Founders Unite: Building Powerful Connections from the Start


The Founderology Growth Summit opens with hosts Kathleen Wood and Cherryh Cansler welcoming Founders into a room built for breakthrough growth. This session features rapid-fire introductions where Founders immediately connect, spark collaborations, and tap into the game-changing energy of like-minded visionaries ready to scale bigger and faster together.

Presenters
Cherryh Cansler
Vice President of Events
Networld Media Group
Before joining Networld Media Group as Vice President of Events, Cherryh Cansler spent several years as VP of Editorial managing the Networld’s nine B2B publications. Throughout her 20-year career as a journalist, she’s written about a variety of topics, ranging from the restaurant industry and technology to health and fitness news. Her byline has appeared in a plethora of newspapers, magazines and websites, including Forbes, The Kansas City Star and American Fitness magazine. She also serves as the managing editor for FastCasual.com.
Emily Knight
CEO
Texas Restaurant Association
Dr. Emily Williams Knight’s Ed.D., career is defined by her unwavering passion for innovation, her dedication to advocacy, and her ability to amplify the voices of others. Whether addressing global audiences, influencing legislation, or leading through crisis, she exemplifies what it means to be a transformational and inclusive leader in every role she undertakes. Knight has over 20 years of global experience driving innovation and transformation across industries. Since May 2019, she has served as the President and CEO of the Texas Restaurant Association and Foundation, representing 58,000 restaurants that employ 1.5 million Texans and generate $106 billion in annual sales. Under her leadership, the Association has achieved historic legislative success. A nationally recognized speaker, Dr. Knight has established herself as a powerful voice for the restaurant and foodservice sectors, consistently championing policies to support the industry’s growth and resilience.
Ellis Winstanley
CEO & Executive Chairman
Axial Shift
Ellis Winstanley is a seasoned restauranteur and business executive with a successful track record of starting up, turning around and growing businesses in the hospitality, software and several other industries. Ellis began turning around historic restaurant brands while in college and has played key roles in dozens of restaurant related operations over the years. It was during this time that Ellis realized there was a huge opportunity to flip restaurant technology on its head by focusing on front-line engagement with company goals. His passion for solving this problem led him to found the revolutionary technology platform Axial Shift.
Kathleen Wood
Founder & CEO
Kathleen Wood Partners, LLC.
Kathleen Wood is the Founder of Kathleen Wood Partners (KWP), an innovative, award-winning growth strategy firm committed to scaling businesses for success for over two decades. Kathleen and her team specialize in transforming visions into reality through strategic growth solutions, business optimization, competitive sales building, and leadership development. Kathleen's work spans across various industries, focusing on transforming small companies into national brands. She is a nationally recognized strategist who has scaled businesses into market leaders and billion-dollar brands. Kathleen also authored Founderology, a guide for improving workplace dynamics. Kathleen has extensive leadership and operational experience as the former President and COO of Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers and executive roles with MasterCard, TGI Friday’s, and the Educational Foundation of the National Restaurant Association.