By Lori Tenny

A government crackdown on impersonation fraud targeting the business events industry may soon become a reality thanks to efforts spearheaded by the Exhibition and Conferences Alliance (ECA) and its 10 professional, trade, and labor associations, in addition to numerous other industry entities that make up the face-to-face business events industry.

“For far too long, the industry has been preyed upon by the hotel reservation scams and the attendee list scams that not only harm our events but are also a form of identity theft for all the people who get targeted by these scammers,” said Tommy Goodwin, vice president of government affairs for ECA.

One of ECA’s main priorities has been getting the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to make the issue a priority, according to Goodwin.

“At long last, they finally have,” he said. “Last fall, they put forward a draft rule that would give the FTC serious new enforcement authority when it comes to going after these scammers, and we’ve been front and center — really ECA and the entire industry — in encouraging the FTC to adopt this rule.”

To that end, last December, ECA filed regulatory comments (signed by all of the business events industry associations) with the FTC advocating in support of the proposed rule. Additionally, in March, ECA joined 235 trade associations and professional organizations in calling on the FTC to finalize its proposed “Rule on Impersonation of Government and Business.”

Most recently, ECA delivered the same message to Congress on ECA Legislative Action Day in June, while in May, ECA, along with the International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE), the American Society of Association Executives, the Consumer Technology Association, and many other industry entities testified at a hearing encouraging the FTC to adopt the rule as soon as possible.

“Given the widespread impersonation fraud efforts targeted at the business events industry, the FTC’s proposed rule is both necessary and urgent,” Goodwin said. “ECA strongly believes that the rule would provide the FTC with another important enforcement tool to target the fraudsters who attempt to prey on exhibitions, conferences, and trade shows.”

The hearing went well, according to Goodwin, who said the significant majority of those testifying support the proposed FTC rule, which would allow the FTC to recover money from, or seek civil penalties against, scammers who harm consumers in violation of the rule.

“Our hope is that something crosses the finish line by the end of the year,” Goodwin said.

Nicole Bowman, vice president, marketing and communications for IAEE and executive director for the Meetings Mean Business coalition, testified at the hearing and told TSNN why she believes it is so important for the FTC to finalize the anti-fraud rule as soon as possible.

“Since 2017, the FTC has received more than 2.5 million business impersonation fraud reports,” Bowman said. “Anyone who has spent any time in the past 20 years producing events knows this has been a pervasive problem in our industry for that much time and longer.”

According to Bowman, she has yet to hear from an event organizer that has never experienced this type of fraud.

“We are talking about a pervasive crime here that takes personal and private information from attendees, exhibitors, and really any event stakeholder and gains access to their financial information along with personal information,” Bowman said. “Show organizers and event producers waste time and money sending cease and desist letters to no avail. And those that do win judgements have no recourse for receiving payments.”

Advocating for the Industry

At the hearing, Goodwin’s testimony highlighted the unique nature of the exhibitions and trade shows, which he said at its core is America’s small businesses helping America’s small businesses.

“More than 99% of all business events organizations are small businesses, and more than 80% of exhibitors at our exhibitions, conferences, and trade shows are also small businesses themselves,” Goodwin said. “It’s these small businesses that are frequent targets of business impersonation fraud.”

Goodwin also said that each of ECA’s member associations are targets of business impersonation fraud, including hotel reservation scams and attendee list scams, as are their members, attendees, and exhibitors, most of whom are small businesses and entrepreneurs.

Goodwin outlined each type of impersonation fraud targeting the business events industry.

Hotel Reservation Scams

Third-party hotel room brokers use deceptive practices to market overpriced or nonexistent hotels room to exhibitors and attendees at business events.

Instead of providing the hotel room promised, the fraudulent brokers often make off with the victim’s credit card information or provide victims with low-quality rooms in remote locations away from the event itself, usually with high booking fees and cancelation penalties attached.

Attendee List Scams

Event exhibitors are contacted by rogue list brokers, often daily, fraudulently claiming to have and sell the event’s attendee list before the event itself takes place.

The scammers use the event name, logo and/or organizer’s name in their email signatures to create the illusion that their efforts are conducted with the approval of the event organizer.

