AMI - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- Executive Director, INCON
Angela manages INCON, a partnership of the world's leading conference organisers and association management companies from 170 countries. She is passionate about connecting, engaging and working with stakeholders, across countries, cultures and sectors. She provides member communications, digital marketing, education, stakeholder engagement and sponsorship services to increase engagement, raise the profile and drive new revenue streams for INCON She has been called on for her association expertise by other associations including, SITE, Euromic, the International Society of Plastic Surgery (ICOPLAST) and the Irish Coaching and Mentoring Association. angela@incon-pco.com
Angela Guillemet is the executive director or INCON, a network of international professional congress organisers (PCO), whose members have had to adapt to a fast-changing business landscape at the cutting edge of the meetings industry. In this interview with AMI editor James Lancaster she reveals what they're saying about the outlook for international association meetings. Are venues and suppliers still offering flexible terms - or are negotiations getting more difficult? How has the role of PCO changed during the pandemic? And what are the major challenges facing the profession right now?
Job Titles:
- Director of International Congress Development, AIM Group International
Annalisa Ponchia has deep roots in the industry and has organized conferences and events around the world for the corporate sector, government and associations for the last 30 years. As CEO of the European Society for Organ Transplantation (ESOT) for more than 12 years, she has worked closely with the society to develop its strategic vision, including partnership projects with the pharmaceutical industry, fundraising activities, and marketing and communication. In 2019 she was highly commended as Executive Director of the year at the Associations Awards.
Benita Lipps, head of association and event management at Dentons Global Advisors Interel, explains why she finds scientists more interesting than rock bands and theatre luvvies, and why associations are rethinking their member value propositions.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director of Business
Chantal Sturk-Nadeau, executive director of business events at Destination Canada chats to Holly Patrick about the value of building genuine relationships, the realities of elitism and her sense of national pride that has accompanied her on her career journey...
Job Titles:
- Director at Manchester Central, Added
Charlie Cornish, director at Manchester Central, added: "We are immensely proud of the success Shaun has achieved in his tenure as CEO and we will miss his presence here at the venue. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Shaun for his work in helping reaffirm Manchester Central's position as a leading venue on the global events stage. We look forward to appointing a successor in the near future, and we will be working with Shaun over the coming months to ensure a smooth transition period."
Job Titles:
- Event Director, IBTM World, Sai
Claudia Hall, event director, IBTM World, said: "Developing engaged and passionate communities around the events we create is so important. In this age of increased distraction and disconnection, proving a space for delegates to come together and share ideas, spark discussions, and move business culture forward, is essential. That's why community is a key thread of this year's conference programme at IBTM World. It's our aim to empower attendees with the knowledge and tools they need to create year-round connected communities for their own events."
Job Titles:
- Partner at Brussels
- Partner, Exempla Consulting
Colm is a partner at Brussels-based association and event consultancy Exempla. He has over 15 years' experience in management services, business events and association management, including leading staff teams and facilitating strategy development for volunteer leadership groups. Driving change whilst building consensus is central to his work, which usually involves developing vision into organisational structures, educational content, and communications. Curious, and at ease with complexity, Colm combines creative spark with analytical rigour. Always seeking elegant solutions which like the best guitar riffs, appear deceptively simple until we try to replicate them.
Job Titles:
- Angela Guillemet Executive Director INCON
- John Martinez CEO Shocklogic
In his new role, Koh will prioritise knowledge creation and client engagement in the fields of legacy and sustainability, with a goal of growing the global impact of meetings events. He is committed to enhancing BestCities' focus on economic, social and environmental sustainability, enabling alliance members to offer delegates more responsible ways to meet amid the growing climate emergency.
Dr Edward Koh, executive director of the conventions, meetings and incentive travel division of the Singapore Exhibition and Convention Bureau, will take over as board chair.
London event venue, the QEII Centre, has strengthened its director team with the appointment of Elena Gurgul as sales and marketing director and EeLain Ong as finance director.
