From Ticketing Business News

Jared Smith is stepping down as global chairman of Ticketmaster at the end of the year after more than 17 years with the ticketing giant.

In August, Smith was promoted to chairman of the combined North America and International teams as it looks to become a “truly global” self-service ticketing platform.

According to the announcement published by online news website Sportico, Smith and the chief executive of Live Nation Michael Rapino have reportedly had ongoing discussions over the past few years regarding a succession plan.

Smith said that the COVID-19 pandemic provided the opportunity to make the move.

He said in an interview, Sportico reports: “The company deserves to have the person who’s going to be here long-term making the hard decisions right now of what it should look like.”

Smith will stay on through the end of the year to help with the transition.

Smith began his career at Ticketmaster in 2003 in an entry-level sales job in Birmingham, Alabama, and seven years later he was named chief operating officer following the merger with Live Nation in 2010. Three years later he was named president of its North America operation.

He said: “I owe my entire career to sports and entertainment. I love the business, the people, the dynamic relationship between the consumer and the product.

“As I evaluate opportunities, whether it’s within or outside the live event industry, the most important thing to me is finding an opportunity with great growth potential that leverages my experience of building innovative products, high performing teams and operating at real scale.”

Ticketmaster and its parent company have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, which shut down live events almost overnight in March. The majority of Live Nation’s shows were postponed or cancelled in 2020, with the company claiming that 86 per cent of fans have opted to keep tickets for rescheduled shows, as opposed to seeking refunds.

However, Live Nation’s 2020 financial results for the three months to end of June showed that its global ticketing operation posted negative revenue in the quarter, due to customer refunds.

Live Nation reported a loss of $567.5m for Q2 of 2020 in its quarterly earnings report. The firm’s revenue was $74.1m, down 98 per cent from the same period in 2019 when it reached revenue of $3.15bn.

Despite aggressive cost-cutting measures, the live entertainment giant furloughed and laid off hundreds of its North American workforce as a result of the pandemic in April. This was followed by a series of cuts in May that affected 2,100 of its 10,500 employees across multiple divisions at the company to reduce costs by $600m as live events remained dormant.

In September, it instigated a further round of furloughs across its US venues and Ticketmaster North America divisions. It is estimated that hundreds of employees have been affected by the cost-reduction measures brought on by the continued strain of COVID-19, although the exact number of cuts are unclear.

By Nancy Walker

The Los Angeles Convention Center (LACC), owned by the City of Los Angeles and managed by ASM Global, announced that the facility has been awarded LEED certification at the Gold level for Existing Buildings Operations & Maintenance (LEED-EB: O&M) for the third time. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), is the most widely used green building rating system in the world and an international symbol of excellence. Through design, construction and operations practices that improve environmental and human health, LEED-certified buildings are helping to make the world more sustainable.

The LACC first achieved Silver certification in 2008 and was certified at the Gold level in 2010 and again in 2015. LACC achieved LEED Gold re-certification in recognition of implementing practical and measurable strategies and solutions in areas including water savings, energy efficiency/management, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. Certified under LEED V4.1 – adapting ARC Skoru platform, the new LEED guidelines ensure team effort, healthy building practices, performance oriented sustainable programs, and efforts toward zero waste.

“Achieving LEED certification is more than just implementing sustainable practices. It represents a commitment to making the world a better place and influencing others to do better,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, president and CEO, USGBC. “Given the extraordinary importance of climate protection and the central role buildings play in that effort, the Los Angeles Convention Center is creating a path forward through their LEED certification.”

“Congratulations to the Los Angeles Convention Center for continuing to prioritize the environmental practices that have once again earned the LEED Gold re-certification. The values and goals inherent in the LEED program match with goals set forth by the City of Los Angeles and we applaud the LACC’s team for weaving these components into the fabric of their operation,” said Doane Liu, Executive Director of the Los Angeles Department of Convention & Tourism Development.

“Environmental sustainability is embedded in the Los Angeles Convention Center’s culture and is considered with every decision in our day-to-day operation,” commented Ellen Schwartz, General Manager of the Los Angeles Convention Center. “The venue is nationally recognized as a champion of environmental stewardship and social responsibility. We remain steadfast in our efforts to reduce the venue’s environmental footprint by continually seeking new sustainable practices and products.”

Nancy Walker is Vice President, Sales & Marketing at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Kayln Denniston is the Senior Implementation Consultant at EventBooking, a software company that provides venue management solutions to over 1,000 venues around the world. Starting the week after she graduated from the University of Tennessee, Kayln has now served venue professionals at EventBooking for over 5 years with her extensive experience in project management and knowledge of best practice workflows to meet the needs of venue teams of all sizes. In addition to her IAVM membership, Kayln is a proud 2018 graduate of the Oglebay Venue Management School, where she served as Class Rep for her second year, and also serves on the IAVM Allied Committee. She is active within the IAVM community and strives to strengthen the relationship between Allied and Professional members.

