By Stacie Bauer

In addition to the many new leadership announcements made in the past weeks, Ungerboeck Software is delighted to announce that industry icon Evelyn Ingram is back in the fold. Evelyn rejoins Ungerboeck this week in the role of Sales Director, Enterprise.

Evelyn is well known in the industry from her previous role of VP of Sales at EventBooking, prior to the merger with Ungerboeck in June 2021. She had been with EventBooking for 19 years, and over that time had built and maintained close relationships with many venue leaders and event managers in the industry.

Evelyn was recognized as a Women of Influence by VenuesNow magazine in 2018 and has served on several boards and committees at IAVM including the Membership Committee, Allied Committee, Board of Trustees, Leadership Development Committee, and Diversity and Inclusive Leadership Committee.

Mike Besecker, Chief Revenue Officer at Ungerboeck said, “We are thrilled to have Evelyn come back and rejoin our team. We’re changing the way we do business and the structure of our sales organization, and Evelyn will be a key driver of this new way we are operating. I am sure everyone in the industry that knows Evelyn will be as excited as we are to see her back at trade shows and conferences finding ways to help others do business better through smarter use of technology.”

Evelyn said, “Serving the industry is in my blood. I can’t tell you how happy I am to be rejoining Ungerboeck in this next phase of growth. With the tools we now have to offer the market, I am beyond excited to be able to show venue managers how we can help them realize greater efficiencies than ever before.”

Stacie Bauer is Event & Sponsorship Coordinator, Marketing, for Ungerboeck.

By Colum Coomey

The Hon. John Brumby AO, Chair of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Trust, announced the appointment of Natalie O’Brien AM as Chief Executive of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC).

O’Brien joins the business in January 2023 and brings a wealth of leadership experience in the tourism and events industry. She is a former CEO of Food and Wine Victoria, producers of Australia’s internationally acclaimed Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.

Most recently she has managed her own strategy consultancy while operating as a CEO for Wine Victoria, and previously interim CEO for Ballarat Regional Tourism, where she led the co-design of Visitor Economy Recovery Plans.

O’Brien was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2019 Australia Day Honours list for significant service to tourism, food, and the community of Victoria.

As CEO of MCEC O’Brien will be responsible for the overall management, business plan delivery, and future strategic direction of MCEC and the operational planning for the new Geelong Convention and Exhibition Centre (GCEC).

O’Brien will step into the role following the departure of outgoing CEO, Peter King, who finishes with the business at the end of the year. This follows a remarkable 11 years in which King has made a lasting impact on not just MCEC, but to the wider visitor economy.

O’Brien joins MCEC at a crucial time as the organisation recovers from the impact of COVID-19 and builds for the future. The Centre has reopened to a strong demand for business in 2022 and her experience will play a key role in continuing to guide the business back to its pre-pandemic levels of success in the coming years.

“Recognised for her contributions to Victoria’s tourism and major events sector, Natalie brings exceptional leadership and experience to Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, ensuring the organisation continues to draw the events and exhibitions that support businesses and create jobs,” said Minister for Tourism, Sport & Major Events Steve Dimopoulos.

“I thank Peter for his hard work and service across 11 years at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. Under his leadership the venue has played an essential role in drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors to Victoria.”

“We’re really pleased with Natalie’s appointment as CEO of MCEC,” added Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Trust Chair, the Hon. John Brumby AD. “We’ve been lucky to attract an executive with the experience and skillset to lead the organisation in the years ahead. She brings great insight and a tremendous track record of driving change and growth in organisations.

“Natalie will bring a wealth of senior experience to the role and will provide the vision and leadership MCEC needs as we continue to recover and grow in a challenging business events environment post-COVID.

“I’d like to congratulate Natalie on her appointment and look forward to working with her and MCEC’s senior management team on further developing our world class venue.

“Natalie was chosen after an extensive global recruitment and executive search process throughout Australia and internationally that produced an outstanding shortlist of candidates. The quality of the field is testament to the very high regard that the Centre is held in throughout the world.”

Speaking about her appointment to the role O’Brien said: “I’m excited to lead an already iconic Melbourne landmark into the next phase of growth as the organisation’s enormous impact and benefit continues to expand across Victoria.

“I can’t wait to work with the incredible team at MCEC, empowering them to continue to achieve their very best and contribute to the experience of all visitors to, and residents of, this vibrant and diverse state.

“I’m especially looking forward to building strong relationships with our customers, our people, the community we serve, and key government and industry stakeholders, while also fostering new partnerships and business outcomes in an increasingly competitive market.”

O’Brien will commence in her new role as CEO of MCEC from 9 January 2023.

Colum Coomey is Corporate Communications Manager for MCEC.

By Blair Cardinal

Oak View Group (OVG) announced the acquisition of premium hospitality provider Bovingdons, marking the launch of its international OVG Hospitality division in the UK.

As a component of the acquisition, OVG will take a majority stake and full control of London-based Bovingdons, which has built a reputation for excellent service over its 35-year history. One of the UK’s leading providers of catering and venue management services, the private company currently services a portfolio of sought-after venues including Surrey’s Nonsuch Mansion, Fulham Palace, and Grand Junction in Paddington. As the latest and first international operator to join OVG Hospitality’s growing portfolio, the acquisition will enable Bovingdons to nurture and expand OVG’s growing global portfolio of world-class venues and clients.

“Since the launch last year, OVG Hospitality continues to grow and strengthen its position in the industry, and with the acquisition of Bovingdons, we’re now well-positioned to expand our offering into international markets,” said Ken Gaber, president, OVG Hospitality. “Bovingdons has an undeniable reputation for excellence. We are convinced that its talented and ambitious management team is ready for the next stage of growth with the right investment and guidance. We are glad to welcome Bovingdons to OVG and excited to collaborate with their team to continue to deliver brilliant services.”

