ERA PRESS RELEASE
December 18, 2025
Contact: Clare Kluck / Communications Director / ckluck@era.org
View/download PDF version of this press release
Announcing 2026 ERA Conference General Session Speakers James Taylor and Michael Knight
The 2026 ERA Conference Committee is pleased to announce that James Taylor and Michael Knight will present as general session speakers on the second day of the annual ERA Conference in February in Austin, Texas.
James Taylor
James Taylor, MBA, FRSA, who started his career managing high profile rock stars, is now an in-demand keynote speaker and internationally recognized leader in creativity, innovation and artificial intelligence. For more than 20 years, he has been advising CEOs, entrepreneurs, educators, governments, leaders, writers and rockstars on how to design innovative organizations, unlock creative potential and build a sustainable future. He has authored a new book: “SuperCreativity: Augmenting Human Creativity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.”
Taylor will present the first general session on Tuesday, Feb. 24, entitled “Supercollaboration: Cyborgs, Centaurs and The Rise of Human-AI Collaboration.”
Today’s business landscape is evolving at an unprecedented pace, driven by exponential technologies such as artificial intelligence, digital twins and robotics. They are transforming industries ranging from electronics, retail and healthcare to engineering, construction and defense. Taylor will guide Conference attendees through a captivating exploration of how leaders and organizations are adapting to technological change. Learn how, in this new world, our most valuable competitive advantage as a leader lies in our ability to foster creative collaboration between humans and machines. This tailored and entertaining presentation is designed to inspire and equip attendees with insights and strategies needed to be future-ready.
Learn more about this session in this video.
Michael Knight
Michael Knight, an electronics industry favorite, has been in the electronics industry for more than 30 years, working for several electronic private and public component manufacturers and distributors. At TTI, Inc., his roles have included VP of Product and Marketing, President of the Exponential Technology Group and currently, Corporate Senior Vice President of Strategy. Knight also has a long history of service and leadership on the boards of directors of for-profit and not-for-profit organizations and is a frequent guest on a wide range of podcasts, and regular keynote speaker at many industry conferences.
Knight will close out the Conference with the final general session on Tuesday, Feb. 24 — “Great Disruption is the Mother of Great Opportunity.” Technology is relentlessly accelerating the pace of invention and innovation, both causing and addressing the disruptions that have become abundant in our business. There are a lot of signs that we are now squarely on the exponential part of the exponential curve and that big, new-to-the-world businesses are being built from the technology supply chain for which we are a part. Knight will offer attendees a look at various “gigatrends” through a series of what-if questions intended to spotlight the ever-growing opportunities for our industry.
The 2026 ERA Keynote and General Sessions Conference Committee is thrilled to have Taylor and Knight as general session speakers on the second day of the conference, as they are sure to present unique insights and knowledge to Conference-goers.
Read more information about the 2026 ERA Conference.
About ERA
The 90-year-old Electronics Representatives Association (ERA) is the international trade organization for professional field sales companies in the global electronics industries, manufacturers who go to market through representative firms and global distributors. It is the mission of ERA to support the professional field sales function through programs and activities that educate, inform and advocate for manufacturers’ representatives, the principals they represent and the distributors who are reps’ partners in local territories. Visit era.org.