The Acumatica Summit 2026 Experience:
What's in Store

[00:00:00] Jaclyn: Welcome to the Acumatica ERP podcast, where we explore practical innovation for growing businesses. I'm your host, Jaclyn Ng. And in this episode, we're diving into all things Summit. What makes it unique, what to expect this year, and how to make the most of the experience. With the event moving to Seattle, we'll also explore why the Emerald City is the perfect backdrop for Summit 2026.

[00:00:25] Jaclyn: Today we're joined by Sanket Akerkar, Acumatica CRO and Michael Shockley, Acumatica Senior Director of Events and Sponsorships. Sanket and Michael, welcome.

[00:00:35] Sanket: Thank you.

[00:00:36] Jaclyn: Can you each share a bit about your role at Acumatica and how you're involved with Summit? Michael, let's start with you.

[00:00:43] Michael: So I've been with Acumatica for a little more than two years now as our Senior Director of Events and Sponsorships. I oversee all of our first party events, our third party events, and then some of the sponsorships that we do in the sports world. From a first party events perspective, Summit is by far the largest event that we do, and I lead all the planning and logistics along with the team of both internal and external stakeholders. It's certainly a team effort and I'm looking forward to bringing the event to life this year.

[00:01:09] Jaclyn: Great. I'm looking forward to it too. Sanket, what's your role at Acumatica and how are you involved with Summit?

[00:01:16] Sanket: I've been at Acumatica now for five years and my role is to oversee all of our global operations that are partner facing, customer facing, and all of our programs associated with that. So what do we do. And so that's what's really nice about Summit. It's a great opportunity for me to get to see all of our partners and a lot of our customers that come and join us and spend a couple days learning and having fun and understanding what's next for Acumatica. So for me that's a, it's a great time to reconnect and see lots of people, if I'm not already traveling and seeing them. But it's a good opportunity for me to do that.

[00:01:47] Jaclyn: Sanket, you've been with Acumatica a bit longer than Michael. Tell us how Summit has evolved over the past four to five years.

[00:01:56] Sanket: Yeah, I mean, I would say there's probably, probably two ways to answer that. Some things that are the same and then some things that are different, right? So one of the things that's been the same is our focus on making it a great experience for everyone that's there. It's truly inclusive. It's a great way to learn, for people to interact and network and learn what's coming from an Acumatica perspective. And I think those are the really positive things that are the same, as part of that community that we're fostering from an Acumatica perspective over the last five years of the five Summits that I've been to.

[00:02:24] Sanket: But what I would say is different, really there's probably two big things. One is it's just gotten a lot bigger, so we have lots more people, lots more customers that are coming. Lots of people, different people from all over the world that will actually come and spend time with us, which is great. And you know, one of the things that I'm sure Michael will talk about is how do we continue to keep that energy and the vibe and the culture the same as Summit gets bigger and for us, this one that's upcoming very soon, it's our first time in Seattle, which is where our headquarters is, and that's changed, right?

[00:02:54] Sanket: So all of the ones that I've been to were in Las Vegas. We're now gonna bring it home to Seattle, which is quite exciting.

[00:03:00] Jaclyn: Why was Seattle chosen as the new location for Summit and how does the city align with the event's goals and values?

[00:03:09] Michael: That's a great question. I think we've all benefited, as Sanket mentioned, as this event has evolved over the past five or six years in Vegas. And I think maybe the way I kinda position it is the best thing we ever did was anchor down in Vegas. And the second best thing we're ever gonna do is kind of leave Las Vegas.

[00:03:23] Michael: And so as we did that, we took a comprehensive look at all the various cities and venues and what kind of became clear to us as we did that thorough review was that the Seattle Convention Center and its aptly named Summit Building of all things was unquestionably the best and most well suited for an event of our size and our needs. I think Seattle provides the right setting, given the region's cultural, the economic, its innovative heritage. As Sanket mentioned, it's our headquarters. That's not why we chose it here, but that's certainly a plus. I think also, Seattle being the cloud computing capital of the world, goes very well for our company and our message.

[00:03:58] Michael: And then honestly too, being somebody who's based here in Seattle, I think this city has a very rich, kind of deep history of pioneering spirit, right? And innovation. Whether you're looking at the lumber industry or the aerospace industry, or technology and e-commerce, I think all those things kind of work well together. Then also from a logistics standpoint, it brings everybody together in a very close way. And that's something I know we'll talk about as well, because as Sanket mentioned, this event as it's grown, has maintained its close-knit nature. And I think that's very important to us as we move forward.

