2019 Certified Venue Executive Application Due by November 1, 2018

You may have taken the first step in the process toward becoming a CVE by completing the “CVE Checklist” to ascertain if you have accumulated the 300 points needed to make application and start the formal process, or perhaps this is the first time you have considered pursuing certification.

Now’s the time to take the second step and join that group of your peers who have reached the pinnacle of achievement with IAVM by becoming Certified Venue Executives. Remember – Applications and three written references are due no later than November 1, 2018. 

The written essay is due by February 1, 2019 – allowing you extra time to enjoy the holidays and end of the year activities.

Don’t delay, apply today. All the information you need to begin the process is found on our web site. Make 2019 the year that you earn your CVE!

The Joseph J. Anzivino Distinguished Allied Award may be awarded annually by the Board of Directors to an individual currently or previously employed by a firm which is or was an Allied member in good standing.  The President and CEO will provide evidence the nominee meets the criteria.

The following criteria are established for the Anzivino Award nominees:

1. The nominee must have been an IAVM member for at least ten (10) years total, which need not be consecutive.
2. Any member may make a nomination, which must provide a minimum of three examples of the nominee’s exemplary service and contributions to IAVM and/or the industry (for example: leadership, accomplishments, professional service/activities, projects/results).
3. The nominee must have served IAVM by: 1) Attendance at no fewer than 6 Annual Conferences (VenueConnect); 2) Attendance at no fewer than 10 Region Meetings; 3) Being chair of at least 2 IAVM committees or sub-committees; 4) Being a member of IAVM Board of Directors, IAVM Foundation Board of Trustees, Board of Regents or Board of Governors during the members’ tenure with IAVM; 5) Being a member of an IAVM program, campaign or task force/committee.
4. No Chair of the Allied Committee is eligible for consideration until the second Annual Conference (VenueConnect) following his/her term of office.
5. At least three letters of recommendation must accompany the nomination.
6. Previous recipients are ineligible (and may be found on our website under Awards).
7. The award may be given posthumously.
8. Selection of recipients will be made by an 80% vote of the Board of Directors; Recommendations to the Board of Directors for nominees shall be made by the Allied Committee.

The nominations and letters of recommendation should be written to Brad Mayne, CVE, President & CEO and submitted to Rosanne Duke electronically.  The nomination letter and all letters of recommendation must be received by close of business November 23, 2018.  If you have any questions, please contact Rosanne Duke via email or by phone – 972.538.1025.

Deadline to submit nominations for the 2019 Joseph J. Anzivino Distinguished Allied Award is November 23, 2018.

iCommit, IAVM’s annual member referral campaign, ran this year from February-June 30, 2018. The objective of the campaign began by encouraging all current members to recruit one or more individuals to join our venue management community. We thank Ungerboeck Software Inc. for their continuous support of this membership campaign.

I’m happy to announce that 38 members were entered in the raffle to win prizes for each new member they referred. With their support, we added 153 new members!

Award Recipients:

Grand Prize Winner – VenueConnect 2019 Free Registration – Andrea Gate-Ehlers, Director of Operations, Wintrust Arena

Raffle Winners – Five, $500 Apple Gift Cards

1. Lisa Marie Czop, CMP – Senior Director, Events & Operations – Nationals Park, Washington Nationals
2. Mount Allen, CVE – Director of Operations – SFJAZZ Center
3. Ty Sutton – Executive Director – Butler University
4. Sara Blayne, CMP – General Manager – Lynnwood Convention Center
5. Jennifer Norris, MFA – Assistant Managing Director – San Francisco War Memorial & Performing Arts Center

Region 7 added the most new members – a total of 105 members. The Region Director will select one recipient to have his/her CVP application fee waived (value $125) by December 31, 2018.

All recipients have been notified. IAVM’s Member Services’ department thanks you for your participation and looks forward to another successful recruitment campaign led by our volunteer leadership, Just One. This campaign runs through December 31, 2018. If you have any questions, contact membership@iavm.org.

By Chris Munz, Concept3D

As usual, this year’s VenueConnect Conference and Trade Show was incredibly valuable. I’ve been going for several years now, and I always enjoy coming out from behind the computer for several days, putting faces with names, and reconnecting with all the professionals that make the event and meetings industry so fun and dynamic. A quick and gratuitous “thank you” to IAVM, the City of Toronto, and the Metro Toronto Convention Centre for making it all happen.

Without fail I leave VenueConnect with a host of new ideas and thoughts, having heard the keynotes, participated in side events and been lucky enough to chat with a multitude of professionals from facilities, events management, marketing – you name it.

As a provider of immersive technology for convention centers, event venues, stadiums, and many other locations, I think along these lines, and came up with three primary trends that really struck me at the conference.