The scam does not include the actual attendee lists. Rather, the scammers crawl event-related websites to harvest usable email addresses, which they subsequently target with phishing scams designed to illegally obtain an exhibitor’s business and financial information that can be used for fraudulent practices.
Goodwin called attention to three examples of events that have fallen victim to impersonation scams, including the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), the International Sign Association (ISA) and Fast Forward Events.

RSNA brings together more than 50,000 attendees and 700 exhibitors from more than 120 countries for its annual conference.

“In advance of its 2022 event in Chicago, RSNA was alerted to 36 fraudulent sites that were illegally advertising housing, registration, or attendee list selling services,” Goodwin said. “For its 2023 annual meeting, RSNA has already identified hotel scam websites that are using its trademarked logo without its permission.”

ISA brought its community of nearly 20,000 attendees and more than 500 exhibitors together in Las Vegas in April.

“In the lead up to the ISA International Sign Expo, the association sent nearly 300 cease-and-desist letters to hotel reservation scam and attendee list sale scam artists preying on its event,” Goodwin testified. “Its exhibitors and attendees contacted ISA daily voicing their confusion and concern about the emails they were receiving, many of which used the event name and ISA’s logo in their disingenuous attempt to sell their fraudulent services.”

Meanwhile, a Fast Forward Events’ conference and expo in San Diego was targeted by a hotel room booking scam.

“These scammers harvested contact information for registered exhibitors and called them in an effort to book their hotel rooms outside of the official process, almost certainly in an effort to obtain their financial information for fraudulent purposes,” Goodwin said.

Given the breadth of business impersonation fraud perpetrated against stakeholders across the face-to-face business events sector, ECA and its members support the FTC’s proposed rule and feel it is both necessary and urgent, according to Goodwin.

“Let’s give the FTC some more enforcement authority to go after the scammers and make sure that our industry isn’t continually targeted when it comes to these types of scams.” Goodwin said.

Lori Tenny is Editorial Director for Trade Show News Network.

By Gloria Fong

Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (Management) Limited (“HML”) will roll out a new AI Life Sense Alert System in 61 accessible toilets of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (“HKCEC”) to further enhance safety of its visitors. Installation is now being conducted in phases with completion slated for end of July.

HML Managing Director Ms. Monica Lee-Müller, said: “Investing in and applying technology to upgrade HKCEC’s hardware and software has been a continuous focus of HML. With safety of our visitors being our first and foremost priority, we have taken the precautionary move to introduce the AI Life Sense Alert System so that our staff can provide timely assistance to visitors in distress during an emergency. The key is to reach the visitors in need as soon as possible so as not to miss the golden hour between life and death.”

The first phase of installation covering 10 accessible toilets has been completed. The installation of the remaining 51 toilets will be completed by end of July. The system can detect a toilet user’s posture (active or static; seated or lying down) and collect motion value for AI-enabled analysis to identify if a fall/accident has taken place or the toilet user has become motionless. In the event of an identified accident, the system will send out an alert within five seconds via hand-held devices such as mobile phones or tablets. Staff will be able to locate the toilet and get there as soon as possible. At the same time, the security control room will also receive the alert to allow for rapid additional manpower deployment. The system will facilitate provision of assistance to visitors in need within the critical life-saving golden timeframe. The AI Life Sense Alert System has already been introduced in public hospitals.

The AI Life Sense Alert System also provides humidity, temperature, and air quality readings, facilitating monitoring of the environment in the accessible toilets and adjustment of cleaning frequency to enhance visitor experience and efficiency.

HML has been pioneering the application of artificial intelligence and robotics to continuously enhance its operations and service. In addition to offering 5G service with 100% coverage of the entire HKCEC, HML has introduced 5G smart security robots and smart cleaning robots – also a green measure in light of its water conservation feature.

Gloria Fong is Head – Corporate & Marketing Communications at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

From cairnsconvention.com

The $176 million expansion of the Cairns Convention Centre is complete and is about ready to open. With the Cairns Convention Centre you get a winning combination – being in one of the most beautiful destinations in the world, between the Great Barrier Reef and the oldest living rainforest, and what is now one of the most beautiful convention centers in the world.