[00:04:28] Jaclyn: Yep, definitely. So in a crowded landscape of conferences and events, what makes Summit stand out as a must attend experience?

[00:04:39] Sanket: From my standpoint, what I would reflect on that question is what I generally hear from the attendees that do join. The kind of things that I hear are, one, I really get to learn things that I didn't know before. I get to meet and talk to people that help me to understand what's going on in, you know, the world and the environment and the Acumatica world and sort of how that will connect.

[00:05:02] Sanket: And I think overall in the last part of it, which I think is important is, we try to also have fun with it. So it's, you know, try not to take it too seriously, but have a really good time. And I think all of those things together is what I generally hear from folks that attend. I think the last thing I would say is, for the folks that come, they always say the same thing to me. They're like, you guys put on such a great show that allows us to connect as a community and we get to feel small even though we're big. And I think that is a hallmark of how it all comes together, and I think that's a really positive experience for everyone who attends.

[00:05:30] Jaclyn: I agree. What are some of the most exciting sessions, speakers or activities attendees can look forward to this year?

[00:07:03] Michael: I think with Summit it's, it's hard to overlook keynotes, right? Keynotes are always the most compelling opportunities that we have to make a splash and provide a great preview of technologies that are making impact. As Sanket says, I think we hold ourselves to a very high standard in that regard and we try to deliver a lot of value during those sessions. I think last year we saw Acumatica’s AI vision, our approach to strategy on full display.

[00:07:19] Michael: From an attendee perspective, you know, the breakout sessions are really gonna kind of be the meat and potatoes, if you will, of what they're gonna get from an engagement. And so I think those customer stories that they're going to hear, those real life experiences during these keynotes and these panel discussions, but then also, we look at how we structure these breakout sessions and we get a lot of feedback every year. I think some things that we may talk about later are how we've kind of added a few more sessions that are a little bit more intimate in nature.

[00:07:54] Michael: We've created what we're calling cozy rooms, and these are workshops that are a little bit smaller in nature. And those are the ones that fill up fast. So I think that's what we're really looking forward to, to kind of rolling out here at Summit 2026.

[00:08:07] Jaclyn: And for first time attendees, what advice would you give to ensure they get the most value out of the event?

[00:08:13] Michael: Great question. I think value is a very subjective term, right? Like a lot of times we think of value, we go to the quantitative piece. I think with this and with Summit, I would certainly encourage people to look at the qualitative as well. And so from a first time attendee’s perspective, I think we've got a great resource at summit.acumatica.com. You're already registered for the event, so surely you've been on that site. But I would go ahead and continue to look at that site. I would download the mobile app from both the Apple App Store as well as the Google Play Store.

[00:08:49] Michael: That's gonna have everything you need for Summit, right? That's gonna kind of be your remote control, if you will. Everything from your agenda to your ability to connect with other community members, right? We can have chats on there, you can see what other people are up to or who else is there from certain industries. And then finally too, to make sure you're gonna get the most of everything, going back to that kind of in-person statement I made before, make sure to engage the community. I think by and large, you are certainly not one of one at this event. There is somebody else who's facing a similar business challenge that you may be facing.

[00:09:20] Michael: Whether it's geographic, whether it's industry related, people are in the same boat. And I think when we bring these people together, it's just one more opportunity for you to walk away looking back and saying, you know what? That was a great event. So that's what I would focus on.

[00:09:33] Jaclyn: How about you Sanket? What advice would you give to ensure they get the most value out of the event?

[00:09:39] Sanket: Yeah, so what I tell, you know, customers that come for the first time, you know, obviously the keynotes and pick your sessions are the important pieces, but I usually give folks two specific pieces of advice. I say number one, make sure that you're very specific when you go to the marketplace, that you have a list of who you want to talk to.

[00:09:54] Sanket: 'Cause it can be daunting. We've got a lot of partners that are there with lots of different solutions across different both functional and industry specific areas. So know who you want to talk to. Have a plan of making sure that you make it through the marketplace and get to see everyone that you want to go see. And number two, the piece of advice that I give folks is make sure that when you go to the meals, that you're sitting with the Industry Edition that you are with. And find a place to go sit down and have a conversation with someone you don't know.

[00:10:25] Sanket: That's why people are there, to have those conversations. And I just love to see those, you know, customers and partners sitting down and having conversation about what they're trying to do, and learning from each other during the meals. I think those are two ways to get a lot of value out of Summit.

