SPEAKERS & SESSIONS

FEATURED SPEAKERS

President Barack Obama
44th President of the United States

Thursday, February 20
5:00pm - 6:00pm
Featured Speaker

Open to all registrants
Connect Track

Ducan Wardle
Former Head of Innovation & Creativity, Disney

Wednesday, February 19
9:00am - 2:00pm
Workshop

Open to all registrants
Connect Track

Everyone wants innovation. Indeed for many it’s about survival. You only have to look at Thomas Cook to see the shifts of change. Many C-suite’s talk culture change, but you can’t talk your way into culture change from the top. Your employees have to want to change the culture. 

So what if there was a toolkit that made Innovation easy, creativity tangible and the process fun? One that would allow you to embed innovation into everyone’s DNA.

Leaning on his 25 years of experience at Disney, most recently as head of Innovation and Creativity, Duncan Wardle will share some very simple innovation tools and creative behaviors to help you get out of your now River of Thinking (your own experience and expertise) and help you Think Different.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 19

Natalie Bui
Co-Founder, Shift

Veline Mojarro
Co-Founder, Shift

Wednesday, February 19
2:30pm - 3:30pm
Exhibit Hall Session

Open to all registrants
BizBash Track

As the world transforms and cultures shift, it’s crucial for us as a society to respond to what is happening around us. Even more importantly, as event organizers and producers we must take the initiative to provide safe and inclusive spaces for our attendees, partners, and staff. Listen as Natalie Bui and Veline Mojarro of Shift share case studies on how Coachella and Stagecoach are transforming live experiences with the every one initiative. Discover why this is an important step in your event strategy; tools and resources to ensure persons of any gender identity or expression, sex, sexual orientation, race, religion, age, or ability feel welcome at your event, and what this initiative looks like in your space.

Deborah Elias, CSEP, CMP, CIS
President, Elias Events

Wednesday, February 19
4:00pm - 5:00pm
Exhibit Hall Session

Open to all registrants
Connect Business Travel Track

This interactive education session incorporates live tech demos and creative tips on how to use technology for travel. The session also explores some clever tech to make your day to day work flows more efficient. With a booming travel technology sector it is imperative you keep ahead of the curve. This class will highlight the latest and greatest technologies out there right now.

David Adler
Chairman and Founder, BizBash

Wednesday, February 19
5:15pm - 6:00pm
Exhibit Hall Session

Open to all registrants
BizBash Track

Face the facts, it’s getting increasingly more difficult to capitalize on people’s most valuable resource—their time. As event organizers, it’s more important than ever to think about live experiences not as a single episode, but as a platform to engage, collaborate, and impact attendees. Listen as David Adler, Chairman and Founder of BizBash, uncovers what’s on the mind of top planners, participants, C-suite executives, and the public; sharing ideas on how to make events more meaningful and strategic. From new spatial technology that will transform the way you think about an ordinary meeting room, to the latest theories on structured experiences and the “forgetting curve,” Adler will reveal how event professionals truly have the power to change the world.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 20

Tracy Olenick, CMP
Executive Director, Head of Conferences & Events, UBS

Danielle Purfey Wright
Executive Director, Events & Meetings, KPMG

Barry Ross Rinehart
Global Creative Director, Genpact

Thursday, February 20
9:30am - 10:30am
Exhibit Hall Session

Open to all registrants
BizBash Track

Times are changing. From rapidly evolving technology to new and unexpected competition, event professionals have had to tackle challenges coming from every direction. So as the next gen enters the workforce—one that’s already housing up to five generations under one roof—one question sits at the top of everyone’s mind: what lies on the road ahead? Listen as Tracy Olenick, Executive Director, Head of Conferences & Events at UBS; Danielle Purfey Wright, Executive Director, Events & Meetings at KPMG; and Barry Ross Rinehart, Global Creative Director at Genpact sit down to discuss how financial experiences, and the industry as a whole, are transforming. Olenick and Purfey Wright will cover everything from effectively running teams and streamlining processes, to intelligent automation and managing up, improving the attendee experience, the importance of sustainability, setting the stage to protect our future, and more.

Terri Woodin, CMP
Vice President of Marketing & Global Meetings, Meeting Sites Resource

Thursday, February 20
11:00am - 12:00pm
Exhibit Hall Session

Open to all registrants
Connect Business Travel Track

The buyer submits their RFP, but is it enough to be accepted by the vendor? Conversely, is the vendor being an effective adviser to help the buyer get a “Yes” on their RFP? Let’s take a closer look at how a lack of understanding of common business practices on both sides of the transaction affects how each views the RFP, and learn strategies for both sides to win in the RFP process. Education and training is so important in your position, as well as understanding how the other side operates to achieve success.

Deesha Dyer
Former White House Social Secretary; Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics Resident Fellow; Executive Director, beGirl.world

Ambassador Capricia Penavic Marshall
Former Chief of Protocol of the U.S.; Ambassador-in-Residence, Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center at the Atlantic Council

Thursday, February 20
1:30pm - 2:30pm
Exhibit Hall Session

Open to all registrants
BizBash Track

Ever wonder what it’s like organizing live experiences at the White House? From international event protocol to intimate gatherings for the world’s elite, holding the title of White House Social Secretary comes with challenges, victories, and a ton of good stories. Listen as Ambassador Capricia Penavic Marshall, Former US Chief of Protocol under President Obama and White House Social Secretary for President Clinton; and Deesha Dyer, Former White House Social Secretary for President Obama, sit down to share tales from the inside. Ambassador Marshall and Dyer will uncover behind-the-scenes details from state dinners; the role of diplomacy, protocol, and other traditions in events today; and what happens when you have conflicting views or concepts with the President or First Lady.