The expansion adds a rooftop banquet area, outdoor terrace, three flexible meeting rooms, an exhibition and plenary space in the 10,500 square meters of new floor space, giving the ability to host multiple or larger events with conventions and exhibitions of up to 2,500 guests.

The new Trinity Level offers views of the region’s stunning beauty. The Trinity Room is perfect for galas and large cocktail functions for up to 500 people. The Trinity Terrace wows with views over the Trinity Inlet.

As the popularity of hybrid meetings continue, the Cairns Convention Centre has an array of audio-visual equipment to meet those needs. PTZ cameras are fitted across all meeting spaces, offering pan, tilt, and zoom control features. There are digital lecterns with built-it preview monitors for easy reference to presentation notes. Throughout the centre there are high resolution laser projections in every room, providing bright, crips images for presentations. With the larger spaces there is an opportunity to use a large format screen and projector combination that permits multiple content to be displayed simultaneously.

It’s a myth that Cairns is too small and too far away to host international conferences. Our events get many attendees because we are a bucket list destination. People connect more here as they attend all activities because they are not doing other meetings.

From stadiumbusiness.com

New 5G-powered headsets that let visually impaired fans watch live sport were trialled by Vodafone at this year’s Wimbledon tennis championships.

Live footage was streamed from local TV cameras over Vodafone 5G to the GiveVision headsets. They then enhance the footage to suit the person’s specific sight profile, by bringing it closer to their eye to stimulate the photoreceptor cells in the retina (cells that respond to light), which means a degree of sight can be regained.

It is the first time this 5G technology has ever been used in tennis.

The headsets were trialled for the very first time at Wimbledon by three visually impaired tennis fans.

After a successful trial, Vodafone is exploring the possibility of making the 5G headsets more widely available at future Championships, as well as at other live sporting events across Vodafone partners.

Vodafone’s UK chief commercial officer, Max Taylor, said: “At Vodafone we are committed to using our technology to bring fans closer to the action. Wimbledon is one of the most iconic moments in the British summer calendar, and we are proud to be able to showcase how the power of our 5G network can help make the sport more accessible to people.”

Please welcome our newest members who joined IAVM in June 2023. 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 here to share your story and photo.

