No More Bad Events

TITLE: Unlocking the Five Keys to Engagement (ft. Sharon Reus | President, CPG Agency) OPENING QUOTE: “We have the power to change people's beliefs, and why is that important? Well, people act out of their beliefs, so if someone believes something is in their best interest, they're going to act accordingly. ” - Sharon Reus SUMMARY: As president of CPG Agency, Reus oversees its “experience offering...

TITLE: Collaboration Artists, Connectors, and Goosebump Moments (ft. David Adler | Chairman & Founder, BizBash) OPENING QUOTE: “Everybody wants to be heard. And most of the times when we go to events, people are not heard. And that's why the idea with events today is also how do you scale intimacy? And by scaling intimacy, first, you need is trust. And when you give people a chance to talk to each...

TITLE: Prepare for Impact. Taking Your Event to An Eleven. (ft. Ryan Estis | Keynote Speaker, Author & Founding Partner, ImpactEleven) OPENING QUOTE: “It's a question I love to ask Meeting Planners… how long does the energy, and the enthusiasm and the commitment- after your big kickoff meeting- last? And the idea should be that we go to a meeting with a foundation, and then we continue to elevate...

TITLE: Getting to Exceptional. (ft. Gary Forman. | Freelance Creative Director and Speechwriter) OPENING QUOTE: “I have to say because it’s one of the more interesting things I found in this work. I’ve seen a direct correlation between how vulnerable people are willing to make themselves and how successful they are. The people who are closed and live in fear, I don’t do as well with them, and they...

TITLE: Start with Why. End with a Win. (ft. Mike Bonheim | Communications Strategist and Creative Director) OPENING QUOTE: “We want to create an experience here where our message is, and the key messages primarily are going to be banging around in heads after they get home.” - Mike Bonheim SUMMARY: A freelance communications strategist and creative director with more than 15 years of experience in...

TITLE: Screen management. Camera time. And tidy backgrounds in the virtual world. (ft. Rebecca Morgan | Management Consultant and Coach) OPENING QUOTE: I coined the phrase “tidy authentic beats virtual ‘so it's fine to have it in your house somewhere as long as it's tidy because we noticed the little piles of stuff: again, we’re nosy, and if we're bored, we're trying to figure out what is that in...

TITLE: Flaming chainsaws. Slam poets. And the great outdoors. (ft. Bonni Scepkowski | Founder & Principal, Stellar Events Meetings) OPENING QUOTE: Culture is the important thing. What's the culture of your company? Once I know that I can get in and do anything.  - Bonni Scepkowski SUMMARY: After thirty years in event and meetings management for the life sciences segment, Bonni Scepkowski is a lege...

TITLE: Big Apple Events with a Little Side of Chutzpah. (ft. Jaclyn Bernstein, President & Partner, Empire Force Events) OPENING QUOTE: “We all goof, we all screw up, but what could we do to become your partner, not just for this event but once, twice, for years.” -Jaclyn Bernstein SUMMARY: Jaclyn Bernstein, a native New Yorker and President and Partner of Empire Force Events, is a straight talker...

TITLE: Fun. Fierce. And Smart. (ft. Marin Bright, Founder & CEO, Smart Meetings) OPENING QUOTE: “My greatest a-ha and joy is how willing we are to be vulnerable with each other, and we're really connecting on a different level, and it makes the meeting so much richer and much more to look forward to.” - Marin Bright SUMMARY: Marin Bright, Founder and CEO of Smart Meetings , is an industry icon.  N...

TITLE: Wants, Needs, and a Desire for Difference. (ft. Mike Schugt, President, Teneo Hospitality Group) OPENING QUOTE: “The reason brands have gotten so sophisticated in the hotel business is because attendees want what everyone else wants... and what everyone wants is... everything.” -Mike Schugt SUMMARY: On this week’s episode, we hear from the President of Teneo Hospitality Group, Mike Schugt....

Be Hospitable, Hug Someone and Embrace the Change. (ft. Deborah Gardner, Hospitality Keynote Speaker) OPENING QUOTE: “It’s all about your first-hand experience. If you've got the first-hand experience to share with your clients and your audience, you're going to be fine.” -Deborah Gardner   SUMMARY: On this week’s episode, we hear from a former hospitality sales veteran and current keynote speaker...

