More than 200 industry leaders will gather October 19-21 to tackle the future of warranty, quality, service, AI, connected vehicles and aftercare.
MAPconnected will bring together more than 200 leaders from across the automotive service, warranty, quality, technical assistance, supplier, dealer, technology and aftersales ecosystem for its 6th Annual Service & Warranty Lifecycle Summit, taking place October 19-21, 2026, at the Westin Southfield Detroit in Southfield, Michigan.
The Summit’s strength is the people in the room leaders bringing firsthand experience from some of the industry’s most influential OEMs, suppliers, dealers, technology companies and service organizations.
The 2026 Summit Features an Exceptional Cross-Section of Warranty Chain Leaders
Tim Turvey | Former Global Vice President Customer Care & Aftersales | General Motors
James Kiriazes | Director Customer Quality Engineering | Bridgestone Americas
Marijo Prodanic | Director Warranty Operations & Technical Assistance | Kia America
Graham Swan | Executive Director Global Warranty | Cummins
Shane Schmitt | Director Technical Hotline | Ford Motor Company
Ben Bergman | Director Customer Service | Crown Equipment
Victor Garcia | Deputy GM Warranty Group | Nissan Motor Company
Justin Brookman | Director Technology Policy | Consumer Reports
Steve Olejniczak | Associate Director Warranty | International
Josh Cohen | Manager Global Warranty Strategy & Operations | General Motors
Jim Holloway | Former General Manager Purchasing | Toyota Motor NA
Daryl Kreskowiak | Director North America Warranty Recovery | Stellantis
Peter Dentler | Warranty Program Manager Lead | Mack Trucks / Volvo Trucks
Together, these leaders represent the broader Warranty Chain from OEM warranty and quality leaders to technical assistance, suppliers, dealers, technology providers, consumer advocates and aftersales organizations.
The Question Driving the 2026 Summit: Is the industry simply processing warranty events or truly learning from them?
As vehicles and equipment become increasingly connected, software-defined and data-rich, traditional boundaries between warranty, quality, diagnostics, recalls, service and customer experience are rapidly disappearing.
The 2026 Summit will challenge industry leaders to rethink how information moves across the lifecycle and how AI, connected data and new operating models can help organizations move from reactive claims management toward earlier detection, prevention and continuous improvement.
“The future of warranty will not be defined by better claim processing alone,” said Pam Walter, Founder of MAPconnected. “The industry has an opportunity to connect the data, people and decisions that have traditionally operated in silos. This Summit is designed to bring those conversations together and challenge leaders to think differently about what happens after the sale.”
What the Industry Will Be Talking About Over The Three-Day Program
AI in Warranty & Quality: Moving beyond experimentation to practical use cases, predictive analytics and AI-supported decision-making.
Connected & Software-Defined Vehicles: Rethinking warranty responsibility, OTA updates, diagnostics, cybersecurity and long-term product support.
Warranty as Strategic Intelligence: Using warranty performance to identify organizational risk, improve quality and build executive support.
Dealer Capability & Experience: Reducing administrative burden through better workflows, certification, real-time knowledge and connected systems.
Quality, Recalls & Customer Trust: Connecting field signals to faster action before issues escalate.
Technical Assistance & Field Support: Balancing digital tools, AI and human expertise to improve diagnostic effectiveness.
Supplier Recovery & Complex Components: Addressing responsibility and financial exposure as products become increasingly interconnected.
The Future of Aftercare: Exploring who owns the customer relationship after the sale.
Featured Sessions
The Summit will feature candid discussions designed to challenge conventional thinking and examine what is changing inside today’s organizations.
The Curse of AI Island: Do the Treasures Promised by AI Really Exist?
Bridgestone Americas will share an honest look at years of AI exploration including where expectations fell short, where unexpected value emerged, and lessons learned through the rollout of a new dealer portal and AI-powered customer chatbot.
Beyond the Warranty Scorecard: Elevating Warranty as a Strategic Business Lever
Kia America will explore how warranty performance can reveal broader dealership behaviors, customer treatment and organizational risk and how those insights can help leaders build executive buy-in and secure investment.
The Hybrid TAC: Balancing Digital & Human Support
Leaders from Ford, Hyundai and Advantage Technical will discuss the evolving Technical Assistance Center and how organizations determine what can move to digital and self-service while preserving access to critical human expertise.
The Warranty Model Was Built for Hardware. What Happens When the Vehicle Becomes Software?
International Motors will host a forward-looking discussion on OTA updates, software defects, remote diagnostics, cybersecurity, connected data and the changing definition of warranty responsibility.
The Warranty Doesn’t End When the Warranty Expires: Software, Connected Vehicles & the New Product Lifecycle
Consumer Reports will explore how long-term software support, cybersecurity and evolving vehicle functionality are blurring the traditional line between warranty and product support.
Beyond the Spreadsheet: Putting AI to Work in Warranty & Supplier Quality
Sensata Technologies will examine practical opportunities for AI and technology to identify patterns, surface risk and support better decisions across warranty and supplier quality.
Additional Opportunities for Engagement, Networking & Benchmarking
The Summit opens with two interactive workshops, including a Guided Warranty & Service Contract Maturity Assessment, led by Jimmy Bynum of Garde Solutions, and Warranty Through the Eyes of Your Dealers, an interactive discussion led by Mike Roberts of MR Insights.
The VIP Dinner program will also feature MAPconnected’s AI-Service Warranty Lifecycle Management (AI-SWLM) Think Tank, including practical AI use cases and “AI in the Field” discussions.
Dedicated MAPconnected Leadership Xchange Groups will convene around member-driven roundtable topics, providing opportunities for peer benchmarking, shared problem-solving and discussion of the challenges shaping the Warranty Chain.
Supported by Industry Partners
Industry partners support the MAPconnected network and its broader mission to advance practical innovation across the service, warranty and aftercare lifecycle.
Key 2026 partners: ServiceNow, Upstream, Pegasystems, Sedgwick, Circuitry.ai, TruePic, Syncron, Advantage Technical, WarrCloud, Certum and MR Insights.
About MAPconnected
MAPconnected is an executive peer network focused on advancing the service, warranty and aftercare lifecycle through industry collaboration, benchmarking, research and practical innovation.
Through its annual Summit, Leadership Xchange Groups, AI-Service Warranty Lifecycle Management Think Tank and MyWarrantyNetwork Member Hub, MAPconnected connects leaders working to solve the industry’s most complex operational challenges.
Event Information
6th Annual Service & Warranty Lifecycle Summit
October 19–21, 2026
Westin Southfield Detroit | Southfield, Michigan
More Information:
https://www.mapconnected.com/
Media & Event Contact
Pam Walter
Founder, MAPconnected
https://www.mapconnected.com/about-us/#contact-form