Kate Abbott, Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, South Wharf, VIC, Australia
Cameron Adam, SwiftPOS, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Nick Addison, Adelaide Oval SMA, North Adelaide, SA, Australia
Louise Adlard, MyState Bank Arena, Glenorchy, TAS, Australia
Helen Alai-Stowers, Platform 4 Group (P4G), Auckland, New Zealand
Alejandro Almeida Lopez, Palacio De Convenciones Zacatecas, Zacatecas, Mexico
Ben Anderson, Arts Centre Melbourne, St Kilda Road, VIC, Australia
Mike Anderson, Netball Queensland Limited, Nathan, QLD, Australia
Matt Andrewartha, MyState Bank Arena, Glenorchy, TAS, Australia
Daniel Andrews, Australian Football League, Docklands, VIC, Australia
Gerardo Apin, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA
David Ashford, HOTA, Home of the Arts, Gold Coast Mail Centre, QLD, Australia
Meagan Ashurst, University of Houston, Houston, TX
Ricardo Avendano, Expo Tam, Reynosa, Tamps, Mexico
Susan Banks, Certis Security Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
Rebecca Barker, Kardinia Park Stadium Trust, Geelong, VIC, Australia
Chris Barling, MI Global Partners, North Sydney, NSW, Australia
Adam Barnes, Reliance Risk, Balnarring, VIC, Australia
Mario Barriga, Centro Internacional De Convenciones De Puerto Vallarta, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Emily Bartlett, Melbourne Cricket Club, East Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Mac Beaverstock, First National Bank Arena, State University, AR
Rachel Beck, Netball Queensland Limited, Nathan,QLD, Australia
Ashley Behrens, Southern Aluminum, Magnolia, AR
Patrice Belcher, Bay Venues, Mount Maunganui, New Zealand
Michelle Bell, HOTA, Home of the Arts, Gold Coast Mail Centre, QLD, Australia
William Bell, Zaftech Lighting, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Paula Benmayor, VenuesLive Management Services, Sydney Olympic Park, NSW, Australia
Lindsay Berckman, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Dionn Bichel, Brisbane Racing Club Limited, Hamilton Central, QLD, Australia
Warren Black, City of Gold Coast, City of Gold Coast, QLD, Australia
Paola Blancas, Cancun, International Convention Center, Cancun, Mexico
Danielle Bleazby, Melbourne & Olympic Parks Trust, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Teale Blessington, Netball Queensland Limited, Upper Mount Gravat, QLD, Australia
Jared Bodary, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Nicole Bouchier, Meesys Pty Ltd, Burnley, VIC, Australia
Jax Bowman, Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Anchorage, AK
Damien Boyle, Monash University Performing Arts Centres, Monash University, VIC, Australia
Hannah Boyle, Melbourne Cricket Club, East Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Patrick Boyle, Melbourne Racing Club, Caulfield East, VIC, Australia
Mychael Breedlove, Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA
Samantha Brennan, Finley Stadium, First Horizon Pavilion, Chattanooga, TN
Mike Brew, Riverside Theatres, Parammatta, NSW, Australia
Amanda Brewer, MyState Bank Arena, Glenorchy, TAS, Australia
Gillian Brewster, Melbourne Sports Centres, Albert Park, VIC, Australia
Tully Briggs, Netball Queensland Limited, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Jillian Bright, VenuesLive Management Services (NSW) Pty Ltd, Sydney, NSW, Australia
Chad Brimley, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT
Jess Brow, Victoria Racing Club, Flemington,VIC, Australia
Don Brown, Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority, Columbus, OH
Matt Bruskotter, Indiana State Fairgrounds, Indianapolis, IN
Jeffrey Buchanan, Sunshine Coast Council, Bokarina, QLD, Australia
Cristian Buenrostro, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Nathan Bungey, Marvel Stadium – Melbourne Stadiums Limited, Docklands, VIC, Australia
Chris Bupp, Levy Restaurants, Houston, TX
Chelsea Burdon, MyState Bank Arena, Glenorchy, TAS, Australia
Sue Burnet, Reliance Risk, Gladesville, NSW, Australia
Ashley Butler, Quayclean Australia Pty Ltd, Tullamarine, VIC, Australia
Matt C, Melbourne Sports Centres, Albert Park, VIC, Australia
Mauricio Cacho, Centro Expositor Puebla, Puebla,
Charlotte Cailleaux, Momentus Technologies, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Renee Camfferman, Adelaide Venue Management, Adelaide, SA, Australia
Lauren Camilleri, Victoria Racing Club, Flemington, VIC, Australia
Bert Campana, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Tim Carey, Gold Coast Football Club, Carrara, QLD, Australia
Anna Carroll, HOTA, Home of the Arts, Gold Coast Mail Centre, QLD, Australia
Luana Casilli, HBF Stadium, Floreat, WAu, Australia
Victor Castillo, Cintermex Convention Center, Monterrey, Mexico
Monique Catley, San Mateo County Event Center and Fair, San Mateo, CA