Gurgul joined QEII the Centre from Hyatt Place London Heathrow Airport, where she relaunched the hotel post-pandemic, built a new corporate base, and secured several major airline contracts.
Job Titles:
- Senior Marketing Manager for Europe at Cvent
Equity or equality? That is the question. It's so important to understand the difference - equality means each individual or group of people is given the same resources or opportunities.
Whereas equity acknowledges that each person has different circumstances, and allocates the resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.
I am not sure that I have openly and outwardly experienced equity. If I look back at most organisations that I have worked for, from the application process alone the entry requirement was a degree level qualification. This assumes the same starting blocks to life or circumstances.
However, I can say that I have experienced equality (more or less) in my roles. We strive for inclusivity as an organisation. We look for women in leadership, especially around our events like Cvent CONNECT Europe, and invite them to take the main stage.
Job Titles:
- Founder of Diversity Alliance and Co - Founder of the Diverse Speaker Bureau
Until I started working in the DE&I space, I hadn't considered what equality versus equity actually meant in real terms. Now, an important piece of the work I do is helping leaders and companies to understand the difference.
Live events and communications agency TFI Lodestar, which has numerous association clients on its books, has appointed Gema Rodriguez as managing director.
Rodriguez played a key role in merging the company's business functions and re-launching in 2021, and has since helped to lead the business through a period of strong growth, broadening its client base and increasing revenues. TFI Lodestar ended 2023 by winning Best Event by an Agency PCO at the ABPCO Excellence Award.
Rodriguez joined TFI Lodestar (then TFI Group) in 2016, having begun her career with Informa before moving agency side as account director, Europe at Banks Sadler
Now with more than twenty years' experience in the industry, Rodriguez has an in-depth knowledge of financial and operational management as well as a keen understanding of how live experiences can support corporate and associations client goals
Job Titles:
- Managing Director of the International Society of Limnology
Geneviève Leclerc, managing director of the International Society of Limnology, talks to AMI editor James Lancaster about Meet4Impact, the not-for-profit movement she co-founded in 2019, which aims to encourage associations and host destinations to create more sustainable, impactful meetings that benefit society.
Job Titles:
- Editor
- Editorial Director
- Columnist, Speaker, Educator, and Tech Entrepreneur Marc Mekki about Innovation and How Associations Can Make It an Integral Part of Their Organisation.
- New AMI Columnist
James Lancaster talks to AMI columnist, speaker, educator, and tech entrepreneur Marc Mekki about innovation and how associations can make it an integral part of their organisation.
AMI editor James Lancaster is a familiar face in the meetings industry and international association community. Since joining AMI in 2010, he has gained a reputation for asking difficult questions and getting lost in convention centres. Proofer, podcaster, and panellist - in his spare time, James likes to walk, read, listen to music, and drink beer.
Job Titles:
- ICCA President
- President of the Joint Meetings Industry Council, Sai
James Rees, president of the Joint Meetings Industry Council, said: "Monica Lee-Müller exemplifies the qualities we seek to recognise with the JMIC Profile + Power Award. Her leadership at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, coupled with her dedication to sustainability through initiatives like Think Before Plastic, has had a profound impact on the industry. Monica is a true leader, and we are delighted to honour her achievements with this prestigious award."
ICCA president James Rees said the status of Honorary Membership is reserved for a small number of retired individuals who have given particularly strong service to the association.
Job Titles:
- Director of Community Engagement for BestCities Global Alliance
Jane is Director of Community Engagement for BestCities Global Alliance and Global Ambassador for the Joint Industry Meeting Council (JMIC), promoting the positive impact of business events. She has a passion for facilitating engagement between associations and destination stakeholders to promote the positive societal impact that conferences have on a destination. She is also an active member of the International Association of Facilitators where she has just embarked on a six-month mentorship programme and is part of the marketing team to promote the Global Congress in Stockholm. www.bestcities.net #talkswithjane
Job Titles:
- Managing Director of the Venues Collection
Everyone is different, and everyone has personal needs that should be catered for to bring everyone up to the same level playing field.
