Speakers

Co Founder of the Association for Women in Events & Lead Meeting Planner at Altria Group Distribution Company. Carrie is a 15 year veteran of the events industry and has served on several advisory councils and committees to include: PCMA’s Emerging Leaders Committee, Cleveland CVB Advisory Board, Team San Jose Advisory Council, Reno-Tahoe Advisory Board, Salt Lake City Advisory Council, Destination Hotels Advisory Council, Green Meetings Industry Council Foundation (Chair- 2014/2015). She has also received several industry accolades and was named Collaborate Magazine's "40 under 40" industry planners to watch. She was also named Smart Meetings Magazine’s Top 50 Smart Women of 2017 and inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2019. That year she was named Successful Meetings Magazine’s “Top 25 Most Influential” in the meetings industry as well. Carrie has been a finalist for the prestigious “Meeting Planner of the Year” honor for PCMA. Carrie's new venture is A Woman With Drive (awomanwithdrive.com)-- a lifestyle blog on leadership and travel/golf. Carrie splits her time between Denver and Virginia with her min pin Ginger and you’ll often find her golfing in the summer, and skiing in the winter.

David Adler, Chairman and founder of BizBash (http://www. bizbash.com) is a veteran media, publishing, PR, marketing, and event industry entrepreneur. He is also an event industry keynote speaker and columnist as well as the host of the GatherGeeks. He believes that event organizers of all types need to be a “high performance collaboration artists” and founded BizBash in 2000 to further that cause. The company has grown to be the largest B2B media company for the events industry with over 2.5 million user sessions annually. In December 2019, Adler sold 80% of the company to Tarsus, the third largest global exhibition company as a part of their Connect Group. Previously Adler was VP of Corporate Communications for the publishing firm, Macmillan, Inc. and the magazine publishing giant, PRIMEDIA. Following graduation from College, Adler founded the society magazine, Washington Dossier that was sold after 14 years of operations and become the VP of Passion Branding/Cause Marketing for Cone Communications where is worked for such clients as Avon, FTD, JFK Library, Reebok, Polaroid and others.

Building and leading teams to make magic inspires Christine's approach to producing events. Christine got her start in the retail sector working with brands such as Gap Inc., Williams-Sonoma Inc. and Lucky Brand. 5 years ago over a cocktail she took the leap to corporate events. In the 5 years with MCW Events Christine has trotted the globe creating moments and experiences that could make your toes curl. She attributes this success with strong partnerships amongst awesome clients and vendors. With the tongue in cheek nickname "The Handler" she sees her projects end-to-end, on-time, on-budget and with a dash of band leader.

Amelie works with teams as they navigate and curate their content, supporting strategic decision making aligned with a perspective on the attendee and the designed experience. She begins her process with patterns, trends and analysis, and from there supports the design to craft a tailored journey infused with creativity, activity and meaningful visuals. This results in memorable and bespoke experiences, that ensure that all attendees are engaged with the message and content. Amelie is passionate about learning and engagement strategies that support meaningful human interaction and a lasting content experience. She worked on the Exhibition Development for the Smithsonian Institution, Inter-American Development Bank and ASAE as well as on a number of brand projects where she provided Content and Engagement Strategy and holds Masters Degrees in Exhibition Design and Fashion Design.

Linda Baker, CMP is the Founder and President of Conference Managers. Our company’s vision, for over 30 years, is to connect people through meaningful experiences. Linda’s role is to implement the organization’s mission, vision, and overall direction. Her favorite aspect of being a part of the Conference Managers team is providing new ways for conference participants to engage and learn. She is a life-long planner, and loves the variety, people, and challenges that go into creating a successful event. Linda lives in the Shenandoah Valley with her husband, 9 dogs, and 3 cats.

Corbin Ball, CSP, CMP, DES, MS is an international speaker, consultant and writer helping clients worldwide use technology to save time and improve productivity. After 18 years running international city-wide technology meetings, Corbin transitioned in 1997 to become a highly acclaimed speaker with the ability to make complex subjects understandable and fun. Corbin is a 2018 inductee into the Event Industry Council's Hall of Leaders, the most prestigious honor in the meetings, conventions, exhibitions and events industry. He is the only person to have received both the MPI International Supplier of the Year and the MPI International Chapter Leader of the Year awards. Corbin has been named as one of "The 25 Most Influential People in the Meetings Industry" five times by Successful Meetings/MeetingNews magazines.

Amy Barone is chief strategy officer of Splash, where she leads teams in building product, messaging, and marketing programs. With 20 years of experience in the event marketing industry, she is recognized as an innovative leader in the space.

Sierra Barter Terry lives in coastal RI by way of Wisconsin with her husband and three dogs. As a trained bootybarre instructor, she has taught barre at studio47 for nearly two years, practicing for over 10. Her favorite barre move is chair and go-to accessory is the band. In her classes, always look for a girl-power playlist and lots of planks.

Jeremy is an accomplished, mission-focused, and energetic creative Director of Strategic Operations at Silver Fox Productions with 13+ years of diverse and transferable experience developing and delivering impactful, engaging content and media solutions in fast-paced business environments.

Amy Blackman is a Brooklyn native, Los Angeleno for 24 years, channel swimmer, academia addict, twice daily meditator, music business refugee and solo traveler. Now a principal strategy consultant for Fruition Co, she was VP of Contend Immersive- a digital art and design collective. She served as CEO of Sila Sveta USA, Russia’s largest interactive media and conceptual design company. Amy had a long career in the music industry, founding AmyBMGMT and serving as its CEO from 1996-2013, managing the careers of Grammy award winning artists and producers.

Justin is a seasoned creative strategist and experience architect with a background in integrated marketing, media strategy and event production. He has collaborated with teams at companies such as Google, YouTube, Facebook, Land Rover, Lexus, Lincoln Motor Company to develop experiences that have fostered connections between the brands and their audiences, helping pique awareness, interest and loyalty. Justin specializes in crafting narratives that will connect all of the dots, developing a consistent tone and message to be woven through the entire experience. His passion for storytelling comes from his upbringing in theater, which sparked his interest in focusing on divergent thinking as the foundational tool he employs to cultivate successful results with clients.

Specializing with women leaders, Randi Braun is an executive coach, consultant, speaker, and the Founder of Something Major. She has coached leaders ranging from Fortune 500 executives to entrepreneurs. A thought leader who has been featured by Forbes, The Washington Post, and Parents Magazine, Randi speaks frequently for organizations including Uber, The Embassy of Canada, and UCLA's Anderson School of Management. Prior to founding Something Major, Randi was a fundraiser-turned-business-development executive. As a sales leader, Randi generated tens of millions of dollars for a diverse portfolio of organizations including non-profits, publicly traded and privately held companies, and tech start-ups.

Stephanie was raised and resides in the Pacific Northwest. She is a lover of running, dogs, and all things comedy. As a sales consultant entering the events industry as a pandemic hit, she has had hundreds of conversations surrounding how to execute a fully virtual event with professionals spanning all industries. She has an optimistic approach to how the world is shifting to the new solutions emerging in the event space.