Jamie Centofanti, ONE VISUAL, Thornleigh, NSW, Australia
Steph Champion, MAP Co, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Angela Child, Adelaide Oval SMA, North Adelaide, SA, Australia
Donna Childs, TVS, Atlanta, GA
Tahlia Clark, Accor Stadium, Sydney Olympic Park, NSW, Australia
Jada Collins, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
Matt Colton, TCU Place, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
Thomas Connolly, HOTA, Home of the Arts, Gold Coast Mail Centre, QLD, Australia
Louis Constantine, Melbourne Sports Centres, Albert Park, VIC, Australia
Adriana Conway, EventPro Software – Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
Alsy Cooper, Royal Caribbean Group, Sydney,NSW, Australia
Matt Cooper, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Nicole Cowdell, Sandy Amphitheater, Sandy, UT
Michelle Coy-Davis, Eclipse Staffing and Security, Indianapolis, IN
Andie Cuttiford, Levy Restaurants, Portland, OR
Salvador de Anda, Foro 13 Aguascalientes, Aguascalientes, Mexico
Caroline de Graaf, Tennessee Performing Arts Center, Nashville, TN
Johnathan Dempsey, Dothan Civic Center & Opera House, Dothan, AL
Tanya Derksen, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Justin DeSantis, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Carin DeVier, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Mauricio Diaz Montalvo, Yucatán Siglo XXI Convention Centre, Mérida, Yuc, Mexico
Elizabeth Dreeson, San Francisco War Memorial & Performing Arts Center, San Francisco, CA
Nolan Ducharme, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Megan Duffy, Footprint Center, Phoenix, AZ
Alicia Duran, Performing Arts Fort Worth, Fort Worth, TX
Jordan Edmonds, Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority, Columbus, OH
Armando Espinosa, Cintermex Convention Center, Monterrey, Mexico
Karla Estrada, Baja California Center, Tijuana, Mexico
Katie Evans, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA
Laura Flaherty, Music City Center, Nashville, TN
Joseph Futral, Charleston Gaillard Center, Charleston, SC
Andrea Garcia, Riverside Convention Center, Riverside, CA
Jose Gil, El Paso Live, El Paso, TX
Mark Giles, Legends, Frisco, TX
Elijah Gill, Target Center, Minneapolis, MN
Mike Ginty, Joffe Emergency Services, Santa Monica, CA
Brenda Gomez, Expo Y Foro Imperial/Mundo Imperial/SMG México, Acapulco de Juarez, Mexico
Geronimo Gonzalez, WTC Veracruz, Boca del Rio, Mexico
Travis Grafe-Cline, Omaha Performing Arts, Omaha, NE
Samuel Guerrero, Bryce Jordan Center | Penn State University, University Park, PA
Christopher Hamilton, Levy Restaurants, Houston, TX
Kevin Harp, Dallas Stars Hockey Club, Frisco, TX
Angela Hassell, City of Temple, Texas, Temple, TX
Nancy Hautala, Meany Center for the Performing Arts, Seattle, WA
James Heller, USAE, Inc., Bethesda, MD
Mike Hernandez, City of McAllen: Convention Center/Performing Arts Center, McAllen, TX
Jason Herr, Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Anchorage, AK
Brian Hetrick, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Elena Hurtado, Expo Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Thomas Jakobic, Erie Events, Erie, PA
Chris Joffe, Joffe Emergency Services, Santa Monica, CA
Carli Jordan, Alerus Center, Grand Forks, ND
Kayla Joyce, NRG Park, Houston, TX
Tim Judge, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Erin Keeling, Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Anchorage, AK
Milla Khano, San Mateo County Event Center and Fair, San Mateo, CA
Dixon Kirkland, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Tom Klep, Erie Events, Erie, PA
Kristina Kourkoulos, The Projects Group, Tampa, FL
Rob Kurz, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Korey Lamb, Weber State University, Ogden, UT
Michael Lance, Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Anchorage, AK
Ethan Lang, Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore, MD
Sam Lankie, CAPS Payroll, Los Angeles, CA
Levi Leitma, Full Sail University, Winter Park, FL
Simon Liu, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Chris Lobo, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Emma Logan, San Francisco War Memorial & Performing Arts Center, San Francisco, CA
Sarah Macer, The Lerner Theatre, Elkhart, IN
Robert Mahon, Charleston Gaillard Center, Charleston, SC
John Marsh, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Marcus McAlpin, Norton Healthcare Sports & Learning Center, Louisville, KY
Chelsea McDermott, Canadian Tire Centre, Kanata, ON, Canada
Kimberly McGoldrick, Tempe Center for the Arts, Tempe, AZ
Dave McManus, Raleigh Convention and Performing Arts Complex, Raleigh, NC
Alix Mees, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO
Derek Menchinger, Kalamazoo State Theatre, Kalamazoo, MI
Gustavo Mendoza, Centro De Convenciones Y Exposiciones De Morelia, Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico
