The U.S. Department of Labor plans to release its final “overtime rule” next month. The rule would expand overtime pay eligibility for salaried employees, and anyone making under $50,440 a year could get overtime pay. As you can imagine, there are a lot of concerns.

“Small business owners should have a plan in place for each of these employees, as they may become eligible for overtime pay,” Paycor Executive Vice President Stacey Browning told AccountingWEB.com. “Depending on their current salary, their role, the classification of their role, and the number of hours they work, each employee will have a different outcome. You should start by creating a list of every exempt employee and their compensation to make the best decisions for your organization.

“Having an accurate calculation of hours worked per week will be very important as you seek to comply with these new regulations,” Browning continued. “Employers will need to have a time and attendance tracking solution that helps them accurately manage their employees’ hours through a unified system with payroll. Enabling employers to run real-time reports on hours worked and employees’ rate of pay will be a critical advantage.”

The final rule should be issued before May 16, which means employers will have to comply by July 15, 2016.

To learn more about the rule, please visit the Department of Labor website. And please let us know in the comments section what you’re doing to prepare for the rule change.

(Image: Lena Vasiljeva/Creative Commons)

You, as an IAVM member, are our most important asset. Without your commitment to the association and to the venue management industry, we wouldn’t be here. Because of your support, we are featuring member profiles in our I Am Venue Management series. If you are interested in participating in the I Am Venue Management series, please visit http://www.iavm.org/i-am-venue-management-share-your-story.

If I wasn’t doing this I’d be a: musician. I started playing when I was a kid and still enjoy playing and listening to music as well as going to concerts.

Most impressive person I’ve ever met: My parents. They’ve always been my biggest supporters and have continued to inspire me every day.

I unwind by: spending time with my better half. She and I enjoy traveling, cooking, trying new beers, going to concerts, and hanging out with friends.

On my desk right now is: mostly an organized chaos of papers, files, and Post-it notes as well as a handful of random keepsakes—a Petco Park replica stadium, a few bobbleheads, an original piece of our floor, and a Wheel of Fortune piece signed by Vanna White!

My favorite IAVM program I ever attended was: I have a feeling it’s going to be this year’s upcoming Venue Management School (VMS). I’m looking forward to learning from some of the best in the business, sharing best practices, and meeting colleagues from all types of venues.

One trait an up-and-coming venue manager should have is: be active, be involved, and be eager to learn. Do the Mentor Connector Program, join one of IAVM’s committees, follow venues and venue managers on social media, and read and stay up-to-date on news and trends. There are a lot of easy ways to gain knowledge and experience that don’t cost a lot of time or money!

One of my goals for this year is to: continue to enhance our safety and emergency response protocols and to stay up-to-date with the ever-changing security landscape.

How do you stay current with industry trends and developments? I read a lot! I read and learn from FM magazine and the conversations on VenueNet as well as online blogs and articles. One can learn a lot simply by reading about how other venues put on events, go through renovations, create customer service successes, or handle day-to-day operations.

Who are three people you’d invite to a dinner party and why? The first would be John Wooden so I could pick his brain on leadership and UCLA basketball (go Bruins!). The other two would be John Lennon and Ted Williams so I could listen to their amazing stories about music and sports.

Sam Dores is assistant athletics director, facilities, operations, and event management at Long Beach State Athletics.

We recently received word that longtime IAVM member David “Dave” Gordon passed away on March 2. Gordon was a member for 32 years and managed the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center for 21 years.

He got his start in the industry working at the Houston Astrodome where he met his wife, Cathy. He also worked at the Louisiana Superdome and the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California.

Gordon was instrumental in the Long Beach center’s expansion in 1994.

“The expansion was a major positive improvement in the city,” former Mayor Beverly O’Neill told the Long Beach Press-Telegram. “David worked closely with the city in making the center work. He was very conscientious and helpful.”

The center expanded from 88,000 square feet to 225,000 square feet and helped put Long Beach back on the map for conventions.

“The expansion of the convention center was key,” Gordon told Gazettes in 2010. “We were losing shows that had outgrown us, and with the expansion, we got some of them back. Without that, there would be no aquarium, there’d be no Pike. And the convention and tourism business was very important.”

Gordon is survived by brothers Larry and Chuck Gordon; his wife, Cathy; six children, 10 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

Yes, drone racing is an up-and-coming sport, but doing it with your hands is so last year. The new way is to use your brain, and students at the University of Florida were the first to conduct a brain-powered drone race.

“The race works by fitting pilots with a Brain Computer Interface device, which sits on users’ heads and measures electrical signals from the brain,” Kari Paul reported for Vice. “Users ‘think forward,’ to move the drone forward, and ‘think right or left’ to move it from side to side.”

To see how it works, please watch the video above.

IAVM is pleased to announce the nomination of Michael Marion, CFE, for 2nd Vice Chair of the IAVM Board of Directors, a prestigious honor denoting exemplary leadership and dedication to the sport, entertainment, and convention/exhibition industry. In this role, Marion will become a senior officer of the organization, serving a four-year term, ascending to the chairman position in 2018-2019.

Marion is general manager of the Verizon Arena in North Little Rock, Arkansas, where he has been employed since 1997. In 2004, Marion was named Pollstar magazine’s “Facility Executive of the Year.”

“To use a worn cliché, it’s an honor to be nominated. Working in the concert business has been a wonderful experience the last 40 years and I really have enjoyed the friendships I’ve made through IAVM,” Marion said. “I look forward to working with the current and future leadership of IAVM to advance our profession for a brighter future. This should be fun.”

Marion previously worked as program advisor at Mississippi State University, booking such artists as Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, and Earth, Wind and Fire. In 1982, he moved to Los Angeles and worked as an agent for Triad Artists. In 1988, he moved back to his hometown of Tupelo, Mississippi, and became director of the Tupelo Coliseum, presenting such artists as Tom Petty, the Eagles, and Reba McEntire.

“Michael Marion is an esteemed professional colleague and valued personal friend to so many of us,” said Kim Bedier, CFE, chair of IAVM’s Leadership Development/Nominating Committee “I am excited for him to bring his unique style of leadership to influence the future of our association.”

Marion has been an IAVM member since 1992 and graduated from the Public Assembly Facility Management School (now called Venue Management School) in 1994. He received his Certified Facilities Executive (CFE) designation in 2006. He served on the Board of Regents since 2010 and was chair from 2014-2015. Marion has also served on the IAVM Board of Directors as the sector director for the arenas sector, the Arena Sector Committee, the Industry Affairs Committee, the Research Committee, the VenueConnect Program Committee, the Public Relations Committee, and the Board of Education.

He follows the path of several predecessors who, over the past 90 years, have helped to shape the industry, and ultimately, the communities they serve. IAVM members will vote electronically on this nomination, and, if elected, Marion will take office in July during VenueConnect, IAVM’s annual conference and trade show, July 23-26, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.