The Canada Sales Congress will not take place in Toronto this fall. Instead, we are moving the event to spring 2027.

And there is a reason for this change.

Over the years, the Canada Sales Congress has brought together insurance professionals, advisors and industry leaders to connect, exchange ideas and explore opportunities for growth.

We want to build on that legacy while adapting to the evolving needs of the industry.

The decision to move the Congress to spring follows feedback from several participants who pointed out that fall is an especially busy time of year, often creating scheduling conflicts. The new timing will allow us to better serve the professionals and decision-makers who make this event possible.

But this change is also part of a broader transformation.

From exchanging ideas to creating lasting value

Our industry is undergoing significant change. The distribution of life and health insurance faces growing pressures, but its long-term prospects remain strong. Supporting its continued growth requires us to rethink not only the services we offer, but also how we bring industry leaders together to address shared challenges.

Since 2022, we have embraced an innovative approach known as co-design, a collaborative process in which those directly affected by a challenge actively participate in developing solutions rather than simply being consulted.

We have since organized five collaborative workshops under the theme Vision 2035, bringing together approximately 250 industry decision-makers to explore possible futures for the insurance industry.

The most recent session took place on October 7, 2026, in downtown Toronto, bringing together 29 leaders from across the various segments of the life insurance distribution industry. We are currently consolidating the insights and recommendations that emerged from this session, some of which will help shape the program for the upcoming Canada Sales Congress in spring 2027.

These codesign sessions generated valuable discussions, fresh perspectives and a willingness to collaborate across traditional boundaries.

They also raised an important question, repeatedly expressed by participants: "These sessions were powerful discussions, but what happens next?"

That question has helped shape our next chapter.

Building an ecosystem of innovation

We have decided to focus our efforts on creating an ecosystem of innovation and creativity within Canada's insurance industry.

At the heart of this initiative will be our new Insurance Foresight and Innovation Circles, designed to connect the insights generated through collaborative workshops with our industry information platforms, including the Insurance Portal, and our annual congresses.

These Circles will transform the energy of individual workshops into an ongoing process of collaboration, exploration and action.

Our objective is to help industry leaders strengthen their ability to continuously create value, foster trust and improve the well-being of policyholders.

Innovation is a powerful way to achieve that goal.

The Canada Sales Congress will be part of this evolving ecosystem. When it returns in spring 2027, it will reflect our commitment to delivering meaningful opportunities for learning, collaboration and business growth.

Additional initiatives will be announced in the coming weeks.

Thinking differently, working together

Our approach is guided by several principles: challenging conventional thinking, learning from innovations in other industries, avoiding yesterday's solutions to tomorrow's challenges, and breaking down organizational silos.

The world around us demands nothing less.

Natural catastrophes are becoming more frequent, geopolitical tensions are reshaping supply chains, cyber risks are intensifying, artificial intelligence is transforming business practices, and consumer expectations continue to evolve rapidly.

In an increasingly unpredictable environment, our role is to help the industry understand emerging trends, anticipate disruption and identify practical solutions that protect businesses and consumers.

But innovation does not happen by chance. It requires more than a brilliant idea. It demands new ways of thinking, new ways of working and, above all, a willingness to collaborate.

That includes collaboration among competitors, sometimes called coopetition.

As the CEO of a Canadian insurance company observed during our co-design session in Toronto on October 7: "We can work together on certain issues while remaining competitors in other areas."

That perspective captures the spirit of what we are building.

What's next?

The move of the Canada Sales Congress to spring 2027 is one step in a much broader evolution of how we serve Canada's insurance community.

We will continue to bring industry professionals together, but we also intend to create new opportunities for collaboration and innovation between our events.

I invite you to follow us as we introduce these new initiatives, beginning in just a few days with an innovative discussion-based knowledge-sharing platform.

Our ambition is simple: to help the insurance industry turn ideas into action, collaboration into innovation, and innovation into sustainable growth.

Serge Therrien
President and Publisher
Insurance Journal Publishing Group