Tickets $165 · Only 200 seats
Official
BOSTON BUILT WEEK EVENTNOV 15–21, 2026
What do leaders see ahead - and what are they doing about it?
A Boston Built Week event. One day, 200 seats, and the people who decide what gets built. Owners, developers, designers, builders, institutions, capital, sustainability and technology leaders. Three connected arcs: what leaders are seeing in the market, how organizations are responding, and where innovation is changing what gets built next.
Featuring Keynote Thomas N. O'Brien · Managing Partner & CEO, The HYM Investment Group
Presented With
Keynote Announced
Managing Partner & Chief Executive Officer, The HYM Investment Group
Setting the Charge: Market Realities, Leadership, and What Gets Built Next
Drawing from his leadership across major Greater Boston development, public planning, and civic service, Tom frames the day across three lenses: grounded market reality, the leadership response, and where innovation is actively changing what gets built next. He opens the morning with the 10:10 AM keynote.
Market Signals
Chief Economist, Associated General Contractors of America · LinkedIn ↗
Market Direction — National and Regional Briefing · 11:10 AM
Chief Economist for AGC of America since 2001, Simonson brings more than 40 years of economic analysis to the 11:10 AM national and regional market briefing. He advises the Census Bureau's construction data re-engineering initiative, is a Fellow and past president of the National Association for Business Economics, and writes the Data DIGest, read weekly by more than 20,000 subscribers.
Event Snapshot
10+
Targeted industry speakers from ownership, design, construction, capital, and technology
200
Target attendee range
9:00 AM
Registration, forum, box lunch, and post-event networking
$165
Standard admission includes the full program, box lunch, and networking
The Venue
The UMass Club, 32 floors up at One Beacon Street, is an incredible place for this event. What better place to discuss the built environment than overlooking the Boston skyline it shaped?
See the venue & parking
THE EXPERIENCE
The agenda is final. The program moves from what leaders are seeing, to how they are responding, to where innovation changes the equation. Every session is a curated, tightly moderated conversation built around a question people want answered.
Speakers
The speaker lineup is confirmed and the agenda is final — leaders with operating responsibility for what gets built.
Drawing from his leadership across major Greater Boston development, public planning, and civic service, O'Brien sets the charge for the Forum — framing market realities, the leadership response, and where innovation is actively shaping what gets built next. He opens the day with the morning keynote.
On the agenda
Ferrante leads the Associated General Contractors of Massachusetts, the Commonwealth's leading commercial construction association, serving the industry for more than 100 years. On behalf of the Forum's Presenting Sponsor, he opens the program at 10:00 AM and sets the tone for a day of candid leadership conversation.
Chief Economist for AGC of America since 2001, Simonson brings more than 40 years of economic analysis to the 11:10 AM national and regional market briefing. He advises the Census Bureau's construction data re-engineering initiative, is a Fellow and past president of the National Association for Business Economics, and writes the Data DIGest, read weekly by more than 20,000 subscribers.
O'Connell leads the 1:20 PM session on moving beyond technology adoption toward intentional digital transformation: evaluating emerging tools, build-versus-buy decisions, governance that reduces technology burden, and where AI and automation are delivering real results for workforce capacity today.
Belek leads IMA's Northeast construction practice, advising contractors and owners on insurance, risk management and surety. On behalf of IMA, the Forum's Insurance, Risk Management & Surety Broker Sponsor, he introduces the afternoon's cross-industry leadership panel at 2:05 PM.
A strategic and people-first leader, Davis heads Flow Tech, the Forum's Sustainability & Building Performance Sponsor, bringing an operator's view of how building systems and performance shape what gets built next.
Managing Director of Accelerating Decarbonization
Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC)
LinkedIn ↗Jim leads a mission-driven team at MassCEC focused on Buildings, Net Zero Power Grid, and Clean Transportation. A licensed architect with over 30 years of leadership in sustainable design, teaching, research, and policy, he earned a Bachelor of Architecture from Syracuse University and a Master of Science in Sustainability from Tufts University. He is also a licensed private pilot, US Air Force veteran, and Fulbright Specialist.
Parker leverages his industry experience and connections to support entrepreneurs’ development and scaling efforts at Suffolk Technologies. He also manages BOOST, the firm’s accelerator program for early-stage companies. Previously, he held operations and executive management roles at Suffolk Construction, working to standardize operational excellence. He earned a BS in Earth and Oceanographic Science from Bowdoin College.
