It's time to vote for the 2017 Venues Today Women of Influence Awards. We will be honoring this year's inspiring leaders during IAVM VenueConnect in Nashville, Tenn. August 6-10, 2017 Vote now to make your voice heard. The voting deadline is Wednesday, May 24, 2017 These individuals have been nominated for their newsworthy achievement and outstanding leadership. We will showcase the winners in our July issue. Subscribers select THREE nominees. Votes submitted by non-subscribers will not be valid.
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2017 Venues Today Women of Influence Award Nominees
Dr. Nola Agha
Associate Professor
University of San Francisco
Dr. Nola Agha strongly influences the strategic investment and direction of large-scale venues and events in the U.S. and abroad. As an award-winning scholar of the economic impact of sports, teams and stadiums, Agha’s research, teaching and advisory role provides rigorous decision-making guidance to baseball and football venue managers. Her work has been published in the prestigious European Sport Management Quarterly, International Journal of Sport Finance and the Journal of Sports Economics, while her in-depth analysis of the Super Bowl and Olympic Games is featured in the Mark H. McCormack Case Study Collection and the Sport Management Review.
Becky Brashear
Assistant General Manager
Maryland State Fair, Timonium, Md.
Becky Brashear's love for agriculture and all things “fair” began in her youth as a 4-H member. That love combined with a penchant for excellence in communication, fostered as a Frederick News Post editor, led her to pursue a career in the fair industry. Brashear moved through the ranks at The Great Frederick Fair becoming its first female general manager, a role she held for 20 years before becoming assistant general manager at the Maryland State Fair in 2014. She was elected as 2017 IAFE (International Association of Fairs and Expositions) Chair and currently promotes her "Striking It Rich" initiative that has encouraged fairs across the nation and around the world to give back to their communities through scholarship programs.
Allison Brecklin
Head of Operations
Ticketfly, San Francisco
Allison Brecklin oversees the strategy and execution of Ticketfly’s Client Services and Customer Success teams with the ultimate goal of ensuring venues, promoters, and fans have the best possible live event experiences. She is passionate about helping live event industry professionals by improving the processes their jobs depend on. In her two-and-a-half year tenure, Brecklin has scaled the Operations team to support the nearly 1,800 venues and promoters across North America that work with Ticketfly and the approximately 10 million fans that visit Ticketfly every month. She leads a team of 75 people across 10 states and two countries to improve customer support response times to some of the fastest in the industry.
Kim Damron
President
Spectra Ticketing & Fan Engagement, Irvine, Calif.
Kim Damron’s recent promotion to president of Spectra Ticketing is the culmination of her longstanding strong leadership, extraordinary vision and expertise. She has worked in growing capacities to achieve the company’s goals for the last 12 years; she particularly champions and exemplifies equality and the positive impact of female influence. One of Damron’s first moves as president was to elevate key team members to pivotal roles to best position the company for longterm success. She has been instrumental in the company’s growth, including the organization’s key alliance with StubHub. She has overseen customer service, technology operations, commerce, marketing, the client partner team and strategic partnerships.
Millie Dixon
Theater Consultant/Principal
Theatre Projects Consultants, Norwalk, Conn
Millie Dixon has been a theater consultant with Theatre Projects Consultants since 1997 and became a principal at the firm in 2008. Dixon is one of only a handful of women consultants to be a member of the highly respected American Society of Theatre Consultants. Her responsibilities include project management and overall coordination of a wide variety of consulting projects from New York to Shanghai. Prior to joining TPC, Dixon served as director of operations for the Cerritos (Calif.) Center for the Performing Arts, where she oversaw all technical aspects of the facility and was involved in the final commissioning and development of organizational procedures for the center when it opened.
Cindy Harper
Associate Director
United Supermarkets Arena, Lubbock, Texas
Cindy Harper has been with the United Supermarkets Arena since it opened in 1999, and is currently the associate director. The arena hosts a number of events (it was recently named the number one stop in Texas for venues ranging from 10,001-15,000 seats by Venues Today), but has a relevantly small staff. Harper has numerous responsibilities, including directly
booking and scheduling events, writing event license agreements, marketing and promoting the venue. Within the past two years, the arena lost a full-time professional staff member to another area of campus, so Harper took on many of the responsibilities of this person’s job including overseeing the cleaning and maintenance of the facility as well as the technical operations. Most recently, the arena hosted five Garth Brooks shows. Harper worked for several years in getting Garth to Lubbock and worked closely with the promoter to ensure the show would be successful.