“I’m delighted for Bovingdons to join the OVG family and under this new stewardship am confident that we will take our business to the next level. By joining the OVG family, Bovingdons will be able to offer ever greater service to our existing clients and venues by leaning into their extensive network and expertise,” said Jay Burgesson-Carter, director, Bovingdons Catering. “OVG’s core values of sustainability, quality, and trust are completely aligned with ours and I look forward to working together on the future direction of the business.”

The acquisition continues OVG’s commitment as the leading full-service live events company in the world. Following the launch of OVG Hospitality in 2021 with the acquisition of Spectra, and most recently, the acquisition of Spectrum in North America, which expands OVG into non-traditional areas such as major sporting events and music festivals.

The execution of the deal for OVG was led by Keegan McDonald, vice president of business development, Michael Moschella, vice president of business development, and Joe Donohue, associate of business development. The management team for Bovingdons was led by Director, Jay Burgesson-Carter, alongside Theo Wieder and Adam Karni-Cohen for Thwack Partners.

From Chase Center

The 2022 NBA Champion Golden State Warriors and Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company, announced that as part of its commitment to providing modern, immersive experiences for fans and guests, Aruba Wi-Fi 6E access points (APs) have been deployed at Chase Center. This implementation marks the first Wi-Fi 6E network at a live entertainment venue in North America and significantly increases available bandwidth in the arena as fans embrace streaming, uploading content and other high-bandwidth activities during events. This also ensures ample bandwidth for stadium operations, IoT implementations, and experience-related services such as in-seat ordering and contactless payment.

Chase Center seats 18,064 for Warriors games. The arena also hosts concerts, comedians and other events. Additionally, the district surrounding the venue, which is known as Thrive City, boasts 3.2 acres of open space, 125,000 square feet of restaurant and retail businesses, and 580,000 square feet of office space across two buildings. As the first arena to deploy this technology in North America, Chase Center currently has over 250 active Wi-Fi 6E APs in the bowl seating section of the arena. The Wi-Fi 6E APs were first live with the venue’s Alicia Keys concert on September 3, 2022.

“The Warriors are obsessed with creating world class experiences and providing fast, reliable connectivity for sold out crowds of 18,000+ fans at games and events at Chase Center is an incredibly important part of that,” said Warriors President and Chief Operating Officer Brandon Schneider. “With the addition of Wi-Fi 6E Access Points in the arena bowl we can provide fans a more immersive experience that we believe is unmatched by any other professional sporting venue.”

Chase Center’s adoption of Aruba’s enterprise grade Wi-Fi 6E solution set, which was the first Wi-Fi 6E solution introduced to the market, includes Aruba’s patented ultra tri-band filtering that dynamically adjusts the available channels to eliminate signal interference and performance degradation. The new Wi-Fi 6E APs allow the arena to centrally configure and automatically enforce role-based policies across the wired and wireless networks. Additionally, the APs are IoT-ready with integrated Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and Zigbee support to make it easier to deploy and manage IoT including asset tracking, security solutions, and sensors.

Chase Center has hosted numerous sold-out events since its opening in 2019 including every Warriors game and the 2022 NBA Finals, which saw a peak of over 3.80 TB in use, with over 10,000 unique devices. During the venue’s host duties of the 2022 NCAA Western Regional, the arena experienced a peak of over 4.05 TB.

“We’re thrilled to partner with the Golden State Warriors and Chase Center on a world-class, future-ready network that delivers an unparalleled fan experience,” said Stuart Strickland, Wireless CTO at Aruba. “With Wi-Fi 6E, the Warriors and Chase Center can take advantage of the increased capacity, wider channels, and significantly reduced signal interference of 6 GHz and the location-aware infrastructure of Open Locate. Visitors will enjoy higher bandwidth, lower latency services and applications such as HD video, next-generation unified communications, AR/VR, IoT, and more.”

The Memphis Grizzlies NBA basketball team has announced upgrades at the FedExForum, including a newly renovated space on the terrace level of the arena.

The space, known as Big River Steel Edge, is designed to provide an enhanced fan experience. The terrace level of the arena has also been renamed Big River Steel Terrace as part of the revamp.

The Big River Steel Edge space is located between sections 201 and 232 of FedEx Forum and features 34 TVs as well as a refreshed bar and grill with an updated menu. The space overlooks both the court from the west end of the arena bowl and the grand lobby of the venue, while fans will also have access to an outdoor area overlooking the city skyline.

Technology company Big River Steel has agreed a deal to sponsor the space and the terrace level of the arena. The company will use its partnership with the Grizzlies to expand its reach into Memphis and the surrounding areas.

The new space has opened on the back of increased ticket demand following a successful season for the Grizzlies in 2021-22. The team won 56 games and claimed the Southwest divisional title for the first time.

Grizzlies president Jason Wexler said: “We are truly excited to enhance the fan experience through the creation of this innovative terrace level destination and our partnership with Big River Steel.

“We wanted to create a place where fans can gather to absorb the atmosphere of the game as a social experience while sharing in Big River Steel’s commitment to the local community and region. We know our fans will embrace this as a premier destination within FedEx Forum and are pleased to be able launch the Big River Steel Edge.”

Dan Brown, chief operating officer at Big River Steel Works, said: “We are thrilled to partner with the Memphis Grizzlies to highlight the innovation of Big River Steel. Through this dynamic and multi-faceted partnership, we look forward to the great work we will do together to engage with the communities we call home.”