As the business events industry moves into the holiday season, myriad organizations and suppliers announced good tidings in the form of leadership appointments and executive promotions in November. Here’s our roundup on corporate event moves last month. 

CEN’s take on the biggest move in November: Twenty-four-year events industry veteran Russ Callahan was recently promoted from vice president of sales and operations to Chief Revenue Officer for Quest Events, where he is responsible for overseeing sales leadership, marketing strategy, strategic planning, and customer experience. 

The big picture: Specializing in providing creative design, production, and logistics support and custom solutions for a range of events, Quest Events is known as a market leader in event rentals and installation services. Offering 21 locations in North America, the company serves the corporate, exhibition, AV, hospitality, and weddings industries.    

Need to know: Before joining Quest in February of 2019, Callahan served in a variety of sales and management roles at Production Resource Group (PRG) over the course of more than eight years, most recently as director of sales, corporate events. He also served as director of tradeshows at Encore Productions for more than six years. 

What he’s saying: “I often refer to [my new role at Quest] as ‘from the Dock Doors out’–– if it touches the customer, I am responsible,” Callahan said. “The ability to positively impact the customer experience and build on the progress we have been able to make since the pandemic is very exciting. We have been experiencing a great deal of growth with multiple recent acquisitions, [and] we are positioning ourselves to be a very special company doing the business in ways that have not happened previously.” 

Association of Event Organisers 

The UK-based Association of Event Organisers (AEO) appointed 20-year events industry veteran Anna Golden as its new CEO, effective January 2025. She brings extensive experience from her previous role as commercial director at Olympia London, where she grew the event venue’s revenue to its highest recorded figure pre-COVID, played a pivotal role in its £1.3 billion ($1.6 billion) redevelopment plan, oversaw its award-winning original rebrand, and helped secure significant contracts with major trade and consumer shows. 

As CEO, Golden will lead the AEO’s mission to support UK event organizers through advocacy, membership growth, and strategic advancement.  

Mayfair House Hotel & Garden 

The recently renovated Mayfair House Hotel & Garden in Miami’s Coconut Grove neighborhood has tapped luxury hospitality industry veteran Michael Stephens as its new general manager. A Miami native with more than two decades of hospitality leadership experience, he will oversee all aspects of the operations of the hotel, which is managed by Crescent Hotels & Resorts. 

Stephens most recently served as the opening general manager for The Elser Hotel and Residence in Miami. His extensive career includes roles as area managing director for Mission Pacific Hotel and The Seabird Resort in North San Diego County, as well as leadership positions at Paradise Point Resort and Spa, Lansdowne Resort and Golf Club, and Grand Hyatt Sao Paulo. 

New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 

The New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center (NOENMCC) promoted 40-year team member and convention industry professional Leslie Lotten from assistant director of event services to director of event services, responsible for overseeing the comprehensive management and execution of all event-related services at the convention center, including event and exhibit services, The UPS Store, and box office operations. 

In her new role, Lotten will lead a dynamic team focused on driving efforts to enhance client satisfaction, optimizing revenue potential, and strengthening relationships with event organizers, vendors, and industry partners. She will also play a key role in the strategic planning and development of NOENMCC’s event management initiatives. 

Moss Inc. 

Event graphics and tension fabric structures provider Moss Inc. promoted Elissa Decker from director, global textile development and procurement to vice president, global procurement and textile development. Providing strategic leadership and direct oversight of the Moss global procurement organization, her responsibilities encompass the rationalizing and sourcing of raw materials, outsourced procurement manufacturing and services, and vendor diligence. She will also lead the company’s development and maintenance of global procurement systems, policies, and reporting. 

Decker has been an instrumental leader at Moss for 16 years, significantly contributing to the development and procurement of core textile offerings, while spearheading initiatives that led to substantial cost savings, quality enhancements, and the establishment of global supplier agreements. 

ASM Global  

Development and full-service venue and live events company ASM Global named Kathy Bart as the new general manager of Waco Convention Center in Waco, Texas, responsible for leading the company’s efforts in elevating the venue’s guest experience and operations, unlocking new opportunities to attract innovative programming and new events, and fostering connections to the Waco community. She also serves as director of sales and event services for ASM Global, a role she held for more than six years. 

Bart most recently served as director of sales at DeVos Place Convention Center in Grand Rapids, Mich., where she was responsible for growing and managing local, regional and national business as well as collaborating with the local entities and stakeholders to execute events ranging from public shows to large annual association conventions.    

Visiting Media 

Hospitality sales enablement solutions leader Visiting Media announced two strategic leadership transitions: Founder and CEO Ben Powers has assumed the newly created role as Chief Innovation Officer, while COO Jascha Kaykas-Wolff has been tapped to serve the company’s new CEO. 

With more than two decades of hospitality technology experience, Powers not only founded Visiting Media but also launched its TrueTour immersive selling software and SalesHub platform. As CIO, he will continue working closely with the company’s sales organization, with a focus on enhancing product vision. 

Known for leading high-performing teams and driving customer-focused growth, Kaykas-Wolff brings an extensive background in scaling global products, as well as leveraging AI and customer data at some of the most prominent tech brands including Microsoft and Mozilla, to his new leadership role. 

The company also made several additional executive appointments recently, including Senior Vice President of Global Sales Steve Sackman, Senior VP of Technology Bob Williams, and Senior Vice President of Product Management and UX Jonathan Coffey. 

Have some corporate event-related people news to share? Please send announcements and high-resolution professional headshots to lisa.savas@informa.com.

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