“I was absolutely over the moon when I received the news that I was selected for 30|U|30. After several years of trying I felt a wave of relief to have finally achieved one of my biggest goals. It is incredibly rewarding to be recognized as an Allied member for my contributions to IAVM and I look forward to many more years of serving and shaping this industry.”

Join your Foundation in congratulating Kayln on being honored as one of the 30|UNDER|30 Class of 2020 and don’t forget to come back each Thursday as we spotlight another honoree!

Please welcome our newest members who joined IAVM in September 2020. Thank you for being a part of the association! Also, let us get to know you better by participating in the I Am Venue Management series. Please visit http://www.iavm.org/i-am-venue-management-share-your-story to share your story and photo.

Brett Aiken, Phoenix Convention Center & Venues, Phoenix, AZ

Lisa Anderson, Event Services – Utah State University, Logan, UT

Amber Anderson, Event Services – Utah State University, Logan, UT

Linda Baynham, New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, New Orleans, LA

Kristin Bergstrom, Mesa Convention Center, Mesa, AZ

Luke Blackburn, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN

Sarah Bordges, Western Kentucky University, Montgomery, AL

Brandin Bowman, Mt. San Antonio College, Walnut, CA

Mark Casalez, Virginia Beach Convention Center, Virginia Beach, VA

Jason Causey, Georgia International Convention Center/GICC, College Park, GA

Kelsey Cerrone, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO

Mara Christensen, Event Services – Utah State University, Logan, UT

Shaun Cole, Mt. San Antonio College, Walnut, CA

David Cononetz, Washington State Convention Center, Seattle, WA

Lauren Cox, Georgia International Convention Center/GICC, College Park, GA

Dave Curry, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Duane Curry, Georgia International Convention Center/GICC, College Park, GA

Dylan Duckworth, Western Kentucky University, Antioch, IL

Tammy Duhaime, Petainer Manufacturing Inc., Miami, FL

Vanessa Febo, Venues Canberra, Dickson, ACT, Australia

David Fong, Sydney Olympic Park Authority, Sydney Olympic Park, NSW, Australia

Derek Forare, Washington State Convention Center, Seattle, WA

Randy Foster, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Deboney Gainer, Georgia International Convention Center/GICC, College Park, GA

Yvette Garcia, Mt. San Antonio College, Walnut, CA

Kristin Gentry, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO

Robbie Gerber, Event Services – Utah State University, Logan, UT

Jermaine Goodwin, Berry Center, Houston, TX

Andrew Hawkins, Venues Canberra, Jamison, ACT, Australia

Ken Hays, New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, New Orleans, LA

Chris Heinbaugh, AT&T Performing Arts Center, Dallas, TX

Ross Heller, CustomNEWS, Inc., Bethesda, MD

Barry Higgens, Georgia International Convention Center/GICC, College Park, GA

Crystal Hill-Cox, Georgia International Convention Center/GICC, College Park, GA

Christiane Horwitz, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO

Jared Houtman, Western Kentucky University, Hendersonville, TN

Eric Jaeger, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Selina Kirwan, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO

Stuart Lyon, Auckland Live, Auckland,

Chris Mason, MobileDOCK, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

Hugh McCurley, First 5 Minutes, Fortitude Valley, QLD, Australia

Austin McKenna, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO

Scott Menefee, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Todd Molesky, Stages, Houston, TX

Joel Nash, Aramark Sports and Entertainment, Houston, TX

Lakisha Overton, Georgia International Convention Center/GICC, College Park, GA

Lucy Parzer, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO

Zack Peggins, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Katie Ragan, Wisconsin Center District, Milwaukee, WI

Cristian Raudales, 24/7 Software, Boca Raton, FL

Gabrielle Rocker, Georgia International Convention Center/GICC, College Park, GA

Minerva Ruiz, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Denise Russell, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Jessica Sloate, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Matt Snyder, Churchill Downs Racetrack, Louisville, KY

Sam Steel, First 5 Minutes, Ultimo, NSW, Australia

Loni Syltebo, Washington State Convention Center, Seattle, WA

Seth Tarver, Event Services – Utah State University, Logan, UT

Earl Taylor, Washington State Convention Center, Seattle, WA

Ann Taylor, St. Charles Convention Center, Saint Charles, MO

Hewan Teshome, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

Logan Trimmer, Western Kentucky University, White House, TN

Michael Viele, Midland Center for the Arts, Midland, MI

Cody Warren, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO

Ezra Warren, St. Charles Convention Center, Saint Charles, MO

Jason Welchert, Mesa Convention Center, Mesa, AZ

Daniel Wickens, St. Charles Convention Center, Saint Charles, MO

Steven Wills, St. Charles Convention Center, Saint Charles, MO

Debbie Woods, St. Charles Convention Center, Saint Charles, MO

Ivan Zrilic, Callington, Ermington, NSW, Australia

By R.V. Baugus

Gene Smith is in his 15th year as director of athletics at The Ohio State University. He is widely recognized among the leaders of his profession and has been named “one of the most powerful people in collegiate sport.”

