By R.V. Baugus

Bill Carl “BC” Johnson, Chief Listening Officer of the BCJ Group, will present a workshop at the February 17-19 GuestX in San Diego on the topic of “Discover A Culture Your Guests and Employees Will Love.”

Does the name BC Johnson sound familiar? If you attended VenueConnect this past July in Chicago, it should. Johnson was the keynote speaker at the Amphitheaters & Fairgrounds sector meeting on the topic of “Creating the RIGHT Culture for Your Organization.”

With an overwhelming response to the session, Johnson returns to lead another interactive session to GuestX attendees. Johnson took a few minutes away from a busy schedule to share some about himself and what attendees at GuestX can expect from his presentation.

GuestX is of course about the guest experience. Why should folks plan to attend GuestX?

Leading organizations are always looking for an edge and a competitive advantage. By consistently exploring the cutting edge of GuestX, organizations can expect to be creative and innovative. Creativity and Innovation are driving forces behind a successful Guest Experience.

Help some of our attendees out who may not know you about your professional experience in this field of guest experience.

For 20 years, I worked at a Human Trap built by a Mouse in Orlando Florida! At Disney, I served as a finance director, organization development director, business development executive and led major client engagements for the Disney Institute. Since leaving Disney, The BCJ Group has engaged with professional sports teams, college athletic departments, and cruise lines to connect their culture to the employee and guest experience.

What are just a few of the things you can share as a “sneak preview” for what you expect to speak about at your session?

Guest expectations are increasing year over year. What you did today and yesterday are now baked into the guests’ expectations. Our guests expect their experience to be personalized and frictionless. Organizations need to be positioned with the right business strategy, organization strategy, and people strategy to meet this challenge.

Speaking of guest experience, what do you see as the biggest change in that area today as far as what guests expect when they go to a venue?

Our guests’ expectations are being shaped by Amazon, Zappos, Netflix, Starbucks, etc. Everywhere they go and with everything they do, they expect it to be fast and specifically designed for them. When they walk into a venue, they come loaded with these expectations.

Any takeaways you hope to leave attendees with for them to go back home and implement or execute?

During our time together, everyone will walk away with 2-3 things they can take back and immediately implement. The GuestX challenge is a continuous journey and we will move forward on this journey together.

Don’t miss your opportunity to be a part of GuestX 2020. Seats are limited so register today!

By R.V. Baugus

Daniel Malandruccolo, director of guest services at Prudential Center in Newark, NJ, and Amber Watts, senior director, guest services at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, are two of the champions and creators of a session at the February 17-19 GuestX in San Diego touching on the important topic matters of accessibility and inclusivity for guests at public assembly venues.

We caught up with Daniel to discuss just some of what attendees can expect to learn at GuestX.

GuestX is of course about the guest experience. Why should folks plan to attend GuestX?

We are revolutionizing the way guests think about guest experience. This conference and the panels surrounding it center around total inclusion. This is not only inclusion for our guests, but inclusion for all departments to work as one with the goal being AMAZING guest experience.

Help some of our attendees out who may not know you about your experience and expertise in the area of accessibility.

I am proud to say that our arena was the first NHL arena to be sensory certified. After working with Kulture City, we have made giant strides to make all our guests feel welcome. All on our guest services team are sensory certified and go through a full ADA inclusion training. I got my first taste of true inclusion during the 2015 World Series when I was working with the Mets. We had to build many temporary ADA locations in under 48 hours and when that happens, you learn laws and regulations real quick!

What are just a few of the things you can share as a “sneak preview” for what you expect to speak about at your session?

Nursing pods, sensory inclusion, the tough questions for legal councils and more! Come ready to learn a lot about ADA inclusion.

Speaking of accessibility, what do you see as the biggest change in that area today as far as what guests expect and encounter when they go to a venue?

