Tim DeMott is the General Manager of the Convention Center at The Classic Center in Athens, GA. Tim Graduated from the University of Georgia and started working with The Classic Center as a volunteer usher before coming on staff as an Event Planner. Once on the team full time, Tim quickly rose through the ranks, becoming the youngest Department Head in Classic Center history. He has a true passion for events and enjoys the challenge of logistics and planning while working tirelessly to exceed guests’ expectations.

Join your Foundation in congratulating Tim 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!

Thanks to the generosity of so many IAVM members, today’s the day we are able to open up application for five (5) women to be able to attend VenueConnect 2020 Virtual!

Criteria for the VC20 100+ Women Scholarship Application:

• Must be a woman employed or recently employed in the venue industry
• Must have an active professional or young professional membership with IAVM
• Must be unable to pay for VC20 registration due to being furloughed, laid-off or budget slashing related to the COVID-19 pandemic or related hardship
• Must apply before the deadline of October 16, 2020

CLICK HERE to apply now!

If you have yet to invest in the 100+ Women program, we are still happy to take your donation. Make today the day you decide to change the professional lives of women in our industry. Make your investment today!

The IAVM Leadership Development Committee is seeking candidates who are well-versed in all areas of venue management, invested in their own professional growth and the growth of others, are dedicated to the advancement of the venue industry as a whole and have the demonstrated ability to lead the Association.

The application process and criteria are available here. The timeframe to submit your application to Rosanne Duke, Director of Governance/Operations, begins October 7, 2020 and ends November 16, 2020.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Must have attained CVE designation and maintain the designation throughout the term of office;
• Must be a dues-paying (either Individual or Group Membership) , Professional Member of IAVM and remain as such throughout the term of office;
• Must have previously served at least one full term on the IAVM Board of Directors;
• Must have served at least one full year as Chair of:
  • an IAVM Committee,
  • the Board of Regents,
  • the Board of Governors, or
  • the IAVM Foundation Board of Trustees;
• Must have served on at least 3 of the following in any combination (each Committee service counts as one):
  • IAVM Committees,
  • Board of Regents,
  • Board of Governors, or
  • Board of Trustees;
• Must have been employed in one of the 2 top positions in a venue for at least 10 years;
• Must have completed at least 1 of the following IAVM school programs:
  • Venue Management School
  • Graduate Institute
  • Senior Executive Symposium
  • Academy for Venue Safety & Security
• Must have attended VenueConnect at least 3 times, and any combination of at least 3 other programs (from the list below) in the previous 6 years:
  • Additional years at VenueConnect;
  • Other IAVM educational programs; (GuestX, Operations Summit)
  • Sector Conferences (AMC, ICCC, PAMC, ISMC, UVMC)
  • Region Meetings
  • Chapter Meetings

The nomination process is Member-initiated. The web site directs the interested members to review the criteria and utilize the online self-assessment tool to help determine their individual eligibility as a candidate for senior officer, and to ultimately submit an application form should they wish to be considered as a candidate.

The application and supporting documentation is due by November 16, 2020.

By R.V. Baugus

John Ayo, the appropriately named Chief Balancing Officer of Travel Balance (tagline: Where Healthy Travel Drives Greater Business Profitability) knows of whence he speaks on the topic of wellness, an area of life that we all need to give serious attention to in times of COVID-19 and more.

To that end, you will want to be sure to hear John’s presentation at VenueConnect20 when he speaks on Wellness Magic: Inside Secrets to Boost Your Immune System To Keep You Well.

What are the best ways to boost your natural immunity to keep you healthy during these crazy coronavirus days? John will share immediately useful tips for healthy choices that you can make to maximize your immune system’s ability to keep you healthy. You can’t perform at your best in work and life if you don’t feel well. This content packed and fast-paced presentation will unveil natural health secrets that can help your body to heal itself. Don’t miss this fun, engaging and one of the most entertaining wellness sessions you will ever attend!

But before you attend, we want you to know a little bit more about John and a little bit more about the session The balancing officer took time out of his balanced schedule to visit with Venue Professional for a chat on his presentation.