[00:10:39] Jaclyn: How does Summit foster a sense of community among attendees, and why is that important for the event's success?

[00:10:47] Sanket: I know we've been very intentional about not only having sort of one-way dialogue, but having sort of a 360 experience. So there's lots of time for folks to network, to spend time, to find sort of their groups, whether it's Industry Edition or like these cozy rooms as Michael's talking about, so you can actually have a real conversation. The hackathon is also a great experience we do sort of at the same time that's there that allows people to spend time getting to know each other and figuring out how to move the tech forward. So I think there's lots of different ways in terms of how that works, but I think that's an important part of how we view where the technology needs to go. We don't wanna sit in a tower somewhere and sort of say, okay, that's exactly what we're trying to get done. This is real businesses getting real things done with real technology. And that sense of community is important in terms of being able to put that together and then drive, you know, not just each business forward, but all of the Acumatica ecosystem forward. I think that's important that Summit’s a representation of that. It doesn't start and end at Summit. We do it all year long. Summit's a good place to sort of bring it as a focal point where people can get together and do it in person.

[00:11:58] Jaclyn: For sure. Like a real life version of the virtual community. Yeah.

[00:12:02] Sanket: Yeah, that's right.

[00:12:03] Michael: And can I add something to that Jaclyn?

[00:12:05] Jaclyn: For sure. Yes.

[00:12:06] Michael: Because I think what Sanket mentioned was very important, which was the intentionality of what it is that we do in terms of how we structure the event and it fostering this sense of community. And so, you know, by and large, we do not segment the event in terms of access. We don't tier access in terms of, if you go to a sporting event, right? You have your club seats and your premium seats and your suites and everything else. Summit is by and large meant to be for everyone. And so I think while we do create certain populations, we have our Women in Tech, we'll have a Women in Tech networking lounge this year, but that's open to everybody.

[00:12:40] Michael: The programming that'll happen in that lounge is geared towards a certain message, but I think it's open to everybody. And the Women in Tech luncheon is open to everybody, and that's grown this year to where, you know, we will be able to have more than the 400 people that we've had to cap it at in the past. But the other thing that I think that's really important that Sanket mentioned is around the accessibility to our Acumatica executives, as well as all of our team members. We'll have more than 250 Acumatica employees there. And it doesn't matter if it's John Case or Sanket or somebody in our engineering division, or somebody in our partner marketing division, et cetera, they are there to be a part of the event, to work with the event and to help our attendees. And that's something that I've been super impressed about over my short term with Acumatica, is just the overall accessibility that community members at this event have to everybody that works at Acumatica. And I know that that's something that hopefully is seen as an embodiment of our brand and our company as well.

[00:13:34] Jaclyn: Right. Yeah. And people that we work with are no longer just names or emails. We actually get to meet them at Summit, which I find very, very valuable. What are each of you most excited about for this year's Summit and why?

[00:13:48] Michael: Well, I think as any event planner will tell you, you're just excited for the event to get here, right? Because you're doing a lot of work with everything on the front end, and it's always good to see what comes to fruition. So I think that's the main thing, I am excited for this to come. It's something that we've been working hard with and I think that we understand too, we are gonna learn, we get a lot of feedback from our attendees, and that's something that we value tremendously. So as we look to continue to build this event in the future, I think that's something that we're looking forward to.

[00:14:17] Michael: The other thing that I would say are kind of twofold. One is Sanket mentioned marketplace, right? And marketplace is the heartbeat of this event. It's where all of our meals are. It's where our Acumatica booth is, as well as all of our sponsors, and that is something this year that'll all be under one roof. You know, we kind of outgrew it at Wynn in terms of we had to actually take up two spaces. That was a good solution at the time. But I think to bring all of that together under one roof is tremendous for us moving forward.

[00:14:36] Michael: And then the second thing I'll mention is the celebration party. We know that that's always a highlight of the event, and that's something that we've always kind of had a very nice solution built in with Wynn, being able to go to XS over at Encore from the nightclub stand. That has not been a throwaway for us this year. That's something that we've actually spent a lot of time and resources, both internal and external planning. I think we're really excited to bring the celebration party to life and anybody who's been to the celebration party is also excited to see what jacket Sanket is gonna wear, 'cause I know that's something that's high on my list 'cause he always brings it with his fashion game for his fit. So that's something I'm looking forward to as well.

[00:15:24] Jaclyn: Now I'm looking forward to that too.