The needle moves every event for guests. The experience on the ice or field is not the only thing that brings a guest to your venue any more. Every day we are thinking about ways to keep our guests entertained. Whether that is better concourse activations, give-a-ways, in game experience or just the overall customer service. A guest is comparing their experience at their venue to what they can have at their house in front of a big screen T.V. We have to ensure we can always provide a better experience than that. The term Driveway to Driveway experience means a lot to us. We try to make sure from the moment a guest pulls out of their driveway to the second they pull back in, they have a good experience along the way. This includes ticketing, parking, security, guest services, etc.

Any takeaways you hope to leave attendees with for them to go back home and implement or execute?

We are hoping to build a network of resources for all attendees. This will be useful for having real contacts in the industry to either bounce ideas off of or learn from.

By R.V. Baugus

Not saying that Gary Smith and I go back a long ways, but when I began working at then IAAM in April of 1990, his Pollstar magazine was one that arrived weekly in the mail. Gary was one of the first people in the industry I remember calling on, most likely because he was a media guy as well as someone who basically knew everyone in the music and concert industry.

Yes, it was another time and another era, but through it all Gary Smith was the ultimate professional as a co-founder of Pollstar. Recently retired, Smith was honored at the TJ Martell Foundation’s Spirit of Excellence Dinner along with manager Scott Rodger of Maverick (Paul McCartney, Andrea Bocelli and Shania Twain) and Dr. Deepa Bhojwani, Director of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Program at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles at a fundraising event for the foundation’s cancer research programs.

Smith teamed with Gary Bongiovanni to begin Pollstar. Both got their chops in the agent/promoter side of the business and had a new publication to begin covering that part of the industry. I remember well my own excitement in receiving Pollstar and seeing the dates and locations for concert acts from A to Z. Pollstar truly covered the show business.

The duo began their magazine in 1981 with a clear vision of what they wanted, and sure enough it not only bore fruition but lives on. Most publications arrive with a story behind their name, and Pollstar was no different. According to Smith, the first four letters stood for Promoters On Line Listings, with the word “star” tacked on a bit later.

As many IAVM members know, there are few things more exciting than attending Pollstar’s annual conference, which brims with the biggest names in the business and always gives IAVM members an opportunity to do some serious networking for lining up concerts in their venues.

Congratulations on a career done well, Gary, and all the best in what the future brings to you!

Pictured: IAVM Chair Tammy Koolbeck, CVE, and Michael Marion, CVE, had an opportunity to celebrate Gary’s Spirit of Excellence Dinner recognition.



By IQ

Bob Newman, the president and CEO of ASM Global, has unveiled the executive leadership team tasked with steering the world’s largest venue management company.

ASM – formed earlier this month upon the merger of SMG and AEG Facilities – operates more than 300 arenas, stadia and other large venues on five continents, and employs 61,000 staff. Its portfolio includes the likes of the O2 and Manchester Arena in the UK, the Stockholm Globe arenas in Sweden, Mercedes-Benz Arena and Barclaycard Arena in Germany, Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai, Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney and Staples Center in Los Angeles, with venues under construction in Buenos Aires, Seoul, Moscow and Bangkok.

“Since closing the merger two weeks ago, our top priority has been to ensure that we have the right leadership in place to advance our priorities and growth strategies focused on creating the best experience for our clients, guests and staff across all venues,” says Newman, formerly president of AEG Facilities.

“We are honored that the executives we are announcing today represent the very top industry professionals, who will collectively lead our new company and global teams as we reinforce and expand our venue management services and capabilities.”

Said executives include John Sharkey, formerly executive vice-president (EVP) of European operations for SMG, who will hold the same role at ASM; Harvey Lister, the former CEO of AEG Ogden, who will continue to oversee venues in Asia and Australasia as CEO of ASM Asia Pacific; and newly appointed CFO Mark Rozells, who will oversee financial planning, accounting and M&A.