Mandy Brown is an event planning and destination professional passionate for group engagement, mentorship, continuing education and leadership. She works in national sales for a large yacht company, and has also worked in destination management, event design and production, as well as many other hospitality roles through her career and volunteer contributions to this industry. Mandy teaches at San Diego State University on the topics of destination management services and virtual meetings and events. She lives in North Park San Diego, enjoys yoga, family friends and the amazing community found in the meetings and events industry.

Powerful, positive, and practical is how Erick Burton is frequently described. Erick Burton is known as the “The Leadership Accelerator.” There are no barriers for Erick in the various ways he motivates people. As a division director for a fast-growing Fortune 500 company in the United States, Erick led his division to an annualized growth rate of 350%, proving his practical, hands-on approach. Since 1996, Erick has spoken in 48 states and 4 countries outside of the United States of America. He is the founder of The Burton Leadership Center, a 28-acre facility near Kansas City, Missouri. It features a Leadership Course designed to develop organizational and personal leadership. Erick Burton’s expertise in leadership acceleration is included in his books on leadership and in a personalized leadership assessment called “The Leadership Accelerator TM.”

As a strategic leader across a number of agencies, Dax Callner has over 20 years of experience developing marketing programs for some of the world’s leading brands, including P&G, American Express, Facebook, GE, eBay, MasterCard, Google, Intel, Microsoft, Pitney Bowes, Motorola, Dell, Kraft, General Mills and many others. His work has included the development of multi-channel marketing campaigns, digital strategies, street-marketing initiatives, business and consumer events. Dax is also a musician who regularly performs with his original rock band, Super Jelly.

From world-record-breaking pilot to paraplegic plane crash survivor. In 2013 Ryan Campbell became the youngest person to fly solo around the world at age 19. After two years of planning and fundraising over $250,000 from a laptop computer, Ryan set off solo around the world. 24,000 nautical miles, 35 stops, and 15 countries later, Ryan made history. Two years later Ryan's life changed following an engine failure on takeoff in a vintage plane. A severe crash, only survivor, and paraplegic diagnosis. What followed was a life-changing journey, not only learning to walk but fly once again.

As a Senior Event Manager at Dynamic Events, I passionately take on any role needed to ensure that we execute and live up to our mission of cultivating memorable experiences. With my background and focus on large corporate events, my expertise lies in managing large teams across time zones and geographic borders, ensuring that the event is supported fully from a logistics and attendee experience standpoint. Communication is the most powerful tool in my management toolbox and I truly believe that a successful execution can only be achieved by a strong partnership between myself and the client. On events big and small, I work closely alongside the client in understanding their vision. My passion lies in exceeding expectations and strategically bringing my client’s vision to life. I enjoy working with people, making connections, and helping put together all the pieces of the puzzle! I also really enjoy working with data. Like REALLY enjoy it! Nothing makes me happier than creating my annual Thanksgiving spreadsheet complete with recipes, shopping lists organized by department, and oven timings.

Usha is a learning technology enthusiast with 14yrs of experience in Software and Learning Technology field. She is passionate around the area of trends in future technology and how it can make learning a fun yet effective experience for learner. Usha has been working as Learning Experience Strategist for Intel Sales and Marketing organization leading strategy to bring highly interactive and immersive learning experiences to Face to Face, Virtual and Blended Learning Solutions. Software engineer in heart, Usha is curious and exploring day in and day out the possibilities of bringing in personalize learning experiences which is tied back to learner's unique learning style.

May-Lynne Chen-Contino is the CEO of HelloSponsor, an event technology company that enables event & tradeshow managers to streamline the planning and execution of their virtual & live event sponsorships so they can effectively measure and grow their sponsorship ROI. May has spent her career in technology and is a former event manager herself for both Fortune 500 companies and startups. In her spare time, she teaches Krav Maga (self-defense) to adults and children, shares her latest cooking creations & restaurant reviews on her food-based Instagram account @gourmay_eats, and enjoys time with her two pups, Cali & Shiba.

20+ year events technology leader with a passion for delivering innovative technology solutions for enterprise professionals. Dedicated to building client partnerships by putting customer service and user experiences as top priorities

Naomi brings strategic creative thinking to the development of experiential engagements. She works with event teams as they navigate times of change, innovation and transformation. Using human-centered-design techniques, she develops customized innovative planning tools and audience empathy approaches that elevate messaging delivery and activation for her clients. Naomi is the Founder of Storycraft Lab, an Experiential Engagement Agency and Host of the Futures Forum, an innovation think tank.

Ryan is the co-founder of Event Farm and currently serves as the Chief Strategy Officer of MemberSuite (Event Farm's parent company). He has been an event producer and experiential marketer for 15+ years. He's worked with some of the largest brands and agencies in the world including Nike, Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Adobe, JP Morgan Chase, and dozens more to help execute thousands of event experiences around the world. He has an insatiable passion for experience design and leveraging new technologies to wow attendees.

Cynda is a third-party planner turned in-house corporate event manager with 6 years of experience. She and a team of five determine logistics, communications, and related activities that support company conferences, meetings and incentives. A Florida native, Cynda holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Florida. She has earned the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation, and is using it to give back in the community by volunteering her skills as an event planner. In her free time, she enjoys cheering on local Jacksonville teams like the Jumbo Shrimp, Icemen, and of course, the Jaguars.

As Director of Event Content, Allison manages the development of the content hosted at VMware’s annual global user conferences. A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Business School, Allison brings 20+ years in the conference content production arena to VMware. In her spare time, Allison enjoys going to the gym, spending time with loved ones, and experiencing God.

Over the last 30+ years Scott has led teams in the design, production, and execution of hundreds of face-to-face and phygital brand experiences for globally renowned brands in over 40 countries. He co-founded INVNT in 2008 – at the height of our last recession – after he and co-founder, Kristina McCoobery recognized there was an inherent need to disrupt the traditional approach to how brand events are created, designed, budgeted and delivered. Under Scott’s leadership the agency has grown to eight offices in five countries, and expanded its offering to include content studio, HEVĒ and brand strategy firm, Folk Hero.

Endless Events founder, Will Curran has been named one of the most influential people in the meeting & events industry, one of the 40 under 40 event industry leaders, 35 entrepreneurs under the age of 35, and Inc Magazine’s Coolest College Start-up all before graduating college. Will started his first company in high school and has now worked in the production of large event clients such as Emerald City Comicon, Anheuser-Busch, Warner Brothers, Morton Salt & Uber. His team’s mission? Simplify the event planning process by creating the equation for an event’s perfect solution.

Shannon Malkin Daniels is an entrepreneur, author and professional speaker who views obstacles as opportunities and believes anything is possible with the right combination of creativity, hard work and perseverance. Applying this mindset has enabled Shannon to develop innovative solutions and stand out as a leader. In 2017, she founded encaptiv, an award-winning interactive presentation and events platform that focuses on content delivery and audience engagement. Shannon is a TEDx Speaker, 40 Under Forty, holds a master’s in interpersonal communication from the University of Central Florida, and has served on the faculty at Columbia University and Iona College. She is also co-founder and a board member of Stamford Innovation Week, a week long celebration of innovation and technology.

