer Experience: A Holistic Approach, Rae Ann Bruno

11:15 am—11:30 am: Break

11:30 am—12:30 pm: Keynote Sessions

Culture of Wow: How to Build a Serivce Team People Will Rave About, Ben Brennan and Maddie Blumenthal

12:30 pm—2:00 pm: Lunch Provided, Networking and Vendor Tables Open

2:00 pm—3:00 pm: Discussion Panel: 

Spectacular and Spooktacular Customer Experiences: A panel discussion of excellent and not-so-excellent customer experiences and CX best practices - Rae Ann Bruno, Ben Brennan and Maddie Blumenthal and Aaron Miller 

3:00 pm—3:15 pm: Refreshment/Dessert Break and Vendor Tables Open

3:15 pm—3:30 pm: Closing Remarks and Prize Drawing*

*Must be Present to Win! 

Keynote Session 1 - Presented by Rae Ann Bruno

Elevating the Customer Experience: A Holistic Approach

Experience isn’t one-sided. Every improvement that benefits the customer has an impact on the teams delivering support—and vice versa. Too often, organizations address experience in isolated pieces, focusing narrowly on a single touchpoint or role, and missing the bigger picture. True elevation of experience requires a holistic approach—one that considers the full, end-to-end journey and the interconnected elements that shape it: people, processes, tools and technology, leadership, skills, and culture.

In this session, we’ll explore how to evaluate and improve both customer and support team experiences together, ensuring that changes in one area strengthen—not strain—the other. You’ll learn how to break down silos, map the full experience ecosystem, and design improvements that deliver sustainable value to everyone involved.

By the end of this session you should

• See the connection between customer and support team experiences—and why both matter
• Understand the risks of addressing experience too narrowly
• Map the end-to-end experience, identifying all contributing elements
• Design improvements that balance benefits for customers, employees, and the business.

Keynote Session 2 - Presented by Ben Brennan and Maddie Blumenthal

Culture of Wow: How to Build a Service Team People Will Rave About

Creating a "wow" experience isn't about perks or process. It's about culture. This session explores the key leadership moves, mindset shifts, and rituals that turn support orgs from necessary evil into beloved brand ambassadors. Drawing from real-world transformations at Yahoo, Twitter, QSTAC and more, Ben Brennan and Maddie Bluemnthal will share a simple but powerful framework for inspiring your team, building trust with your internal customers, and delivering service that is not just good—but unforgettable.

By the end of this session you should

•  Learn a proven framework for building a high-trust, high-impact service culture from the ground up. Attendees will gain a blueprint developed and battle-tested at companies like Yahoo, Twitter and QSTAC—designed to inspire pride, accountability, and joy in service.
• Discover the small leadership shifts that create big "wow" moments. From onboarding rituals to micro-recognition to the language leaders use daily—this session breaks down how to craft intentional, contagious team culture.
• Understand why your internal brand matters—and how to build one that earns love, not just compliance. Learn how to reposition support teams from back-office fixers to front-line brand builders through visibility, tone, and trust.
• Explore why culture change fails—and how to avoid the traps. We'll dive into what leaders get wrong when trying to drive culture and what it actually takes to move from cynicism to buy-in.
•  Walk away with practical ideas you can implement immediately—no budget required. Whether you lead a global service org or a five-person help desk, you'll leave with real-world, people-first practices that start working on Monday.

Spectacular and Spooktacular Customer Experiences: 

A panel discussion of excellent and not-so-excellent customer experiences and CX best practices

Great teams create great customer experiences. Hear from an esteemed panel of IT support leaders who have mastered the art of building high-performing teams that deliver exceptional service. They’ll share proven strategies for fostering collaboration, leveraging diverse talents, and aligning team strengths with customer needs. Gain real-world insights and actionable tips to boost both your team’s performance and your customer satisfaction.

Moderated by:

Monica Morrison

Panelists:

Rae Ann Bruno

Rae Ann Bruno is an experienced IT consultant, trainer, and recognized expert in experience management, dedicated to enhancing the employee experience within organizations and IT. As an HDI Business Associate, she delivers HDI certification courses and provides consulting to help support teams and IT organizations improve efficiency, customer and employee satisfaction, and processes through experience-focused strategies and service innovations. Rae Ann has been named multiple times to HDI's Top 25 Thought Leaders list, was inducted into the HDI Hall of Fame in 2017, and recognized as one of Cherwell's IT Legends. In 2024, she received the HDI Lifetime Achievement Award and currently serves on the HDI Conference Advisory Board. She is also an APMG-certified Experience Trainer and co-host of XLA.TV.