[00:15:28] Sanket: Michael.

[00:15:29] Jaclyn: And what are you most excited about for this year's Summit?

[00:15:36] Sanket: I always find that, while it can be exhausting, you know, being through that entire experience and it's lots of meetings, lots of talking, lots of discussion, what I always generally find at the end of Summit is that my energy coming out of Summit is higher than it went in. And so to me it's just more about all of those experiences and the connections and the conversations that happen. Continuing to see the same customers that I've seen for years and get to see them again, and say, hey, how was the last 12 months? So I'm looking forward to those conversations and then meeting new customers that I've not met before, or prospects that join and sort of saying, hey, what are you thinking about? What's going on? How's your experience been? I get a ton out of those discussions, so that's what I'm looking forward to.

[00:16:18] Jaclyn: Awesome. How do you see Summit evolving in the future, and what role do you hope it will play in shaping the industry or community it serves?

[00:16:28] Sanket: What I'm hoping is that as we, you know, I think Michael talked a little bit about this, the intentionality that we have around community. And to me, I don't think we're ever done with that. We feel good about the things that we have been able to create. We do get accolades associated from the folks that go there as well as from just sort of folks who've been in the industry for a long time in terms of what we've been able to curate and do. And so I sort of view this as, what else we can do to continue to make it even stronger from a community standpoint?

[00:17:00] Sanket: And I don't know the answers to that, but I think that's always the question I ask when I leave. I'm like, what could we have done to make this even stronger? What could we have done to create a greater connection point for individuals and how they can walk away with better learning and better intent of what they wanna do with Acumatica. So I think, I don't know the answers to those questions, but those are the questions that I think about and I want us to continue to evolve and get better at.

[00:17:25] Jaclyn: Hmm. Sounds good.

[00:17:27] Michael: From a programming standpoint I think Sanket hit the nail on the head, which is, there's a lot of things that we don't know, but what will certainly be a factor is centering it on the attendees and the feedback we get from them and what it is that they're looking for. Right? As we've seen the composition of Summit change over the years as it's continued to grow, we've seen a larger uptick in terms of the number of customers who are attending, which has certainly affected how we program the event, and then also how do we continue to bring together the partners with the customers. I think all of those things are dynamic in nature and we'll certainly continue to plan around that first and foremost versus, you know, reverse engineering it to the facility or the city or something like that. I think that's keeping the main thing the main thing, if you will, which is the attendees and the community and the experience that they have.

[00:18:15] Michael: In terms of that second part though, I think this is gonna be a really interesting year for us. There's gonna be so much that we learn doing it in Seattle at a convention center versus having it at a hotel that I think we're all very bullish on. But I think is also something that will only help to make 2027 and 2028 and 2029 that much better as we continue to plan those events.

[00:18:39] Jaclyn: Mm-hmm. Sounds good. Let's now move over to the lightning round. This is gonna be fun. Maybe.

[00:18:48] Michael: Buckle

[00:18:48] Jaclyn: Up. Yeah, buckle up. Sanket, if you could describe the Summit celebration in three words, what would that be?

[00:18:56] Sanket: Three words. Oh my gosh. Okay. This could be hard. I would say, number one, it's fun, that definitely comes to mind. Number two, I would say it's surprising. So I think there's some like new things that we always have. So I think surprising is sort of the second word. And I think the third word for me would be dancing. Like, I think that's sort of just part of what is a lot of it. And I think a lot of people like to, you know, let their hair down and have a good time. And I think that's just sort of to me what Summit party's about.

[00:19:32] Jaclyn: Okay, now I'm looking forward to the jacket and the dancing.

[00:19:35] Sanket: Yes, absolutely.

[00:19:39] Jaclyn: Michael, what is the most frequently asked question from attendees during Summit?

[00:19:44] Michael: Sure. I'm not sure there's just one. I would say the most frequently asked question still goes back a Summit from a couple years ago, and that is, will there be hot breakfast? And I can tell you unequivocally that yes, we will again have hot breakfast at Summit 2026. So come hungry. We will have your proteins and your eggs and everything else. There's no question that's too silly. And I think if you go to summit.acumatica.com, there's an FAQ up at the top that you can click on, see all the various answers to the most frequent questions that we get. Likewise, if you send an email to summit@acumaticaevents.com, feel free to submit any questions that you don't see answered there and we'll be happy to answer it for you.

[00:20:28] Jaclyn: Great. Nice plug there. To both of you, starting with Sanket, what's one unexpected or lesser known aspect of Summit that you think attendees will be surprised or delighted by?