Strategic leader with over 10 years of event management experience. Excels at building strong relationships, developing high performers to reach the next level in their career, while delivering projects on time and within budget. Proven ability to inspire and motivate internal and external teams while bringing passion about putting the customer experience first. Gallup Strengths include: Restorative, Individualization, Strategic, Achiever, Competition.

Owner of Source of Knowledge, Inc. for over 20 years. Expert in Content Capture and Delivery for over 120 events per year. I've seen it all from cassette and VHS tapes to virtual events. Some of my clients were "snot nosed kids" and now they have grown up kids.... I love being involved in an industry that is evolving and changing, whether it wants to or not. Graduate of USC, Fight on!

Angie Dobransky is a success coach, speaker, writer, and thought leader. She is a lover of life, a connector of people, and she finds joy in showing others the path to their full potential. Humble beginnings led to working her way through college. Then came a couple of decades in fashion as a buyer and a vendor. Next came owning and operating a business coaching franchise for over a decade. Now the founder of RAD Strategic Partners, she leads retreats in Baja Mexico and works with people dedicated to growth, development, and living a life of passion, purpose & joy.

As the co-founder of PechaKucha, the highly-visual and efficient storytelling format of 20 image-based slides that automatically advance after 20 seconds, Mark Dytham has applied his architectural mind to building not only a democratic platform but a global physical, social network of creatives. PechaKucha Nights take place in over 1200 cities around the world and are now even more connected as events go virtual.

After 30 years in the events business, Lynn is a sought-after industry leader and speaker. As the Founder of Proper Planning, Lynn has built a team of event professionals, together they produce nearly 100 events a year worldwide. Her dedication to innovative guest experiences as well as her team's ability to execute a flawless event has allowed them to grow their client base to include Microsoft, Amazon, Nike, Comcast, GeekWire, Housing WA, TRENDS, The 3% Conference, and The Better Man Conference, among others. Lynn is passionate about sharing what she has learned with industry peers.

Sam Eitzen is the co-founder and CEO of The SnapBar, an Inc. 500 company, that uses photo and video experiences to help planners, producers and marketers create better engagement at events. Along with his team at The SnapBar, Sam has had the privilege of working at events like CES, Coachella, and SXSW with clients including Google, Nike, Disney, Louis Vuitton, MasterCard and many others. Sam also co-founded Keep Your City Smiling, a company born as a result of the global health crisis. Keep Your City Smiling is a gift box company that supports and showcases small business vendors.

Pete believes that human connection is vital in the era of digital transformation and over the past decade has turned that belief into a mission to find new ways to bring the tech industry together. Today, Pete’s company Modev organizes some of the world’s top events, such as VOICE and Spinnaker Summit. Modev is a global team of more than 40 event organizers, digital marketers, producers and community builders. Pete has been a contributor nationally at NPR, CBS, NBC and serves as the on-air “Tech Expert” for Fox 5 DC where he appears regularly to provide commentary on technology news that impacts consumers. Modev is based in Arlington, Virginia where Pete resides with his wife, two kids and dog Maisey.

Brian Fanzo is a digital futurist keynote speaker who translates the trends of tomorrow to inspire change today. Founder of @iSocialFanz His customized and personalized programs showcase real-world stories and examples of forward-thinking people and businesses. He teaches companies of all sizes how to leverage technology in real-time in order to engage their customers at the right time. Brian has a gift for bringing people together online and offline. He has worked in 76 countries, highlighting his passion for change, collaboration, and technology. Host of the FOMOFanz Podcast.

At 26 years old, I am a professional CrossFit athlete and also the founder of Grown Strong. I have competed at the CrossFit Games seven years in a row. Last year, I earned the title second fittest team on earth. At Grown Strong, my mission is to inspire women to live and breathe their passions to be strong and confident in all aspects of life. You can find me on Instagram @laurenfisher with a following of over 1.2 million.

Andy Fitzsimon is the VP of Strategy and Innovation at Outfit. Prior to Outfit, Andy led strategy and execution for the APAC Office of Technology within Red Hat, the world’s largest provider of enterprise open source infrastructure. Andy was a foundational client for Outfit during his time as a Global Brand Manager and joined in May 2020 to further bridge the open creative community and the enterprise.

Is the co-founder of Our Little Venice and a senior Safety & Health Engineer by trade. With her new venture, A Social Selling Life, Ilia teaches people how to leverage LinkedIn to scale sales with Social Selling strategies. A mom, wife, a writer and an entrepreneur, has used her own fears and insecurities to help women, especially immigrants to feel proud of their multiculturalism, to step up in their lives while loving themselves and change their old beliefs to a "I-can-and-I-will" attitude.

Kerri is the President and founder of Ovation. She has successfully run her company virtually since day one, building and maintaining relationships in a virtual environment for well over a decade. A professional actress since childhood, her company offers transformative Professional Presence and Speaker Development training helping business professionals all over the world Get Prepared, Get Confident, and Get Ovation!

Biologist turned SaaS marketer, Tom leads the marketing team at SpotMe. Tom is fascinated with how events fit into the experience economy. In his role, he is turning his scientific background onto the event industry and formulating what it takes to deliver an event experience.

I have been a creative person my entire life. Have worked in animation, to advertising to selling my work in galleries to teaching people how to paint. I wish to bring creativity out of the studio and into peoples lives. As creative coach I see that what holds people back in the studio is the same mindset that holds us back in our lives. I believe people are naturally creative. It is just take a shift of perspective and cultivating some creative habits to find passion and purpose in our lives. I am thrilled to be your creative tour guide.

As an Event Manager at the ever-growing Dynamic Events, Kayla excels in team management, sponsor and expo, event logistics, and project management. She is a highly motivated, energized and experienced industry expert with a proven track record in building and managing multiple events for business companies of all sizes. Kayla has always had a passion for movement and balance in life, and this led her to become a Certified Yoga Teacher. No matter the day, the event or what is going on around us, she feels that we can count on yoga, or any other movement, to reset and recharge.

Socio is an event technology company that helps enterprises and SMBs optimize their events - in-person, virtual, or hybrid. A few of our clients include Microsoft, Google, Pinterest, PepsiCo, Harvard, and thousands of other companies & organizations in 40+ countries. As a Customer Success Manager, I love helping our customers take their events to the next level!

Ira is an accomplished marketer with a proven track record of creating successful events, sponsorship activations and trade show exhibit experiences that engage B2B audiences, grow businesses and build brand loyalty. At GES, Ira works with Exhibition clients to help them grow their events and enhance the attendee/exhibitor experience by applying his experience from working in marketing communication leadership roles for industry leading brands like Coca-Cola and Charles Schwab, and his successful marketing consulting practice working with industry associations and show organizers. Ira received his MBA in Marketing from George Washington University and his BBA from the University of Georgia. www.amplifymc.com

Sylvia Gonner is the cuturewiz with expertise on how to grow globally and create events for international audiences. She speaks 6 languages, has traveled to more than 70 countries, and throughout her career in international management has led events that attract attendees from 100+ countries in multiple languages. She recently created CultureWiz to collaborate with other professionals who are passionate about leveraging our cultural differences around the world. Join her at www.theCultureWiz.com - IG: #theCultureWiz - email: [email protected]

An audience obsessed, data-driven marketer clinging to the belief that good advertising is a blend of art and science, Gary is the managing partner and director of strategy at Convoke, a Seattle-based marketing consultancy focused on gaming, esports and tech. A first generation Hispanic-American, Gary is a member of the Latino business leadership group The Alumni Society and holds a master’s degree in integrated marketing communication from Northwestern University.