Charlotte Jensen
Chief Executive Officer, Sports & Leisure
Sodexo – North America
Charlotte Jensen is responsible for a business with $171 million in annual revenues that serves 50 client locations including the Hollywood Bowl, Chicago Botanical Garden, Zoo Atlanta, Chase Center on the Riverfront, Baltimore Aquarium, Toyota Park and the Museum of Science and Industry. Prior to joining Sodexo, Jensen held the position of Senior Vice President, Sports & Entertainment with ABM Industries, Inc. With 25 years of experience in operations, finance and executive sales management and execution, Jensen was responsible for the overall growth and operations of ABM’s global Sports and Entertainment vertical. She also founded the ABM Women in Leadership Council in 2014, and joined the Cancer Support Community in 2015 as a member of their Executive Board of Directors.
Jennifer Jones
Executive Director, Bay Area Alliance
Marina Civic Center Center for the Arts, Panama City, Fla.
Jennifer Jones has been with Bay Arts Alliance for 17 years. She also manages the Marina Civic Center, performing arts center and Panama City Center for the Arts. Her Arts in Education program gives a chance for all 1st, 3rd and 5th graders in the community to see a live performance each year. Her BackStage Pass Concert series gives local bands a place to perform on a theater stage with payment for performances.
Donna Julian
Senior Vice President of Arena & Events Ops & GM
Spectrum Center, Charlotte, N.C.
Donna Julian has been the lead executive for Spectrum Center since its inception, construction and grand opening in 2005 as Charlotte Bobcats Arena. She is overseeing a $27.5 million Arena Enhancement Plan at the 19,000-seat Spectrum Center, home of the Charlotte Hornets, which includes a new state-of-the art scoreboard. During her 30 + years in the sports and entertainment business, she has hosted a multitude of events including NCAA Basketball Tournaments and 2012 Democratic National Convention. Prior to coming to Charlotte, she worked for SMG as the General Manager of the Baltimore Arena. She is on the Executive Committee of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Charlotte and is a member of the Women’s InterCultural Exchange and the Charlotte Women’s Executive Organization.
Cindy Kamradt
Director, Stadium Planning & Special Projects Stadium Operations
Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York
Not only does Cindy Kamradt spend nearly every day at the ballpark during the season running operations and special projects, she is spending the off season overseeing the improvements and renovations to the ballpark. Her positive leadership style is motivating and supportive.
Karolyn Kirchgesler
Chief Executive Officer
Team San Jose (Calif.)
Karolyn Kirchgesler joined Team San Jose as CEO in October 2013, bringing 30 years of hospitality industry experience. Kirchgesler has strengthened San Jose’s focus on leisure travel by crafting a regional partnership with See Monterey and Visit Santa Cruz County; she has been awarded an additional contract from the City of San Jose for international marketing to support new airlift. Her efforts to promote leisure travel began during Super Bowl 50 in the Bay Area. She secured a pavilion in Super Bowl City to launch San Jose’s first consumer brand to over 1 million visitors (the only destination invited to participate). Her leadership has also increased operating revenue growth from $28 million in FY 2013-14 to $45 million in FY 2016-17; achieved an average of 125 percent of performance goals for FY 2014-15 and achieved an average of 12 percent of performance goals for FY 2015-16. Team San Jose is on target to achieve over 10 percent for FY 2016-17 performance goals.
Kathy Kramer
Chief Executive Officer
OC Fair & Event Center, Costa Mesa, Calif.
Kathy Kramer leads a fair with an average attendance of 1.4 million patrons, established one of the highest annual net revenue proceeds in 2016 and scored a 4.54 out of 5 guest-satisfaction rating from fair patrons. Kramer led the creation of a dedicated educational zone to OC Fairgrounds that includes Centennial Farm, which hosts more than 100,000 school children annually and the new veterans’ museum, Heroes Hall. A memorial that pays homage to the state’s agricultural workers, Table of Dignity, will open this summer. Kramer spearheaded the creation of a new community giveback program, the OC Fair Kids Club, with the goal to provide a free fair experience and transportation for 1,000 underserved children in the community.
Liz Land
Assistant Director for Marketing, Sales & Digital Media
University of Texas, Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas
During Liz Land’s tenure at the Frank Erwin Center, she has made a big impact in the sports and entertainment industry. Not only does Land manage all marketing campaigns for public ticketed events at the Frank Erwin Center, she also assists The University of Texas Athletics Fan Engagement staff in booking anthem singers and musical halftime acts for multiple sports. She is a member of many professional organizations including: International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM), The Recording Academy, Texas Chapter, CATAPLT Council, a Texas Athletics Leadership Program, Texas Athletics Diversity & Inclusion Council and serves on the board for the Austin Alliance for Women in Media and City of Austin Music Commission.