Effective immediately, the full ASM Global executive team is as follows:

Mark Rozells, chief financial officer

Rozells brings “strong financial and operational management experience to the position”, says ASM. Previous career experience includes spells as EVP and CEO for Fairmont Raffles Hotels International, and in senior finance and strategy roles at Liberty Media, Starwood Hotels and the Walt Disney Company

Chuck Steedman, EVP of strategy and business development, arenas and stadia

Steedman previously served as chief operating and development officer for AEG Facilities. He’s responsible for “identifying, evaluating and implementing global account acquisition growth strategies for ASM’s arena and stadium accounts”

Gregg Caren, EVP of sales and business development, convention centers
The former EVP of convention centers for SMG, Caren is tasked with acquiring new convention and exhibition center accounts, as well as developing sales initiatives to drive events to the company’s existing portfolio

Doug Thornton, EVP of arenas, stadia and theatres

Thornton, lately EVP of stadia and arenas for SMG, expands his role to include ASM’s entire portfolio of arenas, stadia and theatres, directing the operations and financial performance of the division

Richard Krezwick, chief commercial officer

Krezwick, ex-senior vice-president (SVP) for AEG Facilities, will oversee the company’s “commercialization strategy and the cross-functional adoption of new services, products and technologies”

Shauna Elvin, EVP of global talent

Previously SVP of human resources for SMG, Elvin been promoted to EVP of global talent, overseeing HR, staffing and employee retention, benefits, compensation, training and diversity strategy

Bob McClintock, EVP of convention centers

McClintock, the former senior vice-president of convention centers for SMG, has been promoted to EVP of the same division at ASM, leading the global operations of the company’s convention and exhibition venues business

John Sharkey, EVP of European operations

Sharkey will continue in the same role as at SMG, with focus on “maximizing positive results” across all ASM’s European venue and F&B operations, as well as supporting and implementing the company’s business development initiatives across the continent

Harvey Lister, chairman and CEO of ASM Asia Pacific

“Utilizing his unmatched industry experience”, Lister, formerly of AEG Ogden, will continue to oversee ASM’s portfolio of business activities in Australia, New Zealand, Asia Pacific and the Middle East

Shaun Beard, SVP of food and beverage

Beard will oversee ASM’s North American and European F&B operations, including Savor, Premier and CGC Event Caterers

“We are confident that this impressive team will accelerate our momentum as we look to invest in innovations that bring new ASM Global services, solutions and technologies to our clients,” says Newman. “The team’s depth of leadership will also enable us to advance our mission to realize the potential of the world’s greatest places, spaces and events by driving revenue generation and operational excellence that will allow us to take our industry to the next level.”

Pictured from left: Harvey Lister, CEO Asia Pacific, John Sharkey, EVP European operations, Mark Rozells, CFO

By Kristina Lankow

KultureCity has partnered with the Swiftel Center to make the facility and all hosted events sensory inclusive. Full and part-time staff at the Brookings, SD, venue are required to complete industry training to provide maximum inclusiveness for all attendees.

This initiative promotes an accommodating and positive experience for guests with a sensory issue. Swiftel Center staff are trained to recognize guests with sensory needs and how to handle a sensory overload situation. Sensory bags – equipped with noise canceling headphones, fidget tools and verbal cue cards – are available to all Swiftel Center guests who may feel overwhelmed by the environment.

Sensory sensitivities or challenges with sensory regulation are often experienced by individuals with autism, dementia, PTSD and other similar conditions. One of the major barriers for these individuals is sensitivity to over stimulation and noise, which is an enormous part of the environment in a venue like the Swiftel Center. With this certification, the Swiftel Center prepared to assist guests with sensory sensitivities in having the most comfortable and accommodating experience possible when attending an event.

The Swiftel Center hosts regular training for full- and part-time staff to stay current with the leading safety and hospitality industry standards. Attendees at the Swiftel Center can expect to experience excellent customer service and a feeling of safety and security while in the facility. The Swiftel Center has built a reputation of providing “Midwest hospitality at its best.”

Kristina Lankow is sales and marketing manager for Swiftel Center, managed by VenuWorks.