In the early stages of my career, hospitality was a very male dominated environment. Sexism wasn't blatant, but I was called ‘sweetie' by one member of the team, often expected to take the meeting notes, and at one employer, women weren't even allowed to wear trousers. Thankfully times have moved on and I hope that by being a female MD, the teams I work with are both inspired and also enabled to reach their full potential; they can see we do not have a glass ceiling.
Equity means treating people as individuals and working out what each person specifically needs to achieve their potential. For example, the hospitality industry lost a lot of chefs through the pandemic, and in our bid to attract more chefs to our venues, we found an incredibly talented woman who couldn't work the traditional shift pattern because she has young children. So with the co-operation with the wider team we changed her working pattern to enable her to work and also be there for her children when she needed to be. We couldn't do this for everyone, and everyone wouldn't need or want this arrangement, but for her it made all the difference.
We are part of Compass Group UK and Ireland and we have an initiative called ‘Women in Food' that was initially created to help bring more women chefs into the business, but now has expanded to represent all our female talent across every sector of our organisation. I'm a great believer in growing our own talent and the Women in Food initiative supports this.
John Martinez, CEO of event management software company Shocklogic, grew up in the slums of Caracas, Venezuela, with 19 adopted siblings before eventually going on to gain a PHD in Quantum Physics from M.I.T. In this edition of Deep Dive he explains how his extraordinary upbringing shaped his values and leadership style.
Julia Knowles! Julia was the person behind Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's funeral. It was perfection in motion and such an example of the power of events.
I'd love to meet Julia and hear how she pulled off the event of the century.
Job Titles:
- CEO of the Melbourne Convention Bureau, Wil
Julia Swanson, CEO of the Melbourne Convention Bureau, will assume Edward's vacated role of incoming board chair, and David Noack Perez, director of the Madrid Convention Bureau, will take up the position of board treasurer.
Julius Solaris, VP marketing strategy, events at Hopin, wants the meetings and events industry to have a serious conversation about the toll the pandemic has had on mental health. Here he talks to AMI Editor James Lancaster about burnout, denial, and the need for leadership from associations representing the thousands of people who organise meetings and events for a living.
Job Titles:
- Director of the Copenhagen Convention Bureau
Job Titles:
- Founder of Stress Matters and Career & Business Coach
The work that I do is focused on creating workplaces that make wellbeing easy and I don't believe you can have positive wellbeing if you're not experiencing equity.
Many of my team members experience mental health challenges and some long-term physical conditions that require them to visit hospital on a regular basis. I don't want to hire robots, I want to hire human beings and as humans we are all different; as a leader, my job is to create an environment where each person thrives.
I have been fortunate through most of my career to have worked with senior men that have seen my potential and have given me the space to step up and show clients and team members what I can do. One thing I have noted though is that they all had daughters!
The majority of my workforce and clients are women and I love working with women. I think it's hugely important to empower people to achieve what they want. It is a fact that more diverse teams make more successful businesses.
Laure Norger - Acting Head of Division - Association Management, K.I.T. Group GmbH Laure Norger Laure Norger Laure joined K.I.T. Group in 2014 after 9 years' experience in working for non-profit organisations. After gaining practical experience in a wide array of areas including mental health, human rights and ecological issues, she moved to Geneva to gain a master's degree in Sustainable Development from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. She then went on to work for a Berlin-based NGO, supporting them with research, communications, and event planning for 4 years. Since joining K.I.T. Group she has helped build and grow the reach of her clients - primarily medical professional associations - by developing membership and communication strategies tailored to their needs. She has also supported clients with in-depth reviews of their governance framework and mechanisms. She's been an active member of K.I.T. Group's Sustainability Taskforce since 2016.
Job Titles:
- Lawyer before She Became Secretary General of the Association for Issuing Bodies ( AIB ) . Now She Thrives on Bringing People and Policy Together
Liesbeth Switten was a lawyer before she became secretary general of the Association for Issuing Bodies (AIB). Now she thrives on bringing people and policy together…
Job Titles:
- CEO of the International Coaching Federation
Job Titles:
- Managing Director of RefTech
I didn't have the best experience of equity, or even equality in my early career; my first roles were in sales (for another company I hasten to add) and were filled with outdated attitudes, sexist comments and behaviour.
