The 2026 Ophthalmic World Leaders (OWL) Leadership Summit brought eye care professionals to Nashville, Tennessee, for two days of candid conversations about what it takes to lead through change.
The program focused on everyday behaviors that build trust, strengthen teams, and help leaders influence others across increasingly complex organizations.
Unable to attend? Not to worry. Our Eyes On Eyecare team captured a few of the summit’s key lessons and memorable moments—from a Glance perspective
So where did the conversation begin?
With a book club.
Attendees gathered to discuss Mel Robbins’ The Let Them Theory and how its central ideas apply to leadership.
The premise sounds simple: Let other people make their own decisions, have their own reactions, and manage their own responsibilities.
However, the group emphasized that “letting them” is only half of the framework.
What’s the second piece to this?
The second half is “let me”—let me decide how I will respond. Let me set a boundary. Let me take action on what I can control.
Applying this to the real-world: Participants discussed how this mindset can help leaders stop internalizing another person’s stress, tone, or behavior. An abrupt email may have little to do with its recipient. A colleague’s resistance to a new idea may reflect that person’s own experience or frame of reference.
Important to note, however: That does not mean leaders should ignore poor performance or harmful behavior. Instead, the framework encourages them to respond thoughtfully rather than react emotionally.
So what did the opening keynote focus on?
People.
John Sheppard, MD, MMSc, a board-certified ophthalmologist at Virginia Eye Consultants in Norfolk, Virginia, challenged attendees to remember that leadership is not about the leader—it is about everyone else.
Drawing from his experience building and leading a large ophthalmic practice, Dr. Sheppard outlined a patient-first model in which employees, referral partners, and physicians all benefit when the organization remains focused on the patient experience.
Give me the rundown on this model
What do patients want? Convenience, compassion, and confidence that the people caring for them understand their needs.
Dr. Sheppard shared principles drawn from Ritz-Carlton service training, including using a patient’s name, anticipating needs, creating a strong first impression, and providing a sincere goodbye.
- Related: See how applying the Ritz Carlton model can benefit ophthalmology practices
He also emphasized the importance of caring for employees beyond their job descriptions.
His practice, which is part of EyeCare Partners, maintains an assistance fund for employees facing emergencies such as a house fire, a broken car, or a failed heating system. Employees can also contribute through payroll deductions, creating a shared support system across the company.
What about employee performance? Dr. Sheppard encouraged leaders to place people where their strengths can produce the greatest value.
He shared examples of employees who struggled in one position but excelled after moving into intraocular lens (IOL) calculations, clinical research, or surgical centers.
How is leadership itself changing?
A panel moderated by Cynthia Matossian, MD, FACS, ABES, explored that question with Carla Mack, OD, MBA, FAAO, Dip(AAO), FBCLA; DeAnna Kovach, PharmD; and Pierre Simon, MBA.
Their career paths were anything but linear.
- Simon described taking what appeared to be a step backward in title and pay so he could move into a new part of the industry, return to Texas, and gain experiences that ultimately moved his career forward
- Dr. Mack emphasized intentionality, noting that leaders must make deliberate decisions not only about what they will pursue, but also what they will decline
- Kovach spoke about the power of observation: watching who speaks, who remains quiet, and whose ideas are being missed can help a leader develop greater empathy and create space for more people to contribute
What did they have to unlearn? The belief that a leader must have every answer.
The panelists discussed the value of saying, “I don’t know,” “I got that wrong,” or “Help me understand.”
And what about AI?
Sun Pharma’s Ryan Brown took the stage with a clear objective: give attendees tools they could begin using immediately.
His session began with the CARE-prompting framework:
- Context explains the situation.
- Action defines what the AI should do.
- Result describes what the finished output should look like.
- Expectations establish the quality, tone, limitations, or other requirements.
Brown compared a vague artificial intelligence (AI) prompt to making a wish without explaining the details. The tool may technically deliver what was requested, but not in a useful form.
He also encouraged attendees to organize their AI work into projects rather than placing every conversation into one continuous thread.
You may ask: Is AI doing all the work? Not quite.
Brown reminded attendees that the person presenting the information remains responsible for its accuracy, noting that AI can move someone from creator to editor, but it cannot remove human judgment, fact-checking, or accountability.
How did Day 2 open?
Line dancing (and no, that isn’t a typo; we mean that quite literally).
The activity provided an immediate lesson in leadership: When the person in front does not know the next step, everyone behind them becomes confused.
From there, attendees divided into workshops focused on communication and career development.
During the communication workshop, Erin Maltbie, an executive leadership coach, introduced a helpful reminder for speaking clearly: the point-proof-prompt framework.
- Point states the main idea
- Proof provides the evidence or example
- Prompt identifies the desired action or next step
The goal: to stop burying the main message.
So how do leaders influence people they don’t manage?
That question drove a workshop led by Sight Sciences' Christian Taylor, MBA, and Eyes On Eyecare’s very own Rachel Krug, who discussed leadership—up, down, and across an organization.
The session began with trust, in which Krug introduced a “trust loop” that started with listening deeply, not simply waiting for a chance to respond.
As for leadership across an organization:
- Leading up refers to connecting a recommendation to the priorities of senior leadership
- Leading down requires honesty and empathy
- While leaders may not be able to provide every resource or answer immediately, they can acknowledge, purposefully communicate, and offer short and long term solutions
- Leading across translates to building relationships before they are needed.
- Early collaboration produces stronger recommendations and better outcomes
And what role does inclusion play in retention?
A significant one.
J. Mori Johnson, founder & CEO of Beacon Whitaker LLC, closed the formal programming with a session on psychological safety, inclusion, and belonging.
Her central message: Employees choose to commit to or leave an organization due to daily leadership behavior.
Give us a look at a few questions from this session.
What are employees evaluating? Not only what a job will pay them, but also what it will cost them emotionally.
Will they have to sacrifice their confidence, energy, mental health, voice, or identity to succeed there? Psychological safety allows employees to raise concerns, respectfully challenge an idea, admit a mistake, or suggest a new approach without expecting humiliation or retaliation.
How can leaders create it? By responding to candor with curiosity rather than judgment.
- Clarify expectations before assigning work
- Explain what was decided, why it was decided, what happens next, and whether someone needs a follow-up
- Paying attention to the voices that are consistently missing from the conversation is critical for inclusive leadership.
Lastly, what was the biggest takeaway?
To put it simply: Leadership is not a destination.
Leaders do not have separate professional and personal identities. Self-awareness, empathy, curiosity, and humility shape how they show up everywhere.
Trust is built through listening, communicating clearly, following through, and creating an environment where other people can do their best work.
And while innovation may change what’s possible, leadership determines whether people trust the future enough to move toward it.
Our takeaway: All in all, the 2026 OWL Leadership Summit asked attendees to become better leaders and put learning into action.
Editor's note: Artificial intelligence was utilized as an editorial tool to develop this story; all content was approved by the Glance editorial team prior to publication.