Making An Impact: A sneak peek into OPEN Chicago Annual Business Conferences

OPEN Chicago is postponing its Annual Business Conference this year due to the current pandemic. Our team at OPEN Chicago was looking forward to a bigger and more engaging conference this year. However, considering the health and safety of everyone, we decided to postpone it until the situation gets better. We assure you that our team is working hard to organize the next conference at a grand level.

About the conference: OPEN Chicago’s Annual Business Conference, our flagship conference, is an opportunity for young and experienced entrepreneurs and professionals to network with each other, learn from the industry leaders, and create long term professional and personal relationships.



OPEN Chicago kicked off its first Annual Business Conference in 2016. The inaugural conference marked the beginning of the next chapter in OPEN Chicago’s evolution. Among the guest speakers were some of the prominent names in the entrepreneurship industry, including, Salman Amin, COO Global Commercial Division of S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., Dr. Fahim Rahim and Dr. Naeem Rahim, Co-Founders at Idaho Kidney Institute, Asif Khan, Founder and CEO at Caremerge, Zain Jeewanjee, Chairman G1G Travel Insurance, and Carter Kennedy, CEO SoloInsight, Inc., were among many others distinguished speakers at the conference. The support and encouragement this conference garnered from the community, allowed us to continue this tradition every year with a more engaging and inclusive experience for the attendees.

Our 2017 Annual Business Conference themed “Making an Impact,” was held in 1871 - the hub of entrepreneurship in the Chicago area. The event featured an innovative program consisting of highly successful and dynamic speakers and panelists, who were leaders in their chosen fields. Jai Shekhawat, Founder Fieldglass; Board Member 1871, was the main keynote speaker. Howard Tullman, CEO 1871, also attended the conference. He spoke about the initiatives 1871 was taking to promote entrepreneurship in Chicago. To value and encourage women leadership, we invited Rida Khan, President Style Network Channel, as one of the keynote speakers. In addition, one of the prominent events at the conference was an engaging panel discussion on Changing landscape of Healthcare, Artificial intelligence and Entrepreneurship in Art.

We commenced our third Annual Business Conference in 2018. The event was packed with exciting activities including entrepreneurial stories, an IGNITE session where founders showcased their ventures, networking among participants and insightful keynote speaker sessions. Ali Jehangir Siddiqui, then Pakistani Ambassador to the USA, Raghib Hussain, Chief Strategy Officer, Marvell Semiconductor, and Aslam Khan, Founder Falcon Holdings, Vice Chairman & Former CEO TGI Fridays spoke at the conference. Young startups Nannies4us, Sahroo, Unduit LLC, and a couple of more names presented their ventures at the conference.

Our latest conference in 2019 featured a day full of interactive activities including IGNITE, a vibrant Business Pitch Competition containing prize money, where seasoned and young founders showcased their ventures.

Mehmood Khan, CEO of Life Biosciences, was the keynote speaker at the conference. Khan had previously served as the Global Vice Chairman and Chief Scientific Officer at PepsiCo which made him one of the highest ranking Pakistani-American C-suite leaders.

The 2019 conference also involved a great amount of support and contribution from the current Pakistani government. Federal Minister Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister of Pakistan for Overseas Pakistanis and HRD, had a special message for the conference attendees. He spoke about the opportunities available in Pakistan in the business and tourism sectors.

To promote Women leadership we organized a panel discussion with the US-Pakistan Women’s Council. Radhika Prabhu, Executive Director of US-Pakistan Women’s Council and Shazia Khan, CEO and Co-Founder of EcoEnergy Global LLC participated in the panel.

OPEN Chicago conferences are known to leave an impression of bittersweet memories for the participants. Both the attendees and the speakers go through a roller coaster of emotions as the speakers share inspirational stories and life lessons from their journeys, and the audience immerses themselves in the experience.

Over the past few years, Chicago has inspired more writers, innovators, and creative minds than almost anywhere in the world. Our audience includes people from all walks of life including, students, physicians, entrepreneurs, professionals and academics. These conferences are a great opportunity for seasoned entrepreneurs and business leaders to network with each other, and for aspiring entrepreneurs and students to learn from thoughtful leaders in our community.

Lastly, we would like to thank all our sponsors for their continued support throughout this journey. We want to extend our special thanks to Acer Health, RESCOM, RSM US LLP, Chestnut Healthcare, Nausheen Ali, Futurity First Insurance Group, Moin Haque Group, AMRO Group, Koordinator, KDF, Signarama, Flener IP Law, Dental360, Superhost Enterprise, AHS Consulting, SSI, Allied Asset Advisors/Imana Funds, Hilton Chicago, and Technogator for making OPEN Chicago possible.

OPEN Chicago is a voluntary not-for-profit association dedicated to the promotion of entrepreneurship and professional excellence. Our members include professionals, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, scientists, social leaders, academics, and students. Established in Boston in 1998, OPEN has chapters in Boston, Chicago, Houston, Silicon Valley, Washington, DC, New York, Atlanta, London, Islamabad, Karachi, and Lahore.