Automation

From a tech standpoint, automation came up many, many times. How can we better automate the physical movement and tracking of inventory to make things run more smoothly and efficiently? Marketing and event management automation was also top of mind, with companies like Ungerboeck making strides, creating a more seamless approach to event management like event bookings, floor planning, event registration, and management. Making use of the data and the systems improves the experience for the event planner, attendee, and exhibitor. There’s no shortage of ways that automation can improve how we plan, implement and evaluate what we do day in and day out.

Visualizing Data, Workflow, and Systems

When I tell people what we do at Concept3D, a light bulb often goes off: “Wow! Right now that’s all in a massive spreadsheet!” There’s huge potential to visualize workflows, systems, and to make the data that’s pouring in (and will pour in even more as event venues further integrate connected systems and devices (IoT). I find this incredibly exciting, because the ability to take data out of a spreadsheet and be able to see it and interact with it in a visual layout will improve decision making, create new business opportunities for event spaces, and – perhaps most important – better support event management pros and ultimately the guests they are hosting at an event.

New, Unique Event Spaces

There’s a massive push across the industry to make their spaces more fun and memorable. The Long Beach Convention Center (the location of VenueConnect 2020), for example, is doing a fantastic job of thinking outside the box with their space, from hosting events by the fountains to creating one-of-a-kind experiences with light-up ping-pong tables and using a pedestrian bridge as event space. They really put on a show! People get excited about this and share these experiences with friends. More outdoor spaces (and indoor spaces with tons of natural light to mimic being outdoors) are happening across the industry. In my humble opinion, these are the event spaces that will be the real draw because people want to be part of these fun, atypical events.

These are just three of many takeaways I enjoyed hearing more about at VenueConnect. I would love to hear yours!

Hope to see you at VenueConnect 2019 at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago – I’ll be there for sure!

Chris Munz is Vice President of Business Development at Concept3D – http://www.concept3D.com

The 128th OC Fair in Costa Mesa, California, welcomed a record 1,470,636 guests who enjoyed 35 sold-out shows, ate hundreds of thousands of chocolate chip cookies and freed their inner farmers by greeting 11 new piglets at Centennial Farm.

“2018 was a banner year for the OC Fair in so many ways,” said OC Fair & Event Center CEO Kathy Kramer, CMP, CVE. “We want to thank the community for coming out in record-breaking numbers to enjoy the best celebration of the summer. We’re proud that 87% of guests surveyed said they increased their knowledge of agriculture and gave us a 4.62 overall enjoyment rating (out of 5).”

Through its community programs, the OC Fair collected 11,055 children’s books, 10,769 items of clothing, 8,849 cans of food, and 8,229 school supplies for local charities through the We Care Wednesday program during which guests received free admission with their donation.

The Friends of the Fair program welcomed 4,501 guests with special needs for a free VIP experience while the OC Fair Kids Club brought 1,150 children from local Title 1 programs to the Fair for a special experience that included free admission and rides, a gift card, and bus service.

The final audited attendance figures show an increase of increase 10% from the 2017 number of 1,334,753. Final revenue numbers will be released in October.

“The annual Fair funds our community give-back programs, agriculture education, and supports Centennial Farm and Heroes Hall, so a great year for the Fair pays dividends all year long,” Kramer said.

This year the OC Fair offered more discounts and promotions than ever before to help make the event more accessible. New in 2018 was Overalls Day and 3,140 fairgoers received free admission on Thursdays when they wore the denim classics. And a new carnival wristband deal was added to Sundays.

The most popular one-time promotion was the opening day “Free Till 3” admission and parking deal and 38,091 guests arrived early on July 13 to get the party started. Half-price early-bird weekend admission attracted 73,091 fairgoers. Some 16,610 veterans and active members of the military received free admission during the run of the fair and their family members purchased 22,647 discounted tickets.

On Thursdays, 25,158 children received free admission for Kids Day and more than 13,000 free carnival rides were provided to children who participated in the Read and Ride program.

The previous attendance record for the 23-day event was set in 2011 when 1,400,280 fairgoers turned out for the “Let’s Eat” theme and watched sold-out concerts by Bob Dylan, Selena Gomez, Blake Shelton, Weezer, Chicago, and more in Pacific Amphitheatre.

The 2018 OC Fair also broke the previous single-day attendance record when 86,334 fairgoers arrived on Saturday, July 28. That turnout bested the record of 84,986 guests who visited the Fair on July 21, 2001, to see the Orange Crush Demolition Derby debut, the “I Love Lucy” 50th-anniversary exhibit and to ride La Grande Wheel and the Euroslide for the first time at the OC Fair.

The OC Fair is currently the second-largest Fair in California by attendance, behind only the San Diego County Fair which runs three days longer. Nationally, the OC Fair ranks seventh by attendance.