Ricardo Mier Reyes, Centro Internacional de Congresos de Yucatan, Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico
Richard Morales, Fort Worth Convention Center, Fort Worth, TX
Brandon Murphy, First National Bank Arena, State University, AR
Caitlin Nowland, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Adam Noyes, Proof of the Pudding, Atlanta,GA
Emmanuel Orduno, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, San Antonio, TX
Luis Emilio Ortiz de la Pena, Campeche XXI International Convention and Exhibition Center, Campeche, Mexico
Sarah Ouellet, Century II Performing Arts and Convention Center, Wichita, KS
Ethan Padgett, Ferst Center for the Arts (Georgia Tech), Atlanta, GA
Maggie Parks, Dayton Live, Dayton, OH
Brady Pearce, Hattiesburg Convention Commission, Hattiesburg, MS
Michael Pearson, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Juan Perez Perez, Centro Cultural y de Convenciones de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico
Sheneka Perrymond, George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, TX
Elizabeth Peterson, Minneapolis Convention Center, Minneapolis, MN
Eric Pettis, Portland’5 Centers for the Arts, Portland, OR
Veronica Pheils, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, CA
Sonia Pina, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, CA
Camilo Pinzon, Calgary Stampede, Calgary, AB, Canada
Ryan Place, Jerome Schottenstein Center, Columbus, OH
Shane Porter, Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Anchorage ,AK
Ray Proctor, DISA Global Solutions, Houston, TX
Remington Purnell, Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Anchorage, AK
Hope Quarles, Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Anchorage, AK
Patrick Renna, Proof of the Pudding, Atlanta, GA
Gustavo Renteral Lagunes, WTC Veracruz, Boca del Rio, Mexico
David Robbinson, Erie Events, Erie, PA
Christen Robinson, Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL
David Rogers, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Gonzalo Rosell Ramirez, Centro Internacional de Congresos de Yucatan, Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico
Keith Runk, Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore, MD
Lorena Safa Serrato, Centro de Convenciones Torreón, Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico
Allyson Samms, City of Kitchener, Kitchener, ON, Canada
Paul Sanelli, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON, Canada
Kyle Schackne, TIAA Bank Field & Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, FL
Cody Schaefer, Southern Aluminum, Magnolia, AR
Regina Schapp, Juneau Arts & Humanities Council, Juneau, AK
Phillip Schmiedl, David H. Koch Theater, New York, NY
Jasmin Silva, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV
Katherine Smale, Stormont Vail Events Center, Topeka, KS
Chad Smidt, Tyson Events Center – Oak View Group, Sioux City, IA
Jeff Smith, Los Angeles Auto Show, Los Angeles, CA
Victor Manuel Soler Sobrino, Centro de Convenciones San Luis Potosi, San Luis Potosi, Mexico
Joe Solway, Arup, New York, NY
Guadalupe Soto, Centro Cultural y de Convenciones de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico
G. Keith Still, University of Suffolk, Burton-in-Kendal, United Kingdom
Randy Sylvester, Northern Quest Resort & Casino, Spokane, WA
Michelle Taboada Barragán, Centro de Convenciones Torreón, Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico
Kalie Taylor, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Denver, CO
Joy Tenjeras, Lansing Entertainment & Public Facilities Authority (LEPFA), Lansing, MI
Crystal Tew, TCU Place, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
Alison Thurlow, Erie Events, Erie, PA
Jennifer Tompos, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Jeff Townsend, Wings Event Center, Kalamazoo, MI
Eric Van Dervort, Saenger Theatre Pensacola, Pensacola, FL
Yatziry Arahi Vitales Medina, Centro de Convenciones San Luis Potosi, San Luis Potosi, Mexico
Tammy Ward, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Dirk Weaverling, Midland Horseshoe Arena / Pavilion / Amphitheater, Midland, TX
Evan Wentzel, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Kelsi Weston, Omaha Performing Arts, Omaha, NE
Sarah Wietecha, Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA
Beth Wilkinson, Erie Events, Erie, PA
Darrell Willms, Proof of the Pudding, Atlanta, GA
Stacia Winters, Grand Junction Convention Center, Grand Junction, CO
Ben Witte, Proof of the Pudding, Atlanta, GA
Josh Wittmier, Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA
Emily Woodard, Lansing Entertainment & Public Facilities Authority (LEPFA), Lansing, MI
Andrew Young, Oakland Arena & Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA
David Zack, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN