2025 Sessions

Tuesday, August 19, 2025

4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
VRWS Registration Open
4:30 PM - 6:00 PM
Welcome Reception in Francis Marion Hotel Lobby

Wednesday, August 20, 2025

Wednesday, August 20, 2025

8:00 AM - 12:00 PM
VRWS Registration (Second Floor)
8:00 AM - 10:00 AM
VRWS Opening Breakfast and Breaking The Hard Rules: Redefining Strength in Women's Leadership with Shelley Brown
10:15 AM - 11:00 AM
Website Checklist, Is Your Website Ready for 2026? with Annie Holcombe and Alex Husner
Beyond Service: What It Really Takes to Lead with Hospitality Today with April Burns
From Broom Closet to Boardroom: The Power of Scaling Without a Playbook- A Fireside Chat with Kimberly White
The ESOP Opportunity: Perhaps a Better Exit Strategy with Meredith Fiocchi
What I Eat in a Day Part 2: Utilizing Nutrition and Exercise in a Chaotic Life with Tiffany Edwards
11:15 AM - 12:00 PM
Fixing the Funnel: Why Short-Term Rental Marketing is Stuck—And What Comes Next with Amber Knight
Hobbspitalty CARE Values with Rachele Hobbs and Bethany Hobbs Smith
Everything is a Phase (Patriarchy, Please Take Note) with Julie Brinkman
Beyond the Bottom Line: Empowering Property Managers Through Protection and Purpose with Cindi Lee and Shannon MacPeek
Finding Joy and Purpose in a World That is Radically Changing Because of AI with Dr. Marie Haynes
12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
VRWS Lunch, What Feminism Looks Like at 17-Years-Old with Kate Sprenkle and When the Wind Changes: Turning Loss into Leadership with Angie Leone
1:45 PM - 2:30 PM
Women Do It Better: Intuition, Emotion & Direct Booking Domination with Vanessa Humes, Kara Kacmarcik, and Jill McGee
Roundtables: Generational Panelists Moderated by Sue Jones
Leading Whole: Breaking Rules, Building Legacy with Shelley Brown
Summer 2025 Vacation Rental Industry Performance with Melanie Brown
2:30 PM - 3:00 PM
VRWS Afternoon Tea Break
3:00 PM - 3:45 PM
KPIs with Purpose: Connecting Guest Feedback to Operational Excellence, and the Bottom Line with Natalia Holshouser and Kelsey Liversidge
Co-Opetition Coalition: Turning Competitors into Collaborators in Hospitality with Kerrie Racicot
Bad Stays and Bourbon Chasers: Your Worst Guest Stories with Amanda Martins
Scale Smarter, not Harder with Cassie Fields
Shifting Sands: How Beach Erosion Will Reshape Coastal Communities with Amy Hinote
4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
How to Matter in a Market That Pretends You Don’t with Jenn Barbee

Thursday, August 21, 2025

VRWS Opening Breakfast and Breaking The Hard Rules: Redefining Strength in Women's Leadership with Shelley Brown

8:00 AM - 9:30 AM
General Session with Valerie Gangas; Steadfast Through Storms: Leading with Resilience in the Vacation Rental Industry with Vared Raviv Schwarz; and Lowcountry Breakfast
9:45 AM - 10:30 AM
Brand Like a Lady. Close Like a Killer. with Jenn Barbee
The Hospitality Advantage: The Biggest Marketing Mistake Great Hosts Are Making & How To Fix It with Jodi Bourne
Cool Under Pressure: Midlife, Menopause, and Managing It All with Claiborne Yarbrough
Mentorship, Momentum, and the Modern Woman in Hospitality Tech with Corie Fabian
Hospitality by Design.The Best Tool in Your Toolbox. with Jessica Duce
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM
In-Case-You-Stayed-Out-Too-Late-And-Missed-Breakfast Mid-Morning Break
11:00 AM - 11:45 AM
Roundtables: The Proverbial Glass Ceiling panel moderated by Sue Jones
Stop Measuring Performance—Start Driving It: The Right Metrics Don’t Just Reflect Growth; They Fuel It with Kathleen Fitzpatrick , Sasha Lawler and Sara Moss
Serving Authentically: Vision, Resilience, and the Power of Memorable Stays with Karen Piscitelli
AI is Helping Teams with Mental Health with Alex Husner
Google Launched An Entirely New Search Engine With AI at its Core That Will Change So Much in Our Lives with Dr. Marie Haynes
11:45 AM - 1:40 PM
VRWS Pioneer Award Lunch and Martha Beck Keynote: Beyond Anxiety
1:45 PM - 2:30 PM
Homeowner Acquisition with Jodi Clear, Jeanne Daily and Heather Van We
The Soul of Hospitality: Stories That Shaped Us with Tiffany Edwards , Kristen King , Koryn Okey and Kerrie Racicot
Shelf Help: Building Company Culture One Book at a Time with Rachel Alday
ROI Accelerator: Understanding Which Metrics Matter For Evaluating & Improving Marketing Performance with Mia Cole and Aubrie Holcomb
2:30 PM - 3:00 PM
Ice Cream Break and Book Signing with Martha Beck
3:00 PM - 3:45 PM
Now Hiring! From Entry to Executive - Building Careers through Revenue Management with Sarah Franzen
Built on Hospitality: How Women Leaders Turned Heart into Brand Power with Jeanne Dailey and Rachele Hobbs
Bad News Isn’t the End - It’s the Turning Point with Kathleen Fitzpatrick
Hot Features, Cold Feet: Tech Romance and the Road to Regret with Dawn Yeskulsky
Know Yourself, Grow Yourself with Sue Jones
4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Champagne Closing and General Session with Monica Lewinsky

Wednesday, August 20, 2025

General Session with Valerie GangasSteadfast Through Storms: Leading with Resilience in the Vacation Rental Industry with Vered Raviv Schwarz; and Lowcountry Breakfast