[00:20:42] Sanket: For me, I guess maybe it's a little bit something related to what I do. So one of the things that I love and I feel like is the greatest part of my job is selecting the Customer of the Year. And I think it's probably a little bit of a question mark—how does that happen? Maybe to give a little bit of insight, sort of the backstory on how that works. I usually start in like the September, October timeframe and I look at a lot of the customers I've met over the course of the year. I also will ask our customer success team and our partners to nominate different customers.

[00:21:17] Sanket: And then we usually get lots and lots of different nominations that come in. I'll do, I don't even know how many, 10 to 15 different conversations over the course of November, December, and then sort of come to a point where we then decide how we pick the Customer of the Year and sort of get a group consensus on how that works. And so I think that's probably a little, you know, a little known fact or sort of backstory in terms of what we do. But I gotta say it's super fun, super exciting to meet all these customers, hear their story, their story of their businesses, why they chose Acumatica, the value they get out of the product and what they're looking forward to in the future. It's inspiring for me. It's a lot of fun. I learn a lot and I'm glad that we get to share those stories on stage at Summit.

[00:22:05] Jaclyn: I love hearing those stories too. It's always so inspiring. Michael, what about you? What's one unexpected or lesser known aspect of Summit?

[00:22:16] Michael: I am gonna go with a couple of things. Sanket and I are both based here in Seattle, and so for me this is personal. I’m hoping attendees will be surprised and delighted by Seattle in January. I think clearly that is a potential challenge that we identified early on, moving from Las Vegas in January to Seattle in January, and I'm sure there is a perception. What I would say is that Seattle is an absolutely gorgeous and beautiful city. There is gonna be a ton of things for people to do outside of Summit on the front end or back end as they visit our city. And I think it's something that, being downtown, I hope they take advantage of as well because it's a gorgeous area.

[00:22:57] Michael: I think there's a lot of personal touches that we're putting into this Summit to make sure that not only are the logistics sound, but also our engagement with our attendees is sound as well. But I'm hoping those are a couple things that people will walk back from and say, you know, I think that was a little bit better than I expected all things considered, because, you know, if you haven't been to Seattle before, I can understand why you might be apprehensive to attend in January. But I'm telling you, it's a great place no matter what time of year it is.

[00:23:22] Sanket: I was gonna say, Michael, to that fact, it was colder in Vegas the last two Summits than it was in Seattle. So I, you know, that is true.

[00:23:33] Michael: And the celebration party will be fully indoors this year. I know sometimes we've had a cold spell outside. The celebration party will be fully indoors at the convention center. We are transforming the ballroom. It's gonna be great. So yes, my hope is that any weather that happens we'll mitigate very easily and people will still have a great event.

[00:23:50] Sanket: Yep.

[00:23:51] Jaclyn: Seattle's known for its coffee culture. What's your go-to coffee order to fuel a busy day at Summit?

[00:23:58] Michael: For me, coffee is the utility. It's not something that I romanticize about. So I am a black coffee guy. The question is, how many do I have? So I will be drinking black coffee probably from the moment I wake up at 5:00 AM and then I usually try to stop by around 2:00 PM because otherwise it's not good for my sleep patterns. But very, very straightforward for me, black coffee.

[00:24:22] Jaclyn: Mm-hmm. I thought you were gonna say, you know, after 2:00 PM that's when the happy hour starts coming.

[00:24:32] Michael: Yeah. I hope it is for some people, but not for me. I switch to decaf.

[00:24:37] Jaclyn: Right. How about you Sanket? What's your go-to coffee order?

[00:24:44] Sanket: Yeah, so I'm sort of similar to Michael. I'm a black coffee drip coffee drinker. I'm not doing espresso or lattes or any of that stuff, and I'm not a Starbucks fan, just to sort of— even though it's here. I'm originally from New York, so I'm a Dunkin' Donuts guy. So plain Dunkin' Donuts drip black, perfect for me.

[00:25:03] Jaclyn: Oh, interesting. Sanket and Michael, thanks so much for joining us and sharing your insights, excitement, and behind-the-scenes perspectives on Summit 2026. And thank you to our listeners for tuning into the Acumatica ERP podcast. Be sure to subscribe so you don't miss future conversations on practical innovation for growing businesses.

[00:25:26] Sanket: Thanks, Jaclyn. Bye.

[00:25:28] Michael: Thanks, Jaclyn.