Amy Lubbesmeyer
Director of Marketing
Sue McLean & Associates, Minneapolis
Since 2011, Amy Lubbesmeyer has played a significant role in the live entertainment world across the Midwest. In her many years at Jade Presents, she worked tirelessly to continue to grow her skills, the company and the level of acts coming through what is now one of the most prominent independent booking agencies in the country. While working at VEE Corporation, she led the digital marketing initiative across the company, while influencing and mentoring coordinators. She is thoughtful, positive, analytical and a true problem solver.
Dr. Kimberly Mahoney
Assistant Professor
University of New Haven, West Haven, Conn.
Kim Mahoney has contributed to the industry over the last few years in a rather non-traditional way. As an instructor in several sport management programs around the country, she has been able to train the next generation of venue managers. She has also served as the lead author of the IAVM sponsored textbook: Public Assembly Venue Management: Sports, Entertainment, Meeting, and Convention Venues. Mahoney also authored the IAVM Blueprint: Event Management.
Pam Matthews
Executive Director
IEBA, Nashville
Matthews began her career in the entertainment industry at age 15 as a runner for Mid-South Concerts in Memphis. Today, she serves the live entertainment industry as Executive Director of one of its most influential trade associations. Matthews toured as an accountant for KISS and Ozzy Osbourne in the ‘80s and was part of the Pace Concerts team that designed, constructed, and managed Starwood Amphitheatre in Nashville. After 12 years with The Judds and Wynonna as their director of Touring and Vice President/Treasurer of their business corporations, Matthews became General Manager of the Ryman Auditorium in 2000. Matthews was named IEBA’s executive director in 2013. The 47-year old organization has doubled its membership under Matthews’s leadership, and its annual Conference has sold-out the past two years.
Tricia McNamara
General Manager
Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Queensland, Australia
Tricia (Trish) McNamara started at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre 28 years ago in the Accounts Department. She progressed to the role of running the in-house Event Marketing operation. She was then promoted to Event Manager running all Front of House operations before being promoted to General Manager in 2007. Her road to the pinnacle of one of Australia's pre-eminent live entertainment and sporting arenas is an inspiration to not only women, but also any young person in our industry with aspirations. A member of the Venue Management Association (VMA) for most of her career and, by association, the IAVM, she has been a Member of the Board of the VMA for the past 4 years and a strong supporter of the organization.
Lita Mello
Recreation Division
K&K Insurance Group, Fort Wayne, Ind.
Lita Mello joined K&K Insurance in the motorcycle retail program in 1982. She then worked insuring fairs and festivals as an account executive; she was subsequently promoted to vice president of the Dealership Division, before being named vice president of the Venues & Gaming Division, where she was responsible for underwriting and production. During her tenure, written premium increased to over $90 million, making it the largest division within K&K at that time. Mello’s most recent promotion was to the Recreation Division as Senior Vice President. She is experienced in program development, contract review, underwriting, sales, and marketing; she serves as a role model of professionalism and leadership for many colleagues within K&K as well as within the sports and recreation industry.
Mary Milne
Vice President of Guest Experience (Tampa Bay Lightning)
Amalie Arena, Tampa, Fla.
Mary Milne was directly responsible for developing and implementing Amalie Arena’s Blue Ribbon Service training and One Team Voyage programs that drive its service-oriented culture at the Lightning and Amalie Arena. Her vision and initiatives have led to the Lightning being ranked #1 in the 2016 ESPN Ultimate Rankings, a 2016 finalist for Team of the Year with Sports Business Journal and a 98 percent Service Shop score for Lightning games (increase of more than 10 percent from before she took over). Many of those awards are from her vision of creating world-class guest experiences for fans attending all events at Amalie Arena. She also developed a robust rewards and recognition program that drives the full-time and part-time staff to perform at a high level.
Michele Montague
Assistant General Manager & Vice President, Events
Verizon Center, Washington
Michele Montague is the epitome of influence both in the District of Columbia and in the industry overall. She has been an adjunct professor at George Washington University for the past five years, teaching both an undergraduate and graduate class each year. Her classes are very popular with students, but what is even more impressive is the number of students that stay in touch with her over the years. At Verizon Center, she schedules the vast array of events that are held in the building and oversees event production, the box office and takes the lead on many high profile events such as AIPAC.
