A special insider event at the “Woodstock for Capitalists” – the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting

Registration currently paused. 2023 event canceled.

About this event

“Loved it…quality group of attendees – great event.” – Chris Fralic, Partner, First Round Capital

“Wonderful weekend!” – Carly Zakin, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, TheSkimm

“Amazing!” – Brett Hurt, CEO and Co-Founder, data.world

“Spectacular!” – Anne Dwane, Co-Founder & Partner, Village Global (seed fund with money from Bezos, Gates, etc)

For many years now, we’ve invited CEOs, product leaders, VCs, and entrepreneurs to come together in Omaha for a special insider experience.

We hope you can join us in 2023 for our wonderful weekend of activities (see more details below).

– Before Traveling Out –

Pre-Reading (Feb – Apr)

Phyl will send out some reading he’s created over the years – his own summary of key principles, as well as recommended books, movies, and podcasts to optionally read/watch/listen to.

2022 Annual Letter Zoom ( Sun, Apr 2, 7pm ET)

All the attendees – students and adults – will be invited to read Buffett’s 2022 Letter to Shareholders (which will come out Feb 2023) and be given some questions to think about and prepare.

Phyl and his colleagues at WBRG (Warren Buffett Reading Group) will then run a 90-minute Zoom session in the same manner that they run the summer and year-long programs.

This will serve as the first part of your 2023 insider experience.

– In Omaha –

Opening Happy Hour (Thu, May 4, 6pm – 8pm)

We will all gather for a happy hour and heavy hors d’oeuvres at one of our favorite bar/restaurants in Omaha. This is a chance for you to meet your fellow attendees (both senior leaders and the students).

Speed Mentoring (Fri, May 5, 9am – 11am)

Speed mentoring – one of the highlights of the whole weekend according to past attendees – will give the adults a chance to meet and mentor the impressive high school and college students involved in the Warren Buffett Reading Group (WBRG).

Don’t miss it.

Woodstock Bootcamp and Orientation (11:15am to 12pm)

Phyl Terry, Founder, Collaborative Gain; Contributing Author, Stories from Inside the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting

Phyl will then share stories from inside Berkshire Hathaway (and the annual meeting) and walk attendees through the history, philosophy, and principles of Berkshire Hathaway.

Phyl’s unique presentation style, which blends analytical prowess with open-hearted conversation, helps attendees understand the basic philosophy and history of Buffett and Berkshire as well as some of the hidden lessons – lessons that apply to any entrepreneur, business leader, or investor (and certainly to all the students present).

Lunch (Fri, May 5, 12pm – 1:00pm)

Top 10 Lessons from Warren Buffett (1pm to 1:45pm)

Phyl Terry

Phyl will present his well-honed top 10 list of the key lessons to learn from Buffett – lessons for life, leadership, and happiness.

Big 4 Businesses of Berkshire (2pm – 3:15pm)

WBRG Students

Each year four of the students involved in WBRG each present one of the 4 major businesses of Berkshire.

They study and prepare for this.

*And* – this is really cool – we bring in key Berkshire executives to attend their presentation and then talk to our whole group.

These executives can include:

• Katie Farmer, CEO of Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad (first woman CEO of a top Class 1 railroad in the United States)
• GEICO CTO/CIO
• Tim Cook, Apple CEO (last year, Tim participated remotely – will his schedule allow him to drop by? We won’t know until game time and certainly cannot promise it – maybe 5% chance)
• Warren Buffett – last year Warren sent a message and we hope he’ll do it again in 2023 (.01% chance he’ll come in person)

Stories from My 50 Year Friendship with Buffett (3:30pm – 5pm)

Don Graham

Longtime CEO and Chairman of the Washington Post Company and now Chairman of Graham Holdings, Don Graham is a close friend of Warren Buffett’s and has become a good friend of Phyl’s.

