More Than Networking: How RISE Pop-Ups Bring Local Insurance Communities Together

The insurance industry is built on relationships, but meaningful connection does not always happen in a conference hall or behind a screen.

Sometimes it happens over bowling, mini golf, a rooftop conversation, or a panel that puts local leaders and emerging professionals in the same room.

That is the idea behind RISE Pop-Ups: local insurance events designed to bring an entire city’s insurance community together for connection, education, and career development.

From the Road to the RISE Awards to a Nationwide Event Series

RISE launched its first Pop-Up series in 2023 as The Road to the RISE Awards. The idea was to take the energy and community surrounding the RISE Awards on the road, creating opportunities for insurance professionals to connect in their own cities before coming together at RISE’s national event.

Since then, the RISE Awards have grown into a larger Leadership Summit and Awards Gala, and the Pop-Up series has grown along with them. What began as a road to one annual celebration has become a year-round way for RISE to meet insurance professionals where they are.

Each event still helps build momentum toward the RISE Leadership Summit, but the Pop-Ups have also developed an identity and value of their own. They create local access to the kind of cross-company, cross-functional relationships that can otherwise require a plane ticket and several days away from work.

Insurance Networking Events With More Purpose

Networking is part of every RISE Pop-Up, but it is not the whole point.

Each Pop-Up brings together people from across the local insurance ecosystem: carriers, brokers, claims professionals, underwriters, actuaries, risk management professionals, MGA/MGU, attorneys, insurtechs, students, emerging professionals, and established leaders. The result is not an event for one niche or job function. It is a gathering of the insurance community in that city.

That mix matters. Insurance careers rarely develop in a straight line, and many opportunities begin with exposure to a role, organization, or part of the industry someone did not know existed. A claims professional may meet a leader from underwriting. A student may have their first real conversation with an insurance executive. A longtime industry professional may reconnect with a colleague or discover a new partnership.

These interactions are more valuable when they are not built around a hard sell. RISE Pop-Ups create a relaxed setting where people can have actual conversations, learn how others are approaching the industry, and build relationships that continue after the event ends.

Education Is Built Into the Experience

RISE Pop-Ups are also designed to give attendees something useful to take back to work.

Many events include an educational panel or leadership conversation featuring professionals from the host city. Topics address the real challenges facing insurance professionals and organizations, from navigating changing markets and building influence to developing talent, strengthening leadership, and preparing for what is next.

The local format gives these conversations an added layer of relevance. Speakers can address the industries, employers, market conditions, and career opportunities shaping their region while still connecting those insights to larger issues across insurance.

Education does not have to mean sitting through hours of slides. At a Pop-Up, the formal conversation is only the beginning. Attendees can continue the discussion directly with speakers and other local professionals, ask questions, and hear perspectives from people working in different corners of the industry.

Creating a Place for Students in the Insurance Community

Students are not an afterthought at RISE Pop-Ups. They are part of the community the events are built to serve.

RISE welcomes students to attend Pop-Ups at no cost, giving them early exposure to the people, roles, and possibilities within insurance. For students exploring risk management and insurance programs, business careers, or an industry they may know little about, one local event can make insurance feel far more tangible.

They can meet professionals outside a formal interview, ask honest questions about different career paths, and begin building a network before they enter the workforce. Employers and industry leaders also gain the opportunity to meet future talent and better understand what the next generation is looking for from its careers.

Addressing the insurance talent gap requires more than telling students that the industry offers opportunity. It requires inviting them into the room and allowing them to see that opportunity for themselves.

Where RISE Pop-Ups Are Heading Next in 2026

The remaining 2026 RISE Pop-Up schedule includes events across the country, with each stop shaped by its local community:

• Detroit, Michigan | October 6: Paddle + Par, featuring pickleball, golf simulators, networking, and a panel on leadership in changing markets.
• San Diego, California | October 11: A RISE + WISE takeover at Agave Bar at the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina during WSIA week.
• Scottsdale, Arizona | October 19: Puttshack Scottsdale, featuring a leadership panel, networking, and mini golf for Target Markets attendees and local insurance professionals.
• New York City | November 10: Venue and event details to be announced.
• South Florida | December 10: The RISE Holiday Party and South Florida Pop-Up. Venue and additional details to be announced.

Dates, venues, registration information, and newly announced events are available on the RISE events calendar.

Bringing the Leadership Summit Closer to Home

The RISE Leadership Summit brings the national insurance community together for several days of education, recognition, and relationship-building. Pop-Ups carry that same spirit into local markets throughout the year.

They make leadership development and industry connection more accessible. They give local professionals a reason to step outside their own companies and usual circles. They welcome students before they have a title or a full-time role. And they help each city’s insurance community see itself as part of something larger.

That is why a RISE Pop-Up is more than an insurance networking event. It is a local gathering with a national connection, and another stop on the road to developing the industry’s next generation of leaders.

Bring a RISE Pop-Up to Your Market

RISE Pop-Ups are made possible through the support of organizations that want to invest in local insurance communities, increase their visibility, connect with talent, and help expand access to leadership development.

To learn more about sponsoring a RISE Pop-Up or getting involved with the national series, contact Whitney Durrance at whitney@riseprofessionals.com.