Culture, it’s the competitive advantage that differentiates great companies from good ones. (ft. Frank Ward, Founder, and CEO of Altered Image) OPENING QUOTE: “A creative team's vibe or energy affects the overall event. It's just so evident, and then we don't take that for granted. We go into the creative, never always  fully believing in yourself or your ideas. There's always that sense of why yo...

Authenticity and Keeping it Human are the Keys to Good Events Today (ft. Shawna Suckow, Founder, SPIN (Senior Planners Industry Network) OPENING QUOTE: “The pandemic removed our filter, we don't have time for BS, we don't have time for lack of authenticity, we don’t have time for polished over professionalism, just be a human. We’re exhausted; just tell us how it’s going to be, and we’ll do it.  W...

Science, Serotonin, and Saving the Hotel Industry (ft. Michael Dominguez, President & CEO of Associated Luxury Hotels International) Michael Dominguez on leadership and luxury in a post-pandemic world OPENING QUOTE: “That's the point, focus on the people. It doesn't matter what all this is if we're not paying attention to the people when it's all done. I thought that was just beautifully done.” -M...

Cruising with Carina Bauer: Part II We catch up with IMEX Group CEO Carina Bauer after IMEX America OPENING QUOTE: “I think that's really important for all of us as sustainability becomes more important in everything that we do, that we really build nature…into everything that we do and the decisions that we make.” -Carina Bauer GUEST BIO: Carina Bauer is CEO of The IMEX Group, a company that orga...

Cruising with Carina Bauer: Part I IMEX CEO Carina Bauer joins us before IMEX America OPENING QUOTE: “We put a real emphasis on both industry— events 101— as well as personal and professional development.” -Carina Bauer GUEST BIO: Carina Bauer is CEO of The IMEX Group, a company that organizes trade shows for the international business events industry. According to Carina, her sole purpose as CEO...

Where Virtual and Live Meet (ft. Mark Herring, President of Signature Production Group Southeast) Mark Herring is blurring the line between in-person and online events OPENING QUOTE: “And the real challenge for the companies and the agencies that are being asked to produce these is how to keep the end audience engaged in the virtual environment. And a lot of the ways you do that is to heighten the...

To Meta-Finity and Beyond (ft. Dahlia El Gazzar, founder, DAHLIA+ Agency) Dahlia El Gazzar was already seeing the future of events ten years ago OPENING QUOTE: “It's not the same anymore. People's energies will direct you on how you design experiences. So this is where you need to go back to basics.” -Dahlia El Gazzar GUEST BIO: Dahlia El Gazzar is the go-to source for trend setting event solution...

Gorillas, Pigs, and Backup Plans (ft. Danene Dustin, Morris Meetings and Incentives) Meet the queen of turning unexpected into unforgettable OPENING QUOTE: “One of my dreams would be to have a client that would say something like, in the next five to seven years if you stay with us and you meet the parameters that we set for our reward travel, you will go to all seven continents in the world.” -Da...

Back in the Air (ft. Erica Spoor, Impact Point Group ) Erica Spoor on the present state and future potential of the event industry OPENING QUOTE: “If there's anything I were to coach an event planner on, it's to really refine the ability to manage your stakeholders and facilitate that hard conversation around what success would look like, and how do you…build on it in a way that would work for you...

Companies, Communications, & Cliffhangers (ft. Todd Street, toddstreet) Learning from a leader in experiential communications OPENING QUOTE: “We're seeing the live experiences come back in a more authentic way, an opportunity to connect in a human way, to imbue a sense of the culture that these employees belong to. And that's what's required.” -Todd Street GUEST BIO: Todd Street is the president a...

More Interested, Not More Interesting (ft. Sherri Wiseman, Pacific Life) The unconventional wisdom of Sherri Wiseman OPENING QUOTE: “One of the very first things I learned is, you can't be rigid in this industry. Things are going to change. You need to roll with the punches. It's not going to stay exactly like you planned it. It's going to change. And it does constantly.”  -Sherri Wiseman GUEST BI...

Heart & Soul (ft. Michael Cerbelli, Cerbelli Creative) Michael Cerbelli’s remarkable career of sharing, inspiring, & listening OPENING QUOTE: “Give it your all or don't accept the job. It's that simple. Do it the right way.”  -Michael Cerbelli GUEST BIO: Michael Cerbelli, founder of Cerbelli Creative, is known for producing wildly imaginative and successful events for over four decades. Michael is...