The IAVM Foundation Legacy Award may be awarded annually by the Board of Trustees to an individual or organization who, in the opinion of the IAVM Foundation has made a significant financial and/or non-financial contribution to benefit the mission and objectives of the IAVM Foundation. The Foundation Chief Executive Officer will provide evidence the nominee meets the criteria.

The following criteria are established for the Legacy Award nominees:

1. The nominee may be from any membership category of IAVM or from outside of the Association in a related field.
2. Any current or past contributor to the IAVM Foundation may make a nomination, which must provide, in writing, specific examples of the nominee’s outstanding contributions to the IAVM Foundation.
3. At least three letters of recommendation must accompany the nomination.
4. No Chair of IAVM or Chair of the IAVM Foundation is eligible for consideration until the third VenueConnect following his/her term of office.
5. Previous recipients are ineligible (and may be found on our website under Awards).
6. The award may be given posthumously.

The nominations and letters of recommendation should be written to Brad Mayne, CVE, IAVM Foundation CEO and submitted to Rosanne Duke electronically. The nomination letter and all letters of recommendation must be received by close of business November 30, 2021. If you have any questions, please contact Rosanne Duke via email or phone at 972.538.1025.

The Charles A. McElravy Award may be awarded annually to a Professional, Honorary, or Retired member of IAVM who, in the opinion of the Board of Directors has made the greatest lifetime achievement to the welfare of the Association or profession.

The following criteria are established for the McElravy Award nominees:

1. The nominee must have been a Professional, Honorary, or Retired Member of the IAVM in good standing for at least fifteen (15) years total (though not necessarily consecutively).
2. The nominee needs to meet the minimum service to IAVM requirements for Honorary Membership, but is not required to be retired. The following criteria must be met for a member to be eligible for consideration for Honorary Membership:  1) Attendance at no fewer than 10 Annual Conferences (VenueConnect) during the past 15 years; 2) Attendance at no fewer than 5 Region Meetings during the past 15 years;  3) Service as chair of at least three international or two Region committees during the past 15 years;  4) Service as:  Director of IAVM or officer in a Region at least once during the member’s tenure with IAVM or b) Program chair for an IAVM venue-specific or specialty meeting during the member’s tenure with IAVM or c) Member of Board of Regents, Board of Trustees, or Board of Governors during member’s tenure with IAVM.
3. Any member in good standing may make a nomination, which must provide, in writing, a minimum of three examples of the nominee’s outstanding contributions to IAVM and/or the industry (for example: leadership, accomplishments, professional service/activities, projects/results).
4. At least three letters of recommendation must accompany the nomination letter.
5. No Chairman of the Board (or Past President) of IAVM is eligible for consideration until the third Annual Conference (VenueConnect) following his/her term of office.
6. Previous recipients are ineligible (and may be found on our website under Awards).

The nominations and letters of recommendation should be written to Brad Mayne, CVE, President & CEO and submitted to Rosanne Duke electronically.  The nomination letter and all letters of recommendation must be received by close of business November 30, 2021.  If you have any questions, please contact Rosanne Duke via email or phone at 972.538.1025.

The Joseph J. Anzivino Distinguished Allied Award may be awarded annually by the Board of Directors to an individual currently or previously employed by a firm which is or was an Allied member in good standing.  The President and CEO will provide evidence the nominee meets the criteria.

The following criteria are established for the Anzivino Award nominees:

1. The nominee must have been an IAVM member for at least ten (10) years total, which need not be consecutive.
2. Any member may make a nomination, which must provide a minimum of three examples of the nominee’s exemplary service and contributions to IAVM and/or the industry (for example: leadership, accomplishments, professional service/activities, projects/results).
3. The nominee must have served IAVM by: 1) Attendance at no fewer than 6 Annual Conferences (VenueConnect); 2) Attendance at no fewer than 10 Region Meetings; 3) Being chair of at least 2 IAVM committees or sub-committees; 4) Being a member of IAVM Board of Directors, IAVM Foundation Board of Trustees, Board of Regents or Board of Governors during the members’ tenure with IAVM; 5) Being a member of an IAVM program, campaign or task force/committee.
4. No Chair of the Allied Committee is eligible for consideration until the second Annual Conference (VenueConnect) following his/her term of office.
5. At least three letters of recommendation must accompany the nomination.
6. Previous recipients are ineligible (and may be found on our website under Awards).
7. The award may be given posthumously.
8. Selection of recipients will be made by an 80% vote of the Board of Directors; Recommendations to the Board of Directors for nominees shall be made by the Allied Committee.

The nominations and letters of recommendation should be written to Brad Mayne, CVE, President & CEO and submitted to Rosanne Duke electronically.  The nomination letter and all letters of recommendation must be received by close of business November 30, 2021.  If you have any questions, please contact Rosanne Duke via email or by phone – 972.538.1025.