Attendees at this year’s virtual VenueConnect will be able to hear Smith as he headlines as the Arenas Keynote Speaker. Smith leads athletics at an institution and in a Big Ten Conference which will be starting its football season soon and thus able to have a say in the final College Football Playoffs, as well as having one of the leading contenders for the Heisman Trophy in quarterback Justin Fields.

Smith’s athletic department sponsors 36 fully-funded varsity sports with more than 1,000 student-athletes competing for Big Ten Conference and NCAA championships.

Smith has additional oversight responsibility for the Business Advancement division of Ohio State which includes: Schottenstein Center, Nationwide Arena, Blackwell Hotel, Drake Union, Fawcett Center, and Trademark & Licensing.

While gearing up for football and the myriad responsibilities on campus, Smith took some time to visit with us on a number of topics in advance of his keynote presentation.

May I ask the obvious at the outset about how important it is to have a football schedule starting up for the conference?

Its critical. First and foremost it’s about our student-athletes. They have worked hard for the opportunity to play. They wanted a chance to play and we have created a safe process to allow them to play. For our community, all of Buckeye Nation, and the 11 states and 14 schools in the conference, this is a positive social activity for all of the students, alumni, and fans to support these programs.

How have your fans been assured that the conference-member stadiums are providing the best in safety and sanitization for them?

Some of the states in our conference have restrictions that make it difficult to host fans in their stadiums, so we agreed to be consistent across the conference and not host fans, even though some schools could safely. Only families of players, coaches, and support staff will be in attendance. We are adhering to all the protocols of distancing, masks, sanitation, and hand washing accessibility to ensure our fans feel safe and protected while they are in our stadium.

As it relates to Arenas in which you are speaking, how are things progressing for basketball at the Big Ten venues as they prepare for their season?

The conference is currently working on schedules that we hope to announce soon for our teams to compete. We will have 20 Big Ten games and teams will be allowed to play a total of 27 games total – 20 conference and 7 non-conference games starting 11/25. Consistent with the state and county regulations we are still determining whether or not we can have fans at our venues. We are comfortable at The Ohio State University that our facilities could safely host fans, be it the Schottenstein Center or Nationwide Arena. Our mechanical systems allow our facilities to create the positive air flow needed to create a safe environment. We will still follow all protocols of masks, distancing, reduced capacity, sanitization, and hand washing, etc.

Shifting gears now to the IAVM VenueConnect, what are some topics you plan to speak on for our venue members to hear?

Leading through the adversity that we are experiencing with the pandemic and the social issues we have been dealing with in our society.

You obviously have venue members on your campus, many of which are long-time IAVM members such Xen Riggs, Mike Gatto, and Colin Thompson, among others. Talk some about the critical role these individuals play as venues begin to reopen around the country.

We are blessed to have people like Xen Riggs and Mike Gatto and Colin Thompson and others who have many years of experience. Their understanding of how to run venues and their understanding of how to host entertainers or other groups and fans in our venues is a significant asset for us. Not everyone is fortunate enough to have the collective talent and expertise that we enjoy because of the people in those positions. They are leaders for us on campus, in Columbus, the state of Ohio and nationally. They have a strong voice in how to safely reopen our facilities and allow our events to return.

What are some takeaways that VenueConnect attendees can expect from your presentation and as they return to their own venues?

Most importantly, understanding people matter more than the facilities themselves. It is critical that in all spaces, through good times and challenging times, that we always keep at the forefront of every decision – people are the heart and soul of all that matters. Without our people we have nothing. Leading with integrity, collaboration, transparency, and being humanistic during these challenging times will help us get through this. And we will come out of this stronger and better for the experiences we have all endured and the challenges we have risen to overcome during this time.

In your mind’s eye, what will the venues of tomorrow look like as fans attend in what will certainly look nothing like what they have been accustomed to?

One of the things we have done prior to the pandemic is to continue to enhance technology. Technology continues to emerge and our ability to respond and learn about whatever platforms or devices that emerge is critical. That is one of the benefits we have in our people; they are trying to always learn about those things and how we can better serve our fans and guests. At some point we will move past this. All of the measures we are putting in place now to improve safety and sanitation and the overall experience will help us create even better experiences for our guests in the future.