Former Ireland rugby international who rebuilt his career 3X will challenge European manufacturers to rethink what it takes to turn AI disruption into their next breakthrough
MUNICH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--QAD | Redzone, the company behind the world’s leading AI-powered platform for manufacturers, announced that reinvention and transformation expert Aidan McCullen will headline Champions of Manufacturing 2026, the company's flagship event for manufacturing leaders, taking place October 8–9 in Munich.
At a time when AI is reshaping every industry, European manufacturers face a defining question: How do we focus on outcomes when there’s so much noise? Champions of Manufacturing was created to answer exactly that.
Bringing together manufacturing executives, operators, technologists, and frontline leaders from across Europe, the event will move beyond theory and hype to showcase something far more important: proof that manufacturers are already using AI to transform productivity, strengthen resilience, and unlock new levels of growth.
Aidan McCullen brings a perspective forged not in a boardroom, but in the decisions, setbacks and comebacks that all professionals need to face, whether on the field or in manufacturing operations, from the top floor to the shop floor.
A former professional rugby player with Toulouse, Leinster, and London Irish who earned his cap for Ireland, McCullen had his career upended by injury three separate times, and rebuilt it after each one. His career is a case study in reinvention under pressure.
“I've stood on a field wondering if I'd ever play again, and I've stood on a stage building an entirely new career from that same uncertainty,” said Aidan McCullen. “AI is manufacturing's reckoning. The leaders who see it as a breakthrough, not a breakdown, are the ones who will come out the other side stronger.”
From the Pitch to the Podium
After his rugby career ended, McCullen built an entirely new body of work around the mindset that carried him through it. He is the author of Undisruptable, founder of the Reinvention Summit, and host of The Innovation Show podcast, earning the 2025 Thinkers50 Innovation Award, one of the most respected honors in management thinking. McCullen's keynote will challenge attendees to apply that same mindset to their own organizations, using AI-driven change as fuel for reinvention rather than something to simply survive.
“AI is no longer a question of if, it’s already reshaping how our customers operate,” said Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD | Redzone. “What separates the leaders who thrive from the ones who fall behind is resilience: the ability to treat disruption as an opportunity instead of a threat. That's exactly what Aidan has lived, and exactly what our customers need to hear right now.”
A Manufacturing Event Built for the AI Era
While much of the market continues to talk about AI's potential, Champions of Manufacturing is focused on something more important: the proof. This is not an event about futuristic concepts or distant possibilities. It is a gathering for the manufacturers who are putting AI to work today, and for the leaders determined to build organizations that can win tomorrow.
At Champion of Manufacturing, attendees will hear directly from manufacturers already using ChampionAI, Redzone, and Adaptive ERP to deliver measurable gains in productivity, throughput, labor efficiency and profitability.
Learn more and register here.
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About QAD | Redzone
QAD | Redzone is redefining manufacturing and supply chains through its intelligent, adaptive platform that connects people, processes, and technology into a single System of Action. With three core pillars — Redzone (frontline empowerment), Adaptive Applications (the intelligent backbone), and ChampionAI (agentic AI for manufacturing) — QAD | Redzone helps manufacturers operate with Champion Pace, achieving measurable productivity, resilience, and growth in as little as 90 days. To learn more, visit www.qad.com or call +1 805-566-6100. Find us on LinkedIn, X, Facebook and Instagram.
Contacts
Caleb Finch
Public Relations
805-566-6100
publicrelations@qad.com