Ben Brennan

Ben Brennan is the Head of Customer Experience and Innovation at PeopleReign, founder of QSTAC, and author of Badass IT Support, the cult-favorite guide to transforming service teams into high-impact, customer-loved powerhouses. He’s known for bringing emotional intelligence to automation, helping organizations scale smarter without losing the human touch. Before PeopleReign, Ben led IT and support transformations at companies like Yahoo!, Oath, Twitter, and Box, delivering Ritz Carlton–level service with startup-level speed and scrappiness. At QSTAC, he pioneered a new way to measure and improve internal service experience using data that actually matters to people. A former psychotherapist turned tech leader, Ben brings a unique mix of psychology, strategy, and irreverent humor to service management. Whether coaching execs or rethinking chatbot flows, his mission is simple: badass support isn’t just possible—it’s the new competitive advantage.

Maddie Bluementhal

Maddie has been a pioneer of bringing the secrets of Customer Success into IT and Service Management. A long time former host of the HDI weekly twitch stream, not to mention delivering conference sessions to a packed house, Maddie has become a legend among her fan base for bringing fun, energy, and innovative "outsider" perspective to the world of Service Management. When she's not helping customers deliver world class service with a sparkle, Maddie can be found hanging with her dog Merle, or potentially on her way to the next Taylor Swift concert.

Aaron Miller 

Aaron Miller is a seasoned IT leader and customer experience advocate with over 15 years of expertise in service delivery, technical leadership, and process improvement. As a Service Desk Manager, he has driven 99% P4 and 100% P2 SLA compliance while maintaining a near-perfect customer satisfaction score of 4.95/5.

Aaron is recognized for building high-performing teams, optimizing IT operations, and aligning technology services with business goals to create seamless end-user experiences. His leadership style emphasizes collaboration, accountability, and a customer-first mindset, positioning IT as a trusted partner in business success.

Speakers and Bios

Rae Ann Bruno

Rae Ann Bruno is an experienced IT consultant, trainer, and recognized expert in experience management, dedicated to enhancing the employee experience within organizations and IT. As an HDI Business Associate, she delivers HDI certification courses and provides consulting to help support teams and IT organizations improve efficiency, customer and employee satisfaction, and processes through experience-focused strategies and service innovations. Rae Ann has been named multiple times to HDI's Top 25 Thought Leaders list, was inducted into the HDI Hall of Fame in 2017, and recognized as one of Cherwell's IT Legends. In 2024, she received the HDI Lifetime Achievement Award and currently serves on the HDI Conference Advisory Board. She is also an APMG-certified Experience Trainer and co-host of XLA.TV.

Ben Brenan

Ben Brennan is the Head of Customer Experience and Innovation at PeopleReign, founder of QSTAC, and author of Badass IT Support, the cult-favorite guide to transforming service teams into high-impact, customer-loved powerhouses. He’s known for bringing emotional intelligence to automation, helping organizations scale smarter without losing the human touch. Before PeopleReign, Ben led IT and support transformations at companies like Yahoo!, Oath, Twitter, and Box, delivering Ritz Carlton–level service with startup-level speed and scrappiness. At QSTAC, he pioneered a new way to measure and improve internal service experience using data that actually matters to people. A former psychotherapist turned tech leader, Ben brings a unique mix of psychology, strategy, and irreverent humor to service management. Whether coaching execs or rethinking chatbot flows, his mission is simple: badass support isn’t just possible—it’s the new competitive advantage.

Maddie Blumenthal

Maddie Blumenthal has been a pioneer of bringing the secrets of Customer Success into IT and Service Management. A long time former host of the HDI weekly twitch stream, not to mention delivering conference sessions to a packed house, Maddie has become a legend among her fan base for bringing fun, energy, and innovative "outsider" perspective to the world of Service Management. When she's not helping customers deliver world class service with a sparkle, Maddie can be found hanging with her dog Merle, or potentially on her way to the next Taylor Swift concert.