In this amazing 90-minute fireside chat, Don speaks openly and confidentially about everything and anything Buffett, his famed mother Katharine Graham, or anything else including his tenure on the Facebook Board. His annual session with us is always one of the most treasured of the *entire* weekend.

Saturday with Buffett and Munger

The capstone of the weekend is the once-in-a-lifetime chance to see Buffett and Munger live and witness their incredible annual meeting – the “Woodstock of Capitalism.” Every capitalist should certainly attend at least once.

5am Billionaire’s Bustle

We get up early (5am) to stand in line with the Berkshire billionaires to get our seats for the famed annual meeting with Buffett and Munger. This sounds terrible but is often one of the best parts of the weekend. We bring coffee and breakfast food and build more bonds of friendship.

7am Doors Open

At 7am, we join the billionaires and others in getting our seats and then touring the famous exhibit hall featuring everything from See’s Candies to Fruit of the Loom underwear to a chance to drive a Burlington Northern train.

8:30am Annual Meeting Begins

At 8:30, the annual meeting begins often with a special video and then hours of questions from journalists, analysts, and attendees. This marathon Q&A session is truly remarkable and is a must-see for anyone interested in business – and experiencing it live is truly transformative.

Saturday Happy Hour

After the long day, you are invited to relax with us for a happy hour.

This is a great way to unwind and get to know your fellow attendees better – and reflect on everything you’ve learned over the past several days.

Sunday Brunch and Zoo Trip (on your own schedule)

For attendees who want the full experience (and instead of flying back right away get some sleep Saturday night), we encourage you to stay and go to brunch and the zoo (keep in mind that the Omaha Zoo is famous for being one of the best zoos in the world).

Bring your High School/College Students?

This year, guests can (optionally) bring their high school/college-aged kids.

For the last two years, we’ve been running the WBRG (Warren Buffett Reading Group) for high school and college students. Those students are joining us — and your kids are also welcome to attend (note: we’ll have a special two-part orientation series for all the young people to attend virtually in March and April).

If your teenager is interested in business, this will literally be a life-changing experience for them and a great bonding experience for you both.

Don’t bring your teenagers (or have no kids)?

No problem. The core of the program will still have an emphasis on adults.

Tickets

• Tickets are limited on an invitation-only basis.
• Tickets are non-refundable, and transferable only with approval from Collaborative Gain.
• Your ticket price helps subsidize WBRG students with limited resources
• Hotel information will be sent AFTER you register
• We’ll also send you suggestions for flight times and arrivals

COVID Policy

*We will be requiring proof of vaccination.*

Testimonials

“Amazing experience…learned a lot…met and reconnected with some amazing executives.” – Alex Munoz-Suarez, President, Momofuku

“A very special insider way to experience the legendary Berkshire annual meeting, with some of the most fascinating people joined together for the Friday seminars and the 4:30am wait with the billionaires. I’m so glad I finally did it.” – Jeff Glueck, CEO, Foursquare

“The Berkshire annual meeting is nothing short of inspiring – and by bringing together a wide range of industry leaders, start-up entrepreneurs and even Buffet’s own leadership, Collaborative Gain’s workshop is the way to go” – Gregg Alwine, CEO, Corsis

“Every Internet CEO should go to Berkshire once – and certainly go to with Collaborative Gain. Great group, well-organized, and fascinating experience. Terrific.” – Jordy Leiser, CEO & Co-Founder, STELLAService

“A truly transformative couple of days.” – Victor Cho, CEO, Evite

From top left corner…

• Phyl smiling;
• WBRG student Syona with Katie Farmer (Burlington CEO) after Syona presented on Burlington in front of Katie and all of our attendees;
• McKenzie, another WBRG student at a table;
• 5:30am in the billionaires line outside the annual meeting (everyone crouching down);
• Speed mentoring session with all the students and adults;
• Phyl and Don Graham;
• All of us in our seats ready to hear Buffett and Munger;
• McKenzie presenting to Tim Cook (remotely).