Jan 22, 2024
Event-related organizations across the U.S., especially DMOs, are kicking off the New Year with new hires, staff promotions and executive leadership announcements.
Seattle Convention Center
After serving as Seattle Convention Center (SCC) president and CEO for more than 12 years, 45-year venue management industry veteran Jeff Blosser is retiring in May 2024. During his time at the helm of the SCC, Blosser opened a new building, guided operations through a pandemic, served in leadership on numerous industry boards and was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the International… more
Jan 12, 2024
Talk to Lux Narayan, co-founder of event audience engagement technology platform StreamAlive, and it quickly becomes apparent that he is anything but your typical event tech CEO. Not only has the serial entrepreneur founded three technology companies over the past two decades, including AI-powered SaaS StreamAlive in 2021, social media benchmarking company Unmetric and online data backup company Vembu Technologies, but also he is a TED speaker, amateur standup comedian, author and storyteller who feels just as comfortable telling jokes in front of an audience as he does delivering PowerPoint… more
Dec 20, 2023
Edlen Electrical Vice President Business Development Julie Pazina was elected Nevada State Senator of District 12 in 2022, and she served in her first legislative session earlier this year. As a first-term Senator, she had eight pieces of legislation signed into law — the most of any freshman legislator.
Related: EDLEN ELECTRICAL EXHIBITIONS' JULIE PAZINA SWORN IN AS NEVADA STATE SENATOR
The Nevada State Legislature has 63 members — 21 senators and 42 assembly people. They meet in session in Carson City for 120 days every other year, so there’s a lot to accomplish in a short period of time… more
Dec 13, 2023
Like many event professionals, Stefanie Rowe did not follow a direct path into the hospitality and events industry. If anything, she imagined opening her own dance studio and performing company. While teaching dance classes post-graduation while serving at a local high-end restaurant inside a hotel, Rowe was recognized by a hospitality leader who noted her natural abilities in sales and negotiation and encouraged her to consider hospitality sales and marketing as a possible career.
“I was instantly drawn to relationship building, negotiating contracts, the fine details of a perfectly… more
Dec 11, 2023
An array of CVBs, hotels, event agencies and industry associations have been steadily hiring and promoting staff, as well as padding their executive teams as they anticipate a busy 2024.
InVision Communications
Full-service event marketing agency InVision Communications recently appointed 25-year event marketing and leadership veteran Angie Smith as its new CEO, effective Jan. 1.
Smith most recently served as head of experiential and field marketing at Atlassian, an InVision client. Previously, she spent more than three years at InVision as its group executive, strategy, a role in which… more
Nov 29, 2023
Freeman, a global events company, has revealed its CEO succession plan. Janet Dell, currently serving as the company’s president and COO, is set to step into the role of CEO, effective July 1, 2024, succeeding Bob Priest-Heck, who will retire after a remarkable 15-year tenure. He will continue as a member of Freeman’s board of directors.
Dell, who joined Freeman in 2018, has held various key positions within the company and currently oversees the execution of its long-term strategy on a global scale. Her leadership during the pandemic notably involved rehiring 95% of furloughed employees,… more
Nov 20, 2023
Corporate event-related organizations, particularly CVBs and industry associations, have been accelerating the pace of hiring this fall.
San Francisco Travel Association
San Francisco Travel Association tapped 35-year convention and tourism industry veteran Scott Beck as its new president and CEO. He succeeds Joe D’Alessandro, who will retire in December after nearly 18 years leading San Francisco’s official destination marketing organization.
Beck brings a wealth of knowledge and proven expertise in attracting events, meetings and international and domestic visitors to destinations to… more
Oct 23, 2023
Across the U.S. corporate event-related organizations are placing industry veterans at the helm of venues, event organizing and management companies and CVBs. Check them out.
Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority
The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority (CRVA) has appointed Steve Bagwell its new CEO. He will take the helm from outgoing CEO Tom Murray, who retires in November.
Now in his 28th year with the CRVA, Bagwell currently serves as vice president of venues, responsible for overseeing the management of the Charlotte Convention Center, Bojangles Coliseum and Ovens Auditorium, as… more
Oct 10, 2023
In 2023, Huong Nguyen, CEO and founder of Shiloh Events, celebrated 10 years in business as a full-service agency that specializes in managing large-scale corporate events for global brands. Established in 2013, Shiloh Events will produce 25 events in 2023 for a variety of clients, including Fujitsu, Hitachi, Sanford, Redis and Culture Amp — to name a few. Today, the company has 12 employees with people based in the Bay Area, Philadelphia, Austin, Atlanta, Miami, Los Angeles and San Diego.
With an MBA in marketing and more than 15 years of experience in the events sector, Nguyen has… more
Sep 26, 2023
The corporate event industry is continuing its strong hiring trajectory, with myriad industry professionals joining or moving up at event-related organizations, companies and venues throughout the U.S. Take a look!
Reno-Sparks Convention & Visitors Authority
The Reno-Sparks Convention & Visitors Authority (RSCVA) recently added two regional directors of convention sales: Christina Henshall and Misty Sparks representing Reno Tahoe’s group events business in the Northwest U.S. and the Midwest, respectively, responsible for soliciting and selling the Reno, Sparks and North Lake Tahoe… more
Partner Voices
MGM Resorts is committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse culture, not just among employees and guests but also within its supply chain. The company prioritizes procuring goods and services from businesses owned by minorities, women, veterans, people with disabilities, LGBTQ individuals and those facing economic disadvantages. This commitment is integral to MGM Resorts' global procurement strategy.
Through its voluntary supplier diversity program, MGM Resorts actively identifies and connects certified diverse-owned suppliers to opportunities within its supply chain. The company is more