Teri Orton
General Manager
Hawai‘i Convention Center/AEG Facilities, Honolulu
Leader. Determined. Acumen. Communicator. Aqua. Aloha. Since AEG took over management of the facility, and under Teri Orton’s direction in January 2014, the venue has celebrated three record setting year-over-year improvements financially. In 2016, the facility finished with the best bottom line in its 18-year history turning a profit, its first, of $612,000. HCC has consistently maintained a 98 percent customer satisfaction rating while making numerous enhancements including expanding into the sports market with the purchase of volleyball and basketball courts (out of the box for a convention center), providing free Wi-Fi in common areas, major furnishing upgrades with hues of aqua always with keeping customers at the forefront.
Marla Ostroff
EVP of Arts and Theatre and Strategic Accounts
Ticketmaster, New York City
Marla Ostroff started with Ticketmaster 29 years ago as GM of Boston, then took over as SVP of the Northeast before becoming executive vice president. She has shown strong leadership and mentoring skills and loyalty to the company. She loves that every day is different and that Ticketmaster is constantly reinventing itself. The technology she can bring to her client base is ever evolving.
Beth Paul
General Manager
Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, S.C.
Just two years after being named general manager of Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Beth Paul saw her vision to put the Arena and Greenville, S.C., on the national tour map come to fruition. She secured a date on the Pearl Jam Tour (April 2016), sold out 3 Garth Brooks shows (November 2016), negotiated to be the opening city for the Bon Jovi tour (March 2017) and brought March Madness back to Greenville. She headed the team that successfully won the bid for the SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament once the NCAA post-season ban was lifted following the removal of the Confederate flag. When the NCAA withdrew all post-season tournaments from North Carolina, Paul saw a great opportunity for Greenville to shine on an even larger scale with the acquisition of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, First and Second Rounds.
Patricia (Patty) Gaytan Perez
Executive Vice President of Administration, Monterrey Security
Monterrey Security, Chicago, and U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis
Patricia (Patty) Gaytan Perez is driven by her passion for mentoring and developing women leaders, especially in industries that are traditionally male dominated. Her “super power” lies in simplifying the seemingly complex into actionable plans that align values, people and processes. Perez has been an integral part of Monterrey Security’s successes at U.S. Bank Stadium, including hiring over 1,400 people from some of the most underserved communities in the Twin Cities. She implemented this model of investing in the facility’s local community from her work with Monterrey at Soldier Field in Chicago.
Pam Plageman
Regional VP, Spectra by Comcast Spectacor, Venue Management & Food Services & Hospitality
At Spectra by Comcast Spectacor, Pam Plageman oversees 16 properties (in six states) in the Central Division for the company. She joined Spectra 10 years ago as the Food & Beverage General Manager at the Duke Energy Convention Center (in Cincinnati), where she secured an annual citywide program that increased F&B revenues by more than $16 million over a 10-year period. As a Regional Vice President, she mentors her general managers with frequent in-market visits, as well as coaches her team members with regular calls. Plageman began her career in large convention hotels and has enjoyed 30 successful years in the venue management and foodservices and hospitality industry.
Debra Rathwell
Senior Vice President
AEG Live, New York
Debra Rathwell has run the New York office for AEG for about 15 years. She also brought such great international tours as Justin Bieber, American Idol, Carrie Underwood and Celine Dion to AEG. She has been in the Billboard Top 100 Women in the Music Business consistently. She consistently and successfully has built AEG touring from the ground up. Innovative booking of everything from top rock acts and Broadway to creating tours for successful reality music series like “American Idol” and “Dancing with the Stars.” Before that, she was the lead booker for Metropolitan Entertainment during the peak of their success.
Ellen Schwartz
Assistant General Manager
Los Angeles Convention Center
Ellen Schwartz’s leadership was integral to the Los Angeles Convention Center’s (LACC) successful transition from public to private management. Her vision, business acumen, knowledge of the industry, and ability to motivate others resulted in unprecedented success for the facility since privatization. As a talented professional with 25-plus years in the trade show and event industry, Schwartz consistently increases revenue while retaining and building client relationships. Under her leadership, marketing initiatives for digital and online presence increased. With over 25 years of experience, she created a new user-friendly website, enhanced all social media channels and implemented interactive floor plans that help event planners visualize and strategize their ideas. Schwartz has been instrumental in solidifying the partnership between LACC and the Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board (LATCB) resulting in a 5 percent increase in occupancy in FY 2015-2016; surpassing the competition and industry standards. Additionally, she increased filming revenue by 56% in FY 2015-2016 and grew rent revenue by 11 percent in FY 2015-2016. Her efforts directly contributed to over $13 million in operating profit since AEG assumed management.