VP: Share with our readers just a little about yourself and the overarching mission of Travel Balance.

JA: My passion is in teaching and inspiring people to take care of their health and wellness as it is difficult to do anything else in life when you don’t feel good. My primary focus has been on travel wellness, but during our current adventure I tend to teach more about general wellness and how we can stay healthy during these stressful times.

VP: Speak some to how your areas of expertise work well within our industry of public assembly venue management.

JA: As with any industry, it’s difficult for you to host events at your venue if you (and your frontline staff) are not feeling well. Venue management can be very stressful, and you can’t take care of your patrons if you are sick at home (or at work). I inspire people to take wellness seriously so that you can provide the best experience possible for your customers.

VP: Wellness is a huge, huge topic these days. I would imagine it to be a topic that cannot be stressed (pardon the pun) enough.

JA: Well said. When you have your health anything is possible, when you don’t have your health, nothing else matters!

VP: What will be some highlights of your session that should make attendees want to attend?

JA: I will share one simple thing you can do to drastically improve your health, keys to managing stress, and learning the best things to eat and supplements to take that will help your body to heal itself.

VP: How about takeaways. What will some of those be?

JA: There are several, including optimizing your health around technology, learning the best ways to get your energy and balance back, and maximizing your immune system’s ability to keep you healthy.

VP: What have you most discovered about people and/or businesses during this current pandemic as it relates to wellness?

JA: More people are being forced to go inside and face emotional traumas and challenges that they have been avoiding for many years. While painful, it can be one of the most freeing things in your life. This pandemic has brought on way more compassion than I’ve seen in a long time. We will come out of this better than before, with so much gratitude for things we used to take for granted.

VP: Is there anything else you care to share with our membership?

JA: While it may seem that events will never come back, keep the faith that this will pass and we will emerge a much better society as a result. We may not be able to change the world, but by focusing on being the best you can be you can change YOU and one by one we CAN change the world.

By Tom Cornwall, CVE

For me, Bubble life started on July 12 and completed 79 days later on September 29, one day after Game 81 in the bubble saw the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Dallas Stars in Game 6 to claim the Stanley Cup in Edmonton. Some say the Stanley Cup is the hardest trophy to win in professional sports. Many insiders are saying that this year’s “COVID Cup” was the hardest Stanley Cup to win.

The two hub cities of Edmonton and Toronto consisted of 24 teams and a few hundred NHL staff and contractors all working together to keep the bubble’s safe, both from a security and hygiene standpoint. Most of us lived inside the two bubbles and had very little to no contact with the outside world.

It took a village, or in this case, two villages, to pull off this tournament and keep it COVID-free over five playoff rounds consisting of 81 games. According to the NHL, there were almost 34,500 COVID-19 tests conducted with zero positive tests. Needless to say we got very used to our daily throat or nasal swabs!

The opportunity to participate in this historic event will forever rank near the top of my career highlights, especially since this one came in my “retirement” years! The COVID crisis put an end to any hopes of retirement travel adventures so I was very grateful to Oak View Group/Prevent Advisors when they tapped me to join their Edmonton Compliance Team for this project.

The memories are many and the opportunity to meet new colleagues who have become new friends is priceless. On July 12 when I started this project and began planning the fence perimeters that would quickly create our bubble, I wasn’t super optimistic that we could pull this off. Now, 79 days later, it was almost surreal reflecting back on what was accomplished between Toronto and Edmonton bubble dwellers.

The Tampa Bay Lightning fought hard for the right to drink from THE CUP. The dedicated bubble support staff fought tirelessly as a village to help the NHL put the 2019-20 season/Stanley Cup final in the history books. On July 12, I set my project goal to successfully and safely complete this event, pop the bubble, and return to retirement life with Betsy. I am happy to say I have achieved that goal and am once again enjoying home-cooked meals and looking forward to my grandchildren visiting tomorrow!

Tom Cornwall, CVE, is NHL Hub City Compliance Officer, retired.