Dr. John Cribbs is Dean of the School of Management and Associate Professor of Construction Management at Wentworth Institute of Technology, where he leads programs preparing the next generation of construction and business leaders through industry-mentored capstone projects. His research focuses on modular and offsite construction, sustainability, and BIM workflows that improve quality and labor productivity. Before Wentworth, he was a Principal at Green Ideas Building Science Consultants in Phoenix, and he has taught at Arizona State University and the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture. He holds an MArch and a Ph.D. in Construction Management from Arizona State University, is a LEED AP (BD+C, ID+C, O+M) and CSI CDT, and is active with AGC Massachusetts' Virtual Design and Construction Group.
On the agenda
Executive Director of Workforce Development and Professional Education
Wentworth Institute of Technology
LinkedIn ↗Valerie Paquette is Executive Director of Workforce Development and Professional Education at Wentworth Institute of Technology, where she leads employer-connected workforce and professional education initiatives, including licensure, certificate, workforce training and apprenticeship-to-degree pathways. She previously held leadership roles at Babson College and Northeastern University. She holds an MBA from Northeastern University and a bachelor's degree from UMass Dartmouth. She co-presents Building Leaders: Market Response with John Cribbs at 12:50 PM.
On the agenda
Sandi Silk leads MassDevelopment’s real estate division, bringing extensive experience in complex mixed-use and multifamily development, including projects in Massachusetts Gateway Cities. Previously Senior Vice President and Head of Development at MURAL Real Estate Partners, she has led transformative projects and structured public-private partnerships. She joins the leadership panel with a perspective grounded in development execution and cross-sector collaboration.
Angela is Shepley Bulfinch’s second consecutive female president in the firm’s 151-year history. She is the Chair of the Board and a design leader at the firm. Her passion for teaching in both the classroom and studio makes her a leader who fosters a collaborative team process.
On the agenda
Zoya Puri is Senior Vice President at Beacon Capital Partners, where she leads ground-up developments, strategic repositioning, and major capital projects across the firm's commercial office and life science portfolio. With 15+ years of experience delivering large-scale, complex projects, including the $2.6B Encore Boston Harbor, her work integrates design, planning, and capital strategy to balance rigorous financial performance with user experience. Zoya is also a visiting instructor at MIT's Center for Real Estate and co-chairs CREW Boston's Leadership Council, and is a past-President of CNU New England. She also serves on the South End Historical Society Board of Directors as Preservation Chair and liaison to the Boston Landmarks Commission. Bisnow recognized her as one of Boston's Power Women 2025.
Executive Vice President, New England Region
Shawmut Design and Construction
LinkedIn ↗Kevin Sullivan leads Shawmut Design and Construction’s New England region, where the firm surpassed $1 billion in revenue in 2024 on major projects including UMass Chan Medical School’s new education and research building and Boston University’s Warren Towers renovation. Over more than three decades at Shawmut, he rose from Assistant Project Manager to regional leadership, guiding complex educational, healthcare, commercial and cultural projects from master planning and preconstruction through completion, with deep experience building on occupied campuses. A Wentworth Institute of Technology graduate in Building Construction Technology, he is a member of AGC Massachusetts and has served on the board of the Boston Architectural College.
BUILDING WHAT'S NEXT
The built environment is navigating changing economic conditions, capital markets, development priorities, workforce pressures, sustainability requirements, AI and emerging technology, and changing expectations for how buildings are designed, built, financed, and operated.
The Built Leadership Forum brings together leaders who are close to these changes and making decisions about what comes next — ownership, development, design, construction, operations, sustainability, technology, capital, risk, and advisory leadership in one room.
What do leaders see ahead - and what are they doing about it?
Leadership here means more than title. It means having a point of view about what is ahead and being willing to act on it.
Sponsor Platform
A few segment sponsorships remain for firms that want visibility in the room and a reason to host clients at the kick-off of Boston Built Week.
Highest-level alignment with the full leadership platform.
Early partners behind the official kick-off event of Boston Built Week.
Sponsors connected to strategic audience lanes: ownership, development, construction, sustainability, design, workforce, innovation, capital, risk, and advisory.
Questions & Answers
The program progresses from what leaders see, to how they are responding, to what comes next and each audience in the room takes something specific from it.
Take Part
Hear where the market is heading from AGC of America's chief economist, how HYM and Skanska leaders are responding, and leave with peers worth calling. Seats are capped at 200. Standard admission is $165, including the full program, box lunch and networking.
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The full day, box lunch and networking with 200 senior leaders at the kick-off of Boston Built Week. Standard admission is $165 per person.
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Owners, developers, designers and builders get more from the day together. Register your colleagues so your firm hears the same market signals.
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A few segment sponsorships remain for firms that want visibility and a reason to bring clients into the room.
Nov 16 · UMass Club
200 seats · on sale now