Party hats, cocktail glasses and sequin gowns are just a few things that you can find plenty of in this entrepreneur’s home. Life is always a party with Addie Graham-Kramer. Literally. After having planned events and managing public relations for over a decade in the corporate world and non-profit sector, she took a leap of faith in October 2013 and launched The Event Company. Addie is passionate about encouraging other females to be empowered to follow their dreams, just as she has done and to give all that they can to their community. Because of this, she was recently recognized by her peers throughout the events industry as one of Connect Magazine’s 40 Under 40. Since launching the company, Addie and her team have designed and planned over 245 events in 16 states across the country. These events have raised over $8.2M in that timeframe. When she’s not building dreams through events, Addie stays busy playing a superhero alongside her little boys, William and Calvin and cruising around town with her husband in his classic cars.

We all love IRL but let’s face it, we are not going to meet face to face any soon. Angage can help bridge the "virtual" gap by helping you pivot to virtual events. After all, online events are much more environmentally sustainable than physical events. With a carbon print, food waste and the usual paraphernalia drastically reduced, virtual events do make a difference, both for the Earth and your wallet! Less constraints also mean a larger audience reach. Good news, you have the #marketing ready and we have the technology ready. Let’s join forces!

As VP of Strategy for Opus, Mary leads the Insights and Analytics team working with the largest technology companies in the world. With a deep background in business strategy, brand development, qualitative and quantitative market research, and data analytics, she leads a team of researchers, strategists, and data analysts. Mary’s background includes 20+ years of transforming organizations, building global brands, and leading strategic marketing and communication programs on both the agency and client sides, including Razorfish, Microsoft, and IBM. Her client work spans across industry sectors and includes leading and measuring initiatives for Amazon Web Services, Intel, Uber, McDonald’s UK, Hyundai, Bank of America, AT&T, and several others in energy, healthcare, and CPG. She also has experience in political public relations, media relations, and corporate communications in both the public, non-profit, and private sectors.

Ben Hindman is leading the event marketing automation platform used by over half of the Fortune 500. Prior to Splash, Hindman was head of events for publishing giant Thrillist - where he produced everything from mystery fly-aways to full-scale concerts.

David is no stranger to technical innovation having spent 30 years in the Financial Services Industry. working first with developers on the introduction of lap top computers for the national sales forces Later as Partner and Compliance officer for independent financial advisers, he set up client management software and worked with several software house to bring about an integration between the basic software ,quotation and analysis systems. Now with Ablio he’s working with the CEO to form partnerships with technical innovation companies for conferences and events to look for ways to integrate similar event solutions.

Ify Ifebi is the founder and CEO of Vendorspace, a vendor marketplace that helps companies find, book and monetize events. Previously, she owned an event production company that produced live events for social good, working with brands like Live Nation, Coca-Cola, iHeartMedia, Red Bull and many more. She graduated from Howard University with a degree in marketing and is now a mother of 3.

Therese provides thought leadership to event organizers and agencies and is passionate about taking the Pain out of Procurement. She has over 30 years of business experience and managed procurement strategy for Microsoft’s event portfolio for 15 years. She has deep expertise in Event Procurement Strategy, with a focus on Strategic Meetings Management, Contract Negotiations, Payment Solutions, and Supplier Engagement. She also specializes in helping event agencies navigate their clients’ procurement processes.

Shannon Jasper is a field marketing manager on the Adobe commercial field marketing team, responsible for field activates for Adobe’s Marketo Engage product in the West region. Prior to joining Adobe, Shannon spent time at both small startups and enterprise organizations focusing on event strategy, corporate marketing, and public relations. Outside of work, Shannon enjoys spending time in nature and taking advantage of all the outdoor activates Colorado has to offer.

What’s my passion? Leading the best event registration team in the business. Events have evolved into brand experiences, and I believe customers can and should demand more from their event technology. With 20+ results-oriented years in tech and event marketing, I help real people overcome seemingly impossible challenges. Let's talk! I’m always searching for ways to innovate, drive strategy, and improve returns - but mostly love to help people learn and grow.

I craft communications in the context of a campaign arc, across the spectrum of channels and with the authentic voice of the brand or organization. I help the team to understand not just what is being said, but how we are saying it, and where we are saying it. Understanding the Why behind the What ensures that audiences appreciate the intent and power of the experience we are asking them to engage with. I have worked on multi-faceted communications campaigns and served as the Head of the internal creative agency for a global charity. Working with all teams to develop and launch traditional and digital communications while integrating social media activities and communities into broader marketing campaigns is a big part of my work as a communication strategist.

Mahoganey Jones is the National Corporate Sales Manager of the Halifax Convention Center where you are the center of it all! Mahoganey is also the founder of the EventPreneur Club and works with organizations and entrepreneurs to build, market and grow their businesses through practical workshops and sessions developed to build, market and grow a profit.

Sanjib Kalita is Editor in Chief of Money20/20, a business he helped grow from startup to the world’s leading series of events focused on the future of money. He is also CEO of Guppy, a company creating and operating a distributed ledger for consumer credit data. A fintech leader for over two decades, he has worked for large organizations like Google, Intel and Citi as well several startups with successful exits. Sanjib has an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management, as well as Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University.

Jennifer Kerhin, President of Sponsorship Boost LLC, has more than 20 years experience working with association tradeshows and business development functions. Jennifer has a certification of exhibition management (CEM), a MBA from the Johns Hopkins University and substantial executive level association experience. She founded Sponsorship Boost to support the mission of associations by increasing their non-dues revenue through exhibits, sponsorships, advertising and corporate partnerships.

Ronni Kimm is a designer and innovation strategist based in Los Angeles. Her work has spanned 20 years of diverse partnerships with organizations, creatives, and technologists. Her most recent work focuses on using envisioning and storytelling to help clients imagine new possibilities for their future. She has led future visioning initiatives with Autodesk, Clif Bar, Ford, Nike, among others. As an educator, her background includes lectureships, and visiting artist/critic roles at the Art Center College of Design, California Institute of the Arts, Cal State Long Beach, General Assembly, Otis College of Art & Design, SCI-Arc, UCLA, and USC. As part of her exploration of new meanings and forms, Ronni loves to incite conversations and collaborations with brilliant thinkers and doers whenever possible.

Leslie King is a Senior Events Specialist at Databricks, a software, data, and AI company in San Francisco. Leslie’s experience includes live and virtual events and conferences, advertising, branding, e-commerce, graphic design, and marketing. She is a graduate of the University of San Francisco with a degree in Advertising. A lover of all types of events, when not planning events for work, you may find her planning events for her 60+ person Burning Man camp, extravagant birthday parties for her friends, or travel adventures around the world. In her spare time, you'll probably find her sewing a crazy costume for an upcoming music event. She has also recently become a published author in Forbes.