The female members of the team were definitely paid less than the men. My early career experiences however have helped us to shape our company; we ensure that we help our team members as much as we can to create a level playing field.
Many of the team have young children and we enable them to work from home when they need to and to be flexible around the inevitable calls from the school when children are sick. I know that women are the primary care givers but we offer this to all our team. I think that's the difference between corporate and privately owned business - we put a lot of emphasis on wellbeing.
The RefTech senior team have always been there for me throughout my career here; they had faith in me and I became a shareholder and promoted to the position of MD. Ken Clayton has been an amazing mentor to me and both him and Simon have always supported me and believed in my ability. I haven't always been a confident leader, I can suffer with imposter syndrome and so having a supportive board has made all the difference to me and my career.
Marjorie specializes in building strategies for online communities in associations and not-for-profits, connecting community to organization goals that drive sustainable value. She is the Product Manager for Community at Project Management Institute, a professional membership association shaping the project management industry. She is also the founder of Community by Association, a digital resource and online community for those who build communities for associations and not-for-profits. Blog: communitybyassociation.com Online community: community-by-association-network.mn.co/
Job Titles:
- CEO of the International Association of Conference Centres
- Chairman of the Events Industry Council
Job Titles:
- CEO of IACPO
- CEO of IAPCO.
Martin Boyle, CEO of IACPO, the International Association of Professional Conference Organisers, joins Holly Patrick on this episode of Deep Dive to discuss the golden rules of being a strong leader, why we need to start looking forward to the exciting times ahead and why is it absolutely necessary to take the time to understand what's important in life...
Job Titles:
- Managing Director of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Has Been Honoured With the Prestigious JMIC Profile Power Award for 2023.
Lee-Müller brings over 30 years of experience in the events industry. During this time has transformed the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre into a world-renowned venue for distinguished exhibitions and conventions.
Monica Lee-Müller, managing director of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, has been honoured with the prestigious JMIC Profile + Power Award for 2023.
Job Titles:
- Secretary
- Secretary General at the International Real Estate Federation, Talks to Holly Patrick about Self - Motivation, Colleagues, and Getting the Better of Imposter Syndrome
Narek Arakelyan, secretary general at The International Real Estate Federation, talks to Holly Patrick about self-motivation, colleagues, and getting the better of imposter syndrome…
Nienke van der Malen, CEO of destination matching service Conferli, talks to AMI editor James Lancaster about how associations are being more proactive when it comes to choosing where they meet, but politics can still get in the way....
Job Titles:
- VP, Global Association Management & Consulting, MCI Group
Nikki Walker has more than thirty years' experience growing and developing associations around the world. As the Global Vice President of Association Management & Consulting for the MCI Group, she is responsible for defining and implementing the services MCI provides to associations. Prior to her promotion as Global Vice President in 2009, Nikki served as Managing Director of the MCI Brussels office heading a team of some 100 association, communications and event management professionals from 21 countries speaking 23 languages. To further support MCI's clients' growth into emerging markets, she moved her global HQ presence to Dubai at the end of 2011. fastbymci.com
Job Titles:
- Vice President Client & Operations at Kenes Group
- VP Client & Operations Kenes Group
Ori Lahav is Vice President Client & Operations at Kenes Group, the professional congress organiser and association management company. He is also President of IAPCO, the International Association of Professional Congress Organisers. Ori joined Kenes Group in 2013 and brought 15 years of marketing experience in various fields and companies, ranging from the automotive sector to telecoms. At Kenes Group he is overlooking the core teams responsible for the design, management, and smooth execution of all international clients, conferences and events. He has been recognised for two consecutive years by event professionals as one of Eventex Top 100 Most Influential People in the industry.
