Resume

OPERATIONS LEADERSHIP

University of Portland – Portland, OR

Director of Summer Programs and Conferences | 02/2023 – current

Associate Director of University Events | 07/2015 – 02/2023

Assistant Director of University Events | 07/20214 – 07/2015

Referred into initial role by industry contact to work in fast-paced department handling 14,500 events per year that range in size from 5-6,000 attendees and $600,000 in annual spend. Proposed then was accepted into new role handling development of summer programming and conferences. Supervise 13 part-time employees, direct $500,000 budget, and manage 20-client portfolio including 75 events / summer. Set up dedicated revenue pipeline that fills facility space vacancies during summer break. Currently plan, manage, implement, and execute events for clients including intern housing program, on-campus lectures, dining, rooming, classes, graduation, pre-college program, and reunions. Provide direction to teams including championing event operations best practices, efficiency, and customer service while also managing / overseeing all vendor operations / contracts.

• Increased revenues 81% for projected YOY growth by recruiting new business clients during summer months that booked empty facilities; signed university’s largest client for summer conferences.

• Saved $30,000 over 5 years by sourcing developer to create proprietary name pronunciation software; avoided having to source new provider after previous vendor went out of business.

• Created opportunity set to launch in 2024 that showcases university to prospective students; realized value in providing on-site experience allowing potential students to explore campus during summer months, and won leadership approval.

• Generated $28,000 in Y1 of new internship housing program which enabled students from other institutions who have internships within Portland area to reside on campus.

• Slashed inefficient and ineffective staff time spent in meetings and duplicate phone calls by creating shared document system and structure where all team members can access accurate information that is up-to-date.

• Positioned organization to add $20,000 in additional revenues / year by solving post-COVID gap in linen providers by purchasing own bed sheets and towels to avoid excessive rental costs from out-of-area service providers.

• Streamlined event operations to be more efficient, which helped short-handed team be as effective as possible; standardized set ups to meet client needs while cutting task redundancies when resetting events.

• Teed up organization to add more clients and capture 50% bump in revenues by responding to client inquiries in timely manner while building meaningful relationships with them that showcased facility’s ability to meet their event needs.

• Innovated inaugural event program welcoming university’s 21st president by ensuring each event within same space was differentiated between activities; created truly long-lasting positive reflection of president and university.

• Produced 1,000+ customized boxes for graduating seniors to make up for inability to participate in commencement in-person; set up fulfillment warehouse, coordinated items, and shipped to each student before event.

• Leveraged logistical expertise when COVID-19 idled events to shift gears into handling university’s COVID response; stepped up to become COVID operations team handling testing, creating policies, and educating / informing community.

• Expanded commencement event operations to be inclusive as possible to accommodate all attendees; added ASL, live captioning, Spanish interpretation, and sensory inclusive booth as well as kids coloring book.

• Eliminated unnecessary inbound phone calls by expanding commencement web site from 1 to 50 pages to provide FAQS to stakeholders that outlined all resources and answers, which nearly cut all inquiries.

• Enhanced team’s state of readiness and preparation in advance of upcoming events by creating Monthly Look Ahead Meeting that provided primary campus partners with list of upcoming campus events that are 6-8 weeks out.

• Consolidated and streamlined event scheduling campus-wide by implementing new EMS software-based template that allowed users to request space and receive confirmations right away for their last-minute event needs.

• Shortened weekly meeting times and created improved staff event focus after adding daily service crew reports that alerted them to up-to-the-minute changes that were immediately accessible via phone or tablets.

• Saved organization $45,000 annually after pivoting to paid cap-and-gown services versus providing items complimentary to graduating students.

• Positioned organization to earn $400,000 in event space rentals for on-campus summer conferences; researched similar organizations and made proposal to stakeholders that demonstrated financial value, which won their buy-in.

• Convinced university to make $20,000 video projector purchase which paid for itself 2x over by zeroing out rental costs.

Portland Timbers and Thorns – Portland, OR

Timbers2 Event Manager | 12/2014 – 06/2018

Special Events Assistant | 01/2014 – 12/2014

Special Events Intern | 10/2013 – 12/2013

Converted internship into permanent role then progressively promoted. Coordinated 15 game-day events with up to 1,500 attendees, and worked with staff teams of up to 20 employees. Acted as liaison between Portland Timbers and University of Portland, handling game management, operations, concessions, housekeeping, guest services, team operations, sponsorship, and security to ensure successful game operations. Enforced venue and industry standards including severe-weather procedures, fire code, capacity, safety and security measures. Acted as event lead through communicating event day changes, supervising guest service attendants, and enforcing stadium policies and procedures. Coordinated with internal and external vendors/departments including catering, operations, finance, sponsorship, housekeeping and other services.

• Boosted sales 15% after leading launch that added Providence Park’s first-ever website dedicated to event bookings; created online portfolio that showed event possibilities to inspire potential clients into booking.

• Created positive working environment for guest services team that resulted in staff competition to work on events; helped engage teams by checking in with each person and answering questions about events.

• Trimmed admin time spent by staff creating weekly meeting documents by guiding everyone through discussion points quickly and effectively to return them more quickly back to working on their projects.

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND:

Previous employment as seasonal Business Director at Boy Scouts of America Camp Whitsett (Kern, CA); managed camp’s financial affairs and operating budget totaling $500,000+ while supervising 7 staff (06/2013 – 08/2013).

EDUCATION

University of Portland – Portland, OR

Master of Business Administration (MBA)

Bachelor of Science (BS) in Organizational Communication

Professional Development:

Cvent Connect, Cvent – Las Vegas, NV (2023 & 2019)

Live Conference, EMS by Accruent – Atlanta, GA (2017), Phoenix, AZ (2016), Orlando, FL (2015), and Denver, CO (2014)

International Conference, Association of Collegiate Conference and Event Direction – Minneapolis, MN (2018), Orlando, FL (2017), and Portland, OR (2016)

AFFILIATIONS / INVOLVEMENT

Member, Meeting Professionals International (MPI) Oregon Chapter (2019 – current)

Member, International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) (2014 – current)

Member, Association of Collegiate Conference and Event Directors International (2017 – current)

Planning Committee, GuestX Conference – Frisco, TX (2017)