Liz King Caruso is an Event Specialist, Consultant & Speaker who is passionate about impactful, successful & fun events. Liz launched Liz King Events while still running events FT for Columbia University and quickly became a thought leader/influencer amongst her peers after voraciously sharing content on event best practices. Liz has been featured in Successful Meetings list of 25 Most Influential People in the Meetings Industry, Connect Magazine's list of 40 Under 40 Up-and-Coming Event Planners, and Meetings and Conventions list of Top Influential Female Leaders in the Events Industry, amongst other awards.

Joy Kohnken is a strategic marketing professional with years of success leading marketing programs including event strategies, attendee experiences and operational excellence. With a growth mindset, Joy has an extensive track record in all aspects of marketing programs including user conferences, partner programs, leadership conferences, trade shows, conference management and special events. Career highlights include working in the tech industry for companies such as CA Technologies, Rally Software, and Akamai Technologies. The gravitational pull towards tech came after more than 10 years on the B2C side including a key role in Media & Special events for the Salt Lake Olympic and Paralympic Organizing Committee and Publicis managing accounts such as McDonald's, Nestlé, Swatch, and other sports marketing, financial services and consumer brands. Connecting high performance cross functional teams to business initiatives fuels Joy's passion to create valuable in-person and virtual interactions by fusing off-line experiences and online marketing to build customer trust through engagements and learning inclusive of integrated marketing campaigns.

Lily is a serial entrepreneur in Kenya, working mainly as a certified events producer for MDV Global. She is also head of strategy and finance for Big Box Group. With interests that include travel and technology, she has fused her career to encapsulate these two. Her bachelor's degree in Business Management & IT has given her an edge in her 8-year career. She acquired a Masters in Events Organization, Protocol & Business Tourism to secure a place as a sort after consultant. Having worked in concerts, product launches, conferences, and sports events she is well vassed on the event execution, planning, and concept creation.

With 16+ years working in the event technology industry, Hilary Laney is owner and CEO of Evia Events. She leads her team in providing virtual event services and products for customers such as Amazon, Smartsheet, Brooks, Salesforce, Microsoft, Starbucks, Tableau, and ServiceNow. She bought her business from her dad in 2017 and is determined to build it with sustainability, equity, compassion, and diversity in the forefront of its growth. She was selected as a 40 Under 40 Honoree by the Puget Sound Business Journal and led her company in becoming Gender Equity Certified by GEN.

Liz believes there's nothing more valuable in an ever-more-disconnected world than engaging people face-to-face for collaboration, ideation, and experimentation to make us better professionals - and that's okay if face-to-face has to mean on screen for now! Liz has led events and teams for National Instruments, Dell, GasPedal, IBM, and several nonprofit associations. Liz was nominated for the 2018 Event Marketer B-to-B Dream Team and was awarded the 2019 Entrepreneur of the Year from Smart Meetings. Liz is now living the dream with her unjob as not only CEO of Haute Dokimazo but also partner and Chief Experience Officer of Haute Companies, which includes Haute Dokimazo, Haute Rock Creative, Haute Spot, Haute Rock Entertainment, and SwagHub.

There’s Nothing More Important than Your Health. Born in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Safe Expo offers pre-event health planning support, onsite and post-event health monitoring. In order for the events industry to get "back to business", organizations, meeting attendees and exhibitors need assurances that their health and privacy are a priority and attending will not put them at unnecessary risk. Led by event industry veterans, Safe Expo developed a robust monitoring program that captures potential outbreaks that could be sourced back to an event. In partnership with medical professionals, local and state health departments, our goal is to identify as early as possible if someone may have been exposed to an infected individual while attending a meeting or event.

James is a Product Manager at Outfit. One of Outfit's first employees, he has played a critical role in shaping what Outfit is today, wearing many hats along the way. James’ passion for the intersection of design and development has enabled him to work with some of the biggest brands in Australia (and the world).

KiKi L'talien is a community catalyst at Association Chat, a principal consultant at Tecker International, and a keynote speaker and podcaster. Association Chat is 11-years-old and recognized in the association community as an online website, podcast, and features an active and engaged private group on Facebook. It’s also known for its cheeky hashtag #assnchat. Tecker International helps organizations prepare for their future by thinking and planning strategically, building shared knowledge, developing excellent leadership teams, designing effective structure and governance and turning strategy into action. KiKi is known for creativity in communications, using technology to build communities, and knowing how to cultivate a memorable brand.

Andréa Long is a Bay Area native, UC Davis alumna, event planner, and health and fitness enthusiast. Andréa is the Global Diversity Events Manager at Twilio where she manages diversity events strategy and leads end-to-end execution of global employer branding events (Twilio After Hours and Twilio Unplugged), recruiting conferences, and internal events. Prior to Twilio, Andréa managed branding, marketing, and events on the Recruiting team at Lyft. In further efforts to increase diversity and inclusion, Andréa co-founded Our Collective, a community resource group for Black and Latinx Silicon Valley professionals.

In 2006, Dave founded Velvet Chainsaw Consulting…an industry leading business improvement consulting firm that helps conference & tradeshow organizers grow or transform their major face-to-face events. Prior to going down the consulting road, Dave was with Experient for 22 years where he served as President of the Meeting Planning and Registration divisions. He has also served on the Board of Directors of two leading event technology companies – Passkey and eventcore.

Allie Magyar is a skilled entrepreneur and technology maven with over 15 years of experience driving successful technology-enabled service companies. She founded Hubb in 2015 to build a technology solution that directly addressed the event technology needs of meeting planners as they manage the overload of information for their events. As CEO of Hubb, Allie directs the company’s strategic direction with an emphasis on partnerships, integrations, and growth. A renowned speaker, Allie is a member of Vistage, a two-time Inc. 5000 award winner, and was named a 2017 Top Women Entrepreneur by Smart Meetings, was a 2018 EY Pacific NW Entrepreneur of the Year finalist, and in 2019 was named to Smart Meetings Women in Events Hall of Fame, as was as a finalist for Entreprenurial Achievement at the OEN Tom Holce Awards.

Kristina is a passionate and pro-active mentor with over 20 years of industry experience. Along with overseeing INVNT's operations, she manages some of INVNT’s largest accounts and longest-standing clients.

For more than five years, Cameron has overseen the development of new enterprise partnerships with Fortune 1,000 organizations globally. He has worked with many of the largest brands and events on the planet, helping them innovate with an industry-leading event app from Eventbase. Cameron has been responsible for many of Eventbase's largest customers including CES, Dell Technologies, VMware, RSA, Nvidia, TechCrunch, The Commonwealth Games, Namm, HIMSS, Fiserv and CONEXPO-CON/AGG to name a few. Always up for connecting, Cameron is hugely passionate about mobile technology and the event space and views himself more as an educator with the ability to empower you with the right information so you can make the right decision on behalf of your events and organization.

Laurel Miller is the President and Chief Client Officer at Seamless Event Solutions and Think AV - Portland, OR-based technical production and in-house audio visual services companies. With a decade of experience in audio visual solutions and another decade in senior client-side marketing roles, she brings a deep understanding of the pivotal role events play in the overall strategy of client organizations and uses that lens to ensure production planning focuses on event objectives and heightened attendee experience. She truly appreciates how special it is for a group of people to gather in one place for a larger purpose.