Job Titles:
- Head of Events at the Australian Psychological Society
Paula Rowntree is head of events at the Australian Psychological Society, and founder of The Business Events Network. She is also a 2023 AIMEbassador for the Asia-Pacific Incentives and Meetings Event (AIME).
Phil Watton, CEO, TFI Lodestar, said: "Gema's contribution to the company's successes has been notable for some time, but her leadership since the pandemic crisis in particular marked her out as someone with incredible rigour, focus and ambition. TFI Lodestar's shareholders have made this appointment with great confidence, and we look forward to another exciting and dynamic chapter in the company's story."
Hotel group Accor has appointed Philippe Bijaoui as senior VP development, Europe & North Africa, responsible for its economy, midscale and premium brands.
With almost 30 years' experience in the hotel industry for international groups, Bijaoui's arrival will support Accor's ambition to remain the fastest growing hotel group across all segments in Europe & North Africa and continue the expansion of its brands in the region.
Having started his role in January 2023, Bijaoui will be based in Paris and will be part of the newly formed Europe North Africa Executive Committee, as well as the Global Development and D&TS Committee.
He will be responsible for defining the growth strategy in the region in collaboration with the global chief development officer; leading strategic hotel development projects; and building upon the strong relationships held with Accor's current and potential partners.
Roslyn McLeod OAM, founder of professional conference organisation Arinex, was presented with an Honorary Membership of the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA).
Job Titles:
- Events Director, EURORDIS - Rare Diseases Europe
Sharon is a creative, accomplished and exacting event management professional whose passion is to design and deliver interactive events that motivate and connect participants and provide platforms for genuine exchange and learning. While delivering events that advocate for better lives for people living with a rare disease, Sharon also strengthens this community by solidifying trust and maintaining credibility. Moreover, Sharon fosters long-term and mutually beneficial relations with key strategic volunteers and wider stakeholder groups to further their respective goals.
The arc of her career spans conferences, capacity-building workshops, symposia, weddings, award ceremonies and fundraising gala dinners of all sizes in Europe, North America and beyond. Whether as a self-employed business owner, a director, or as part of a team, Sharon is a collaborator who stays focused and poised. Her passion for detail - not only in creating an overall strategic framework but also the finer intricacies of the event experience - is unrelenting. Sharon has experience delivering online, hybrid and in-person events with measurable deliverables and proven return on investment. She recently completed a certification programme in online meetings from the Meeting Design Institute.
Job Titles:
- Manchester Central Chief Executive
Manchester Central chief executive Shaun Hinds is stepping down from his role in June 2024 following seven years in the post.
A well-recognised and respected voice in the events sector, Hinds has achieved multiple successes in the role, from filing record breaking financial figures to steering the company through the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent takeover of the venue as the region's emergency Nightingale Hospital.
Ursula Aring is an independent consultant in public, government and regulatory affairs. Since 2001, she has worked across the energy, energy management, construction and healthcare sectors in both private and public enterprise.
She designs and executes campaigns to represent business interests to market, media, political and regulatory audiences at national, regional and global levels. A British and Swiss national, Ursula Aring holds a degree from The University of Leeds and further education from the Zurich Universities of Applied Sciences ZHAW and HWZ.
William has almost twenty years' experience in dealing with every aspect of an event. William has been carrying out event consultancy for almost ten years. A published author of Successful Events For Not For Profit Organisations, William has been a leading voice in the event industry for many years. He has an impressive list of past clients including some of the largest membership bodies in Europe. William has also worked with the world's biggest event company Reed Exhibitions and one of the UK's largest events companies The Concerto Group. Along with his experience William also looks to the future. As a Meeting Designer and past Curator of Europe's first Event Technology event William works at the cutting edge of events. William has a vast knowledge of the events business and can be seen speaking on various aspects of events across the world. www.gallusevents.co.uk
Job Titles:
- Executive Director of the European Society for Sports Traumatology
Zhanna Kovalchuk, executive director of the European Society for Sports Traumatology, Knee Surgery and Arthroscopy, talks to AMI about the importance of knowing how, dealing with 'confident' men, and what the future holds for associations...