Tricia Silliphant
Director, Venue Programming and Live Events
Air Canada Centre, Toronto
Tricia Silliphant is the woman behind the success of Canada’s premier sport and entertainment venue, Air Canada Centre. She has been with Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment (Air Canada Centre’s parent company) for 18 years and has been the driving force behind its incredible programming. The year 2016 was particularly successful as Silliphant and team pulled off the busiest year yet. They hosted over 3.2 million fans over 200 ticketed events including: the 2016 NBA All Star Weekend, the NHL’s World Cup of Hockey, three consecutive nights of WWE events, three nights of the Tragically Hip’s final tour, two days of League of Legends Summer Finals, and four Adele shows. With the Toronto Raptors reaching the NBA Eastern Conference Finals for the first time, she was tasked with re-scheduling Pearl Jam’s sold-out show in May. The show was successfully moved and band members even sat courtside for the game that caused the scheduling conflict.
Lorraine Spadaro
VP of eBusiness
Delaware North Companies & TD Garden, Boston
Lorraine Spadaro offices out of TD Garden Boston and is a significant influencer in the community. When large arenas make investments in anything from ticketing technology to a LED ribbon board digital display, parking systems to CRM and analytics applications, chances are they put a call into Spadaro first. She is a mentor to many and a frequent panelist at SEAT and other industry technology conferences.
Karen Swan
Director of Group Marketing
Target Center/AEG, Minneapolis
Karen Swan is the maven of group sales for the live entertainment industry and has almost 40 years’ experience in the industry. She is known for her dedication to her clients in the Twin Cities and her willingness to share her knowledge and experience with others. She has mentored countless other professionals in group sales and life over her stellar career in venue management. She began her career in 1974 at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minn., working for Gigi Pilhofer and Bob Reid. When Target Center was getting ready to open in 1990, Tim Leiweke approached Karen about coming to work for Ogden Entertainment. She hasn’t looked back serving as the only Director of Group Sales for the venue.
Sue Walker
Associate Director
State Farm Center at the University of Illinois, Champaign
Sue Walker personifies impactful expertise, savvy, talent and character. She has always been collaborative and professional in her dealing with the university athletic department and is a tremendous asset for the university as a whole. State Farm Center is considered a true community jewel for Champaign-Urbana, Ill., and Walker has been elevating its operation for nearly 30 years. Her influence over the course of her tenure on her colleagues, her building and her community are immeasurable. In an industry filled with career moves and change, Walker has been a cornerstone of leadership and a role model for women and men in our industry, managing over 3,000 events during her tenure at State Farm Center, and serving as a leader to thousands of employees, student interns and mentees.
Donna Westmoreland
Chief Operating Officer
I.M.P., Inc., Washington
Donna Westmoreland, Chair Emeritus of the Board, is the Chief Operating Officer of I.M.P., Inc., the independent Washington, D.C. concert promotion company that owns the legendary 9:30 Club, operates Merriweather Post Pavilion and the historic Lincoln Theatre and produces many more concerts annually. After working for Wynton Marsalis and managing live music venues and events, she spearheaded the marketing, nonprofit and sponsorship components of the groundbreaking Lilith Fair festival, which introduced Breast Cancer Prevention Partners to thousands of concertgoers. Westmoreland served on the Board of Directors from 1999 to 2002, and rejoined the board in 2009. She has stayed active on behalf of the organization throughout, speaking as part of the Strong Voices program and organizing the BCPPs’ annual East Coast fundraising event, Beyond the Pink—A Hike to Prevent Breast Cancer.
Elaine Williams
Director of Sales
New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
Elaine Williams has been a member of the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center (MCCNO) Sales team since 2007. Prior to 2007, Williams had been on staff with Aramark, MCCNO’s former Food and Beverage provider since 1997. It has most recently been under her guidance as Director of Sales that the MCCNO has returned to pre-Hurricane Katrina occupancy levels and firmly reestablished New Orleans as a major meetings industry destination. Williams has helped to attract over one million convention center visitors to New Orleans, representing an economic impact to the destination of over $3 billion between 2009 and 2016.
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