Michelle currently works for VRS Meetings and Events as an Account Director for Marketing and Events. Michelle works with clients to grow revenue through marketing campaigns, sponsorship, and exhibit programs for both conferences and special events. She has experience in creating a blue print for success and putting action to tasks at hand. She has a life-long learner attitude and has participated in more than 200 hours of education post-college in the fields of marketing, social media and event management including intensives offered by Northwestern University. She is currently working towards her certification as a meeting planner specializing in sustainability.

Kim Montoya is a wellness and accountability coach and a passionate events industry leader with a background in corporate conferences and luxury incentives. Kim started her career in hospitality with Disney in 1994 and has been creating memorable moments for guests across the globe every day since then. Leadership roles with the event's teams at Prudential and Experian led Kim to start her own company, Twenty156, in 2015. Kim is passionate about helping other hospitality professionals avoid the pitfalls and negative pressures of the industry through prioritizing personal development. Kim launched a coaching program in 2020 to support improved wellness and success for hospitality professionals. Twenty156 is named for the coordinates of Wailea, Maui in Hawaii (20.69 | 156.44) and the feeling of being there is the precise goal of every interaction Kim has with clients, partners and friends. When their family is not in Hawaii Kim and her husband live in San Clemente, California with their two teenagers and their beloved dogs, Hope & Rudy.

Katy helps teams elevate understanding of audience – What drives them? Why do they fall in love? What makes them pause and think? Or share with their friends? How does this experience function as an element of their Human journey? Through Empathy, Imagination and Creativity, she leverages her background in media + digital and human-centered design to conceptualize innovative approaches to engagement. Her passion for storytelling and study of digital experiences offer a unique perspective on journey mapping and innovative UX. Katy spent several years as a multimedia storyteller in the nonprofit sector, producing and editing short video stories and creating narratives that dealt with a diverse range of topics, including advocacy issues, human-centered stories, and international policy discussions. Her personal pursuit of stories about human connection has translated into my work as an experience designer.

Crystal is fiercely passionate about helping individuals and business get “unstuck” so they can fulfill their God-given potential. She brings more than 20 years of training and speaking experience, which includes the oversight of training and event planning teams. Her experience involves the development of leadership development programs from scratch. She is a sought-after speaker for corporate conferences, women’s retreats, training workshops, and leadership events and has been a featured speaker on webinars. Crystal is a Registered Corporate Coach (RCC™) and Certified Professional in Learning and Performance (CPLP). In addition, she holds a bachelor’s degree in theology, has completed multiple leadership development programs, and holds the Series 7 and Series 24 securities licenses. In her spare time, she loves hanging out with her cool niece and three studly nephews and volunteering on her church’s worship team.

CEO and Co-Founder of Crowdpurr.com. Crowdpurr adds exciting gamification to your virtual events! Create awesome interactive experiences including virtual trivia activations, team trivia competitions, and fun polls and social walls.

Alexis believes that "the shortest distance between two people is a story." She help clients harness the power of story to move away from fear and toward hope. Under her consultancy StoryNova, she provides the tools that clients need to identify and embody their most important stories. She facilitates honest conversations that build understanding and align people behind a common goal. Narrative intelligence allows clients to become more intentional and positive about the stories they enact in the world.

Deanna is an expert at pulling together the event minutia to create holistic experiences for attendees. She's organized and detail-oriented with expertise as a meeting and event manager. Deanna has a proven ability to interact with individuals across all social strata, manage schedules, and meet deadlines.

Nicole's zeal for genuine human-to-human connection, building strong communities and brand partnerships is the heart and soul of Haute Dokimazo. If you know Nicole, you know her energy is magically magnetic and powers her ability to work a room like a connection goddess! Her fearless pursuit of meaningful business relationships that can be a change for good is one of the reasons she was voted one of Smart Meetings Event Planners of the Year 2019. Nicole has made her once side-hustle her full-time #unjob as President of Haute Dokimazo (ask her for one of her rhinestoned biz cards). Nicole's superpower: Hugging (everyone).... just virtually right now.

Experienced senior manager with proven success producing high profile, multifaceted internal and external programs and events at local, national and international levels. Effective in dynamic, fast-paced work environments with proven ability to communicate cross-functionally within all levels of leadership.

I'm equal parts bleeding edge technologist, passionate educator and data driven strategist. I strongly believe in the power of technology to educate, entertain and connect people around the world. I leverage the principles of psychology, immersive storytelling and digital channel expertise to help brands understand, reach and emotionally connect with their customers.

A life-long learner and Renaissance player, Ann Plana has over a decade of experience in the event industry. Ann began her eventcore journey in 2010 as a technical project manager, delivering on huge projects and high-profile events. Ann regularly finds inspiration in her everyday life and loves leveraging those experiences to create intuitive processes and products that meet her client’s needs.

Barry is known for ability to drive initiatives, jump-starting and sustaining growth through aggressive selling, marketing and operational processes. With his exceptional experience in enterprise-level business management, an M.B.A in finance and accounting, Barry is a truly holistic leader with a comprehensive understanding of financial negotiations and its implications from multiple perspectives

Sarah Ramrup serves as the Event Technology Product Director with Maritz Global Events. She focuses on driving event technology product innovation, meaningful market differentiation, and new growth in the technology space. Whether it’s designing next-generation analytics platforms, contributing to original research with Harvard Business School, or working with clients to define the metrics that matter, Sarah is always looking for opportunities to incorporate data and insights into her work. Sarah is a dual-citizen of the U.S. and Canada, and can be found camping, playing board games, and sipping on craft cocktails in her free time.

With 34 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Schirmacher leads Experient's strategic plan development and implementation, as well as industry presence for Maritz Global Events. He was awarded the company's highest honor, the Pinnacle Award, in 2005, and was inducted into the Colorado Meetings Hall of Fame in 2011 with the Lifetime Achievement Award. He served as Chairman of the Meetings Industry Council of Colorado from 2002-2007. Schirmacher is on the Executive Committee for the MPI Global Foundation Board. He serves as Chair of the Meetings Industry Fund. Gary is a member of the EIC APEX Commission for Business Recovery. He is a member of PCMA, MPI, IAEE, ASAE and CSAE. Schirmacher is a Past Chair of the PCMA Education Foundation Board of Trustees and a frequent speaker at major industry meetings and events. Schirmacher is a graduate of the Worldwide College of Auctioneering.

I create experiences. Big and small, physical and digital experiences. I've designed customer experience centers, websites, software products, museums, exhibits, brand identities, signage systems, and more. Currently, I'm an Experience Design Manager and Creative Strategist who is responsible for running a small (and talented) design team at Google for the Experience Studio. We craft customer facing immersive environments, exhibits and experiences centered around the Google brand and technology. I also help build successful, engaging brand identities for causes close to my heart. When I'm not thinking through user experiences, I obsess over typography and new pie flavors.

