Name: IBPA Think Tank for Established Publishers
Start: 2026-05-14T11:00:00-0700
End: 2026-05-14T16:30:00-0700

IBPA Think Tank for Established Publishers

Thursday May 14, 2026 11:00am - 4:30pm PDT

Portland State University, Smith Memorial Student Union 329

IBPA Think Tank for Established Publishers
A day of expert-level peer-to-peer discussions with tailored tracks for:
Executives and C-Suite
Editorial/Production Key Staff
Marketing/Sales Key Staff

One member of your publishing team must be a conference attendee with a one-day, two-day, or three-day ticket. Separate registration for additional staff is available at a discounted rate here.

Our wireframe agenda:
10:30am Registration opens outside room 329 on the third floor.

11:00am-11:35am Plenary welcome and Idea XChange panel with Grace Hagen (Midwest Independent Booksellers Association), Victoria Sutherland (Foreword Reviews), Matthew Mansfield (NielsenIQ BookData), and Brad Farmer (Gibbs Smith) in room 329.

11:45am-1:00pm Peer Group Discussions 1 -
Executive (facilitated by Michele Cobb and Victoria Sutherland) in room 329.
Sales & Marketing (facilitated by Kalen Landow and Laura Stanfill) in room 294.
Editorial & Design (facilitated by Lauren Wise and Leigh McDonald) in room 333.

1:00pm - 2:15pm IBPA+PubWest Design Awards Luncheon in room 329.

2:30pm - 3:45pm Breakout sessions 2 -
Inventory Management, Production, & Supply Chain (facilitated by Amy Barrett-Daffin and Molly Merkle) in room 329.
Sales & Marketing (facilitated by Angela Engel and Brooke Warner) in room 294.
Editorial & Design (facilitated by JuLee Brand and Karla Olson) in room 333.

4:00pm - 4:30pm Closing session in room 329.

And we invite you to go directly from the Think Tank to Literature and Libations, our conference-opening cocktail reception at Powells from 5pm-7pm!

[If you are driving and need to park for Think Tank, please use Parking Structure 1 at 1872 SW Broadway, kitty corner from the student union building.]

[Getting to Portland State University: https://www.pdx.edu/blog/getting-campus-transportation-and-psu
TriMet Max train Green Line from Oregon Convention Center light rail stop just outside the Hyatt Regency hotel, look for train going west/south to City Center & PSU Max train stops at "PSU Urban Center/SW 5th & Mill" (about 7 quick stops total - 20 minute trip) About $3 using Hop Fast Pass card you can load with a credit card at station stops.]

Speakers

Brad Farmer

President, Gibbs Smith

Over his 20 years at Gibbs Smith, Brad Farmer has led the company through significant disruption and opportunity including the introduction of digital products, the rise of Amazon and significant consolidation of the customer base. Throughout this period, he focused the company on independence and resilience, culminating in the... Read More →

Grace Hagen

Executive Director, Midwest Independent Booksellers Association

Grace Hagen (she/her) lives in St. Louis, Missouri. She is the Executive Director of the Midwest Independent Booksellers Association, a DEI trainer and consultant, nonfiction nerd, very part time pediatric physical therapist, very part time birth doula, and aspiring improv goof. Grace previously... Read More →

Matthew Mansfield

Head of Business Development, NielsenIQ BookData

**Participating in Ask The Experts**

Matthew Mansfield has been working within the publishing industry since 2008 and is currently the Head of Business Development at NielsenIQ BookData, where he oversees all new business across services, including Book Research and Metadata. He also leads business initiatives and partnerships, international... Read More →

Victoria Sutherland

Founder and Publisher, Foreword Magazine, Inc.

Michele Cobb

Fractional Chief Revenue Officer, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA)

Michele Cobb is a leading expert in the $2.2 billion North American audiobook industry, and over the past decade of digital transformation has been a sought-after speaker at more than 100 conferences in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. A partner at Forté Business Consulting... Read More →

Kalen Landow

Publications Marketing, Geological Society of America (GSA)

Kalen Landow is a member of the marketing department at the Geological Society of America (GSA), handling publications marketing for both trade and scholarly books and journals. Her background is in sales, marketing, and publicity with previous stints at Microcosm Publishing, National Book Network... Read More →

Laura Stanfill

Publisher, Forest Avenue Press

Laura Stanfill is the author of Imagine a Door, a book for writers about the publishing industry, and the publisher of Forest Avenue Press. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

Leigh McDonald

Art Director, University of Arizona Press

Leigh McDonald is the art director for the University of Arizona Press, managing and designing covers as well as interior art and typography for Press books. Prior to joining the Press in 2006, she worked as a production editor for a variety of publications, including science journals and children... Read More →

Lauren Wise

Operations / Editorial, She Writes Press / Midnight Editors

Lauren Wise is an editor, publishing strategist, and award-winning writer with 20+ years in journalism and book publishing. Her work has appeared in publications such as VICE and LA Weekly. For 11 years she's worked with She Writes Press as associate publisher, project editor, and operations... Read More →

Amy Barrett-Daffin

Publisher, C&T Publishing

Amy Barrett-Daffin is a distinguished leader in the independent publishing industry, recognized for her strategic vision and commitment to community. As the Publisher of C&T Publishing, she has spent over two decades driving innovation in the craft and lifestyle sectors, launchin... Read More →

Molly Merkle

Publisher and COO, AdventureKEEN

Molly Merkle has held many leadership positions with AdventureKEEN since she began her career at Menasha Ridge Press, one of the company’s seven imprints, in 1992. As AdventureKEEN publisher she has been key to executing the company’s vision for growth, including the acquisition and integrat... Read More →

Angela Engel

Publisher & Founder, The Collective Book Studio

Angela Engel is Publisher and CEO of The Collective Book Studio. With a background in traditional publishing, she brings deep expertise in sales, marketing, and business development. Over the course of her career, she has worked with Chronicle Books, Cameron + Company, Ten Speed Press, Tra Publishing... Read More →

Brooke Warner

Publisher, She Writes Press

Brooke Warner is publisher of She Writes Press, an imprint of The Stable Book Group. She is a memoir coach and author of Write On, Sisters!, Green-light Your Book, What's Your Book?, and three books on memoir. She’s also a TEDx speaker (“Green-light Revolution”), weekly podcaster (of “Memoi... Read More →

JuLee Brand

Publisher, W. Brand Publishing

JuLee Brand is a graphic designer, art director, publisher, and storyteller with over 30 years of experience across music, television, and publishing. Founder of W. Brand Publishing and StorySessions™, she specializes in helping authors uncover clarity, meaning, and connection through guid... Read More →

Karla Olson

Director of Books, Patagonia

**
Karla's “Ask the Experts” consult schedule is:

Fri May 15, 8:45am-9:10am
Table 3
Group
Marketing
Reserved seats for: Hui Qiao, UI QIAO, Nathan Bond, Fair Share Publishing, LeAnna Weler Smith (Weller Smith Design), Katheri... Read More →

Thursday May 14, 2026 11:00am - 4:30pm PDT
Portland State University, Smith Memorial Student Union 329

IBPA Think Tank

Audience For This Session Established Independent Publishers, Executives and Key Staff

IBPA Publishing University 2026