By R.V. Baugus

Jim Mercurio knows a thing or two about Forward Thinking Leadership, a topic he will cover in a presentation on October 5 at IAVM’s ENCORE virtual conference.

As Executive Vice President and General Manager of Levi’s Stadium, home to the NFL San Francisco 49er’s, Mercurio is in his 30th year with the team and his fifth in his current position. Previously, he served six years as vice president, stadium operations & general manager. In his current role, Mercurio oversees all aspects of stadium & event operations including executive oversight of the food and beverage operations, engineering, grounds, guest services, janitorial services, operations & logistics, parking and transportation. He additionally manages all police, safety & security services, including 24/7 stadium security operations, and game and event day medical services at Levi’s Stadium.

At IAVM ENCORE, Mercurio will share answers to questions offered by Russ Simons, Chief Listening Officer and General Manager at Venue Solutions Group and himself someone who knows a lot when it comes to leaders and leadership.

You will not want to miss this special session from two of the very sharpest minds in the public assembly venue world when they have more a conversation than presentation at ENCORE. We will not give away the full conversation but want to share in advance a snippet of the conversation between the two icons.

RUSS: Leadership is what we all pay attention to and leaders to consider themselves learners. That said, how did you get to where you are today?

JIM: It started well before entering into pro sports and venue management. It started at home with mom and dad. Then from playing sports and sports in general. How to handle defeat, how to compete, how to be a team player, how to coach, how to teach, how to be taught, all things I think in my day I valued growing up and certainly to this day.

When we look at everything that sport teaches us, it should be applicable to everyday life and certainly in my case if you are a boss all of those things you learn specifically how to form a team, how to play on a team, how to be an honest, hard-working individual and a productive member of society, all of that stuff started for me at home.

I played baseball as a kid and basketball player but not very good. I got a baseball scholarship to University of Pacific in Stockton, CA. I made the jump from playing sports to being a part of sports, entertainment, and service.

RUSS: When I interview people today I don’t ask about their skill set in their job, I ask about their career and the items that create the foundation of their character. What was the first job you had on our side of the industry?

JIM: I like to say I picked up jocks and socks. That’s really what I did. I was on the sidelines at Candlestick Park picking up jocks and socks in the locker room first, getting Gatorade and water to the team, and when the game started I actually pulled up the nets in the end zone. That and as a security guard back in the day with Contemporary Services.

Mercurio is just getting warmed up to the topic of Forward Thinking Leadership. You are invited to be at the session to hear the full interview and gain insights into making yourself a better leader and one respected by your “team” in your own “locker room.”

By R.V. Baugus

In the words of Ruben Hernandez, CVE, “Estamos iniciando este foro abierto de administradores de recintos.
Nos gustaría saber su opinión al respecto y qué sugerencias desean compartir para que se convierta en una herramienta valiosa para intercambiar ideas, experiencias, tips, conocimientos y cualquier tema que les sea de interés.”

In English, what the IAVM member and Business Specialist with Mirrub Soluciones in Monterrey, Mexico, is sharing translates to “We are starting this open forum for venue managers. We would like to know your opinion about it and what suggestions you want to share so that it becomes a valuable tool to exchange ideas, experiences, tips, knowledge, and any topic that is of interest to you.”

A new community group on VenueNet is under the title of Foro Abierto de Administradores de Recintos and serves as a platform for those wishing to connect through a Spanish-speaking channel.

We also had an opportunity to catch up with our good friend from Monterrey to chat some more about the forum.

HOW DID THE IDEA COME ABOUT FOR THE COMMUNITY FOR MEMBERS TO POST IN SPANISH?

For many years, we have observed that there is a large community of Spanish speakers working at venues in North America. Many of them communicate better in Spanish. In Mexico, on the other hand, some colleagues don’t speak English very well and need someone to help them ask their questions about operations, administration, and sales issues in our industry.

WHAT ARE SOME THINGS YOU WOULD LIKE TO ACCOMPLISH IN THIS NEW PLATFORM?

We would like the benefits of our association to reach each of the members by eliminating the language barrier and thus achieve one of the important objectives that we have: To be a means of knowledge transfer.
Attending to this important segment would also increase the interest of more venues including Latin America.

WHAT MUST PEOPLE DO IN ORDER TO BECOME A PART OF THE COMMUNITY?

It is easy to be part of this community. As a member, it is only necessary to login TO VenueNet, open the communities menu, select “Foro Abierto de Administradores de Recintos” and join this community. If you are not a member yet, it is also very easy to get an IAVM membership on the association’s website. In Mexico, there is an alternative to belonging to IAVM if you are also a member of AMEREF (Mexican Association of Venues). But the most important thing will be the active participation of all colleagues so that this forum becomes a really helpful tool for all participants.