Adrian Segar is an internationally known designer, facilitator, and passionate advocate of participant-driven & participation-rich events, and the author of three influential books on meeting design. He runs the world’s most popular website on meeting design: conferencesthatwork.com. In 2019 he was named one of the 100 most influential people in the event industry, in a global poll of 4,200 event professionals.

Rachel Sheerin is an award-winning keynote speaker and team trainer. With a background in catering and hospitality, Rachel's built multi-million dollar teams for organizations that want to grow profits, success, and happiness. Named 2019 Speaker of the Year, you may have seen Rachel on the TEDx stage, featured in Inc Magazine, or serving as Director of Global Awards for the Association for Women in Events. Focused on helping professionals thrive in work and life, Rachel's served audiences from Spain to Seattle, including The Ritz Carlton, Hilton, CORT, Wedding MBA, MPI, The James Beard Foundation, and more.

Matthew Sheppard, is the leader of award-winning LA-based creative agency, The Sheppard. In an intrusive marketplace, Matthew saw a need to develop better more inclusive ways to communicate a brand’s message to its target consumers. After growing and leading several highly-ranked and award-winning marketing, experiential and promotions agencies, Matthew founded The Sheppard in 2007. Although he’ll never admit it, since the late 80s – Matthew’s been developing strategic integrated marketing initiatives. He’s produced unique marketing solutions for Taco Bell, Ugg, iHeartMedia, Cadbury Schweppes, Pet Supplies Plus, The Home Depot, Pepsi Co., Seagrams, BMW, NBC and KIA amongst others.

Sarah Shewey is a pioneer woman of the experience economy. She is the Founder & CEO of Happily, a platform that rapidly assembles experiences for the fastest growing brands in the world with the largest network of freelance event producers. She is also the co-founder of TEDActive, the founder of EXP, and the board president of dublab. An environmentalist, Sarah has spoken about the importance of sustainable event practices on NPR and publications around the world. She also just "broke the internet" with her cyberwedding.

Over the last 25 years, Nick has held various positions within the experiential marketing industry building the foundation for his transformative approach to business leadership. Starting out as a shop carpenter in college, Nick quickly realized his passion for creativity, storytelling and people would lead him to a lifelong career in bringing ideas to life. He has spent the last 15 years at Czarnowksi, a premier experiential marketing agency, as Vice President of Sales. During which his curiosity, focus, and ability to understand change has led to some of the most innovative experiences – both live and virtual – for some of the most progressive and recognizable brands in the world.

Tim is a global creative marketer with roots in the advertising, telecommunications, transportation and logistics industries. With an MFA in Poetry and an eclectic and varied background, Tim brings something unique to any organization looking to build an iconic brand and foster smart, original programs and initiatives. After 9 years developing multiple brands owned by a global Fortune 150, Tim branched out in July 2016 to start his own practice (TS Creative Consulting). In mid-2018, Tim joined forces with the Design Studio by Maritz Global Events to drive growth and deliver direct client strategy consulting; and continues his advisory and mentorship work for start-ups and small/mid-sized businesses. Tim is a versatile and dynamic leader with a natural way of guiding and setting the tempo for large teams of writers, strategists and designers while specializing in Experience Design, Marketing Strategy, Brand Development & Redesign, Strategic Communications, and Creative Disruption & Transformations.

COO for Drawing Booth. Multi-(party)-hat-wearer. Passionate about storytelling through creative mediums, and about organizing and nurturing teams to help them find meaning by seeing in new ways.

James Spellos is the President of Meeting U., whose mission is to help people become more productive and comfortable with technology. Jim delivers over 100 seminars & presentations annually. In 2015, Jim was named one of the Meeting Industry’s trendsetters by Meetings Today magazine. In 2014, Jim joined the Board of Directors for Rock and Wrap It Up. In 2018 & 2019, BizBash named Jim one of their top 500 people in events for his work in sustainability. Jim is an accomplished musician and songwriter who released his first solo album, Stroke of Genius in 2020

Amanda Stankiewicz is a marketing manager at TD Ameritrade Institutional, a custodian dedicated to supporting RIAs who are determined to grow, thrive and make their clients’ lives better. With over 10 years of marketing experience Amanda is currently leading and defining the Institutional sponsorship strategy. Working cross-functionally to plan and execute Industry events with leading partners of TD Ameritrade Institutional. Amanda spearheads the development and launch of targeted programs & partnerships that expand the firm’s market and brand presence. She cultivates and maintains internal & external relationships critical to driving engagement and penetration with clients & prospects. Conceptualizing ideas, which include creating a platform for customer acquisition with corresponding segmentation and targeting mechanisms. Bringing her passion as a CrossFit & Mega-former athlete through to her career with forward momentum, growth and the need to continually push the limits. Ask questions. LEARN! Learn from those on the same journey, and more importantly from those that are not.

Courtney Stanley is a keynote speaker, event emcee, podcaster, career success coach and PR/marketing expert with a background in experience design, community engagement and leadership development. Courtney is the creator and host of "Dare to Interrupt," a podcast that provides a platform for the event, hospitality and tourism industry’s most influential and successful women to share their stories of adversity and success, unfiltered. Courtney believes that transforming past experiences into impactful conversations through raw, authentic storytelling challenges the status quo, connects people from all walks of life and results in great change for the world. Courtney is the youngest member to have ever been elected to Meeting Professionals International's (MPI) International Board of Directors. She is the recipient of Smart Meetings' Women in Events Entrepreneur Award, the Association for Women in Events (AWE) Disruptor Award, the MPI Chairman’s Award and MPI RISE Award, named Collaborate and Connect Magazine’s 40 under 40, and has been recognized by Meetings Today and MeetingsNet as one of the event industry’s most impactful change-makers. Courtney serves on the Events Industry Sexual Harassment Task Force, AWE's Board of Directors, MPI's Women's Advisory Board, is a Meetings Mean Business Ambassador and is the co-founder of the award-winning movement, #MeetingsToo.

I foster community within the Microsoft Business Application space as a curator and creator of content. Currently leading our team as VP of Programs at Dynamic Communities, we organize and help deliver roughly 3,000 individual content items via virtual and live event programs for the User Groups for Microsoft Business Applications.

Rachel is an event marketing strategist, event tech startup founder and industry speaker on topics that cover event marketing and influencer marketing. When meeting planners and association professionals need to get more butts in seats, they call Rachel! She is a force to be reckoned with, whipping up creative solutions to event marketing challenges for 19+ years. Always looking for new ways to supercharge attendee acquisition, she used the experience from hundreds of campaigns to pioneer a new chapter in event marketing: the award-winning snöball event influencer marketing platform. The secret to her success - fueling clever, cutting-edge digital marketing tactics with the human-2-human values that the events industry is based on.

As Mixed Reality Experience Strategist at Kaon Interactive, Howard's role is to innovate user interaction and engagement for applications for Fortune 500 Companies. With a background of diverse projects from museum exhibits to documentary television, he is a consummate digital storyteller. He channels his own brand of creativity through a multitude of technologies such as augmented reality, virtual reality, online interactive marketing campaigns and multi screen interactive environments. Howard’s passion for interactivity has helped Kaon Interactive's customers tell complex stories while creating emotional connections and exciting their audiences.

Shelley began her career in the branded merchandise industry in 1996 and held multiple sales executive positions at large and small firms. In 2008 she recognized that there was an opportunity to create a boutique branded merchandise firm that could offer clients both the highest level of service and support and industry leading pricing. This led to the founding of Red Promotions. When not conquering the world of promotional merchandise, Shelley can be found cheering on her daughter’s volleyball team, mountain biking with her husband, playing tennis or enjoying sips and shopping with friends.

Elke Reva Sudin is an artist and entrepreneur who, through a combination of portraiture, digital technologies, and social engagement, creates a positive interpersonal and societal impact. Sudin founded Drawing Booth, the first company of it’s kind to provide iPad sketch artists for live events, lending a sophisticated update to the stereotypical caricature artist experience. In providing innovative artistic encounters, Drawing Booth’s popularity and offerings have spread across the US and to the UK, with the company’s artists creating lasting transformative experiences through live and virtual events.

Alex is the Founder of Entropy, a media, content, digital and commerce strategy consultancy, and is the Co-founder of DICE – Diversity & Inclusion in Conferences & Events. He set up ecommerce-speakers.com and marketing-speaker.com in 2019 as free resources to help marketing event organizers find female experts for their events. Alex's expertise is in Marketing and Media - he was previously the UK Media & Marketing Services Director at Unilever and has worked in various organizations including American Express and Kellogg's. Most recently, Alex has led the creation of the Digital Media for the New Decade virtual conference.

Shannon is responsible for planning and executing Northeast events for Marketo Engage while also focusing on tracking and analyzing data to optimize spend and working with different technologies to enhance event experiences. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, traveling, cheering on New England sports teams and spending time with her dogs, Charlie and Cora.

Mike Thomas is a Vice President of Finance for Sonoma Brands, where Mike manages the commercial finances for emerging brands like Smashmallow and Krave Jerky. Mike is an aspiring student in the Masters of Wine program. Mike worked 10 years in the wine business for large wineries such as E & J Gallo Winery and Constellation Wines. He completed his wine studies with the Diploma level from the London based Wine & Spirit Education Trust and has a degree in Enology.

My current goal is to create the most efficient, and best possible opportunity for the produce industry to succeed in the sharing and distributing of information that is vital to the success in the marketplace. In creating maximum value for the produce industry, and the individual members that support the organization I plan to drive a rewarding and profitable experience. Work Career: Starting to work at the young age of 13 as the mark boy at the Northern Lake George Yacht Club I discovered that I have a passion for being around people. And little did I know then, a little about volunteer management and running a non-profit organization. This led me to become a US Sailing Certified instructor at the age of 17, and started to teach at the East Coast's largest sailing school teaching adults from 25-65 the fun and joy of sailing. (For those that have sailed I see you smiling as you read this). Teaching adults how to sail (old dog, new tricks) taught me patience, communication and respect for different learning abilities. During college and for a couple of years after I worked at Safeway as Food Clerk, and towards the end Dairy Merchandiser. This taught me merchandising, customer service, and the value of the food dollar. I learned a little bit about supply chain and order replenishment at this time. In September 1999 during my day's off from Safeway I temped at United Fresh in the accounting department. One thing has led to another and I now find myself 19 rewarding years later as the VP, Convention and Industry Collaboration. My work here has capitalized on everything I learned during my formative years from managing vendors, selling exhibit space, growing attendance and working with all convention partners to maximize value to all stakeholders in the event. While at United Fresh, I have learned ALOT about fresh produce, and even more about persistence, strategy vs. tactical management, sales, convention operations, and marketing.

With 10 years' experience in the world of events, Juliet has run events on all scales for many different guests- from rockstars to royalty! Her role as Senior Events Manager at Chemical Watch sees her organise international b2b Conferences. She's also a professional speaker and moderator, has an industry blog and is a huge advocate for all things personal development and wellness.

Jason Ulaszek is the founder of Inzovu, a design agency fixing social problems, by design. Inzovu has applied disciplines ranging from architecture, service and product design, design research and brand strategy to complex challenges proposed by the United Nations Foundation, the University of Southern California Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, Feeding America, LEAP Innovations and the Kigali Genocide Memorial. He’s a founder of UX for Good, an award-winning social venture that leverages experience design to solve social challenges. UX for Good has partnered with the Dalai Lama Center for Peace + Education to advance social-emotional learning in public schools; with Aegis Trust to boost the impact of genocide memorials in Africa and Europe; and with the GRAMMY Foundation and Clinton Global Initiative to raise the standard of living for professional musicians in New Orleans. He is also a mentor at the Junto Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership and serves as an adjunct faculty member at DePaul University.

Creating experiences and environments that break down barriers and help people break the ice are Marcus's jam. (Speaking of ice, lace a pair of skates and meet him on the rink. Fun fact - he's a former competitive figure skater!) As the founder and CEO of Seattle-based MCW Events, he sees the world through rose-colored glasses and finds the possible in the impossible. It's why he's known as the Minister of Making it Happen. Leveraging his own carefully cultivated and nurtured relationships throughout the industry, he partners with his clients (like Tableau, Twitch and Valve) to grow their relationships with their attendees and customers through delivering human-centered and transformative programs. He splits his time between Seattle and Palm Springs with his husband, Jason, and their fur baby Sparkles.

Becky Williams, CMP, is a strategic-minded leader with 12+ years of experience in program development and meetings management. She is currently the Assistant Director of Education and Meetings at the Society of Surgical Oncology, where she oversees the planning and implementation of four annual live meetings, including the current shift to virtual meeting offerings. Becky is passionate about collaborating to make data-driven decisions resulting in an evolution of meetings with innovative visions that better reflect the evolving organizations we support. Outside of work, Becky is an avid bookworm and enjoys exploring the world with her husband and dog.

Jon is the Executive Director of the Stamford Partnership and Founder of Innovation Week. While building a successful career in marketing and technology Jon discovered his true passion, community development. Founding Stamford Innovation Week in 2017, he oversaw its meteoric rise from local entrepreneurship event to the region's premier innovation festival. In his role at The Stamford Partnership Jon understands that as communities grow, so do their opportunities and challenges. He believes that from mobility to affordability to overall quality of life thriving communities are the fuel of progress.

Justine is a strategic and results-oriented senior marketing manager accomplished in project management of marketing programs and world-class corporate events. She has produced a range of in-person events from intimate dinners for 15 to multi-day conferences for over 800. Recently, she led the transformation of Galvanize's customer conference to a multi-day, multi-track virtual event in just six weeks. She believes in an integrated approach for events that deliver a powerful message, an unforgettable experience and measurable outcomes.

Joyce Zheng is currently a Senior Field Marketing Manager at Verkada, a rapidly growing physical security startup in the Bay Area that has reached a $1.6B valuation in just 3 years. As the first hire on the marketing team, she built the field marketing and events program from scratch which now includes approximately 60-70 events annually. She enjoys testing out-of-the-box experiments in order to come up with creative marketing campaigns that generate an efficient pipeline to spend ratio. Joyce received her Bachelor's Degree in Business Economics from UC Irvine. In her spare time, she loves traveling and exploring new places - and therefore can't wait for shelter in place to end.