Member of the Month Profile

Name:  Christine Logan
Title:  Entertainment Specialist
Email: Christine@loganmania.com

How many years have you been in the event industry? I have worked professionally in the special event industry for the past 17 years.

What was your first position?  My first job in this profession was working as a talent agent for DeLuca Enterprises / Umbrella Productions.  While there, I represented hypnotist Tom DeLuca and other dynamic corporate performers.  Under the Umbrella Productions division, I represented a popular campus lecture called “Creative Dating” featuring speaker David Coleman.  The “Creative Dating” seminar continued to become an award-winning lecture on the campus circuit.

How did you get into this business?  While I was a student at the University of Central Florida, I became the Popular Entertainment Director with the Campus Activities Board (CAB).  My team selected and booked all of the comedians and bands for the campus and we created a weekly entertainment series called “Tuesday Night Live”.  Back then, we could afford acts like  Jay Mohr and Adam Sandler.  These acts were just getting started and it’s amazing to think we could have such easy access to them.  I also assisted with the concerts committee, bringing in acts like Jay Leno, Joan Jett, and The Black Crowes to the campus.   Through my campus involvement, I began attending NACA conferences (National Association for Campus Activities).  NACA is an association comprised of booking agents, entertainers, and student activities professionals.  At these conferences, I began to network and gain more knowledge about entertainment booking, and I realized that many of today’s stars, like Dane Cook, Janeane Garofalo and Carrot Top actually got their start working the college circuit.

What services do you provide to the special events industry?

Name:  Cheryl Andrews FSMD 
Title:  President/ Designer
Company: Cheryl’s Distinctive Creations
Email: CherylAndrews@bellsouth.net
Website: www.Cherylsdistinctivecreations.com

How many years have you been in the event industry? Twenty six

What was your first position?

Name: Robert Christie
Title: President
Company: Christie’s Photographic Studios
Email: photos@christiesphotographic.com
Website: www.christiesphotographic.com

How long have you been in the industry and what services do you and your company provide?
Christie’s Photographic Studios began in 1983.  By 1986, Bob turned his sights on the convention and meetings business and has never looked back.  With a team of 17 professionals, Christie’s photographs over 4500 events a year, almost all on a deadline for publication.  We offer services such as simple documentation, printing on-site, group photos, tradeshow coverage and anything else photographically possible.

How do your spend your work day?
Managing, overseeing, and responding to client calls and emails.

Name: Kristen Scruggs

Title: Catering & Conference Service Manager
Company: Grand Bohemian Hotel
Email: Kristen.Scruggs@grandbohemianhotel.com
Website: www.grandbohemianhotel.com

How many years have you been in the event industry?
I have been in the event industry since May 2001. Wow – almost 9 years! I started out doing off-premise catering for ARAMARK when I was in college in Kentucky and they ended up transferring me to Tallahassee, FL and then Orlando, FL. From there, I did Wedding Coordination for Orlando Weddings and I am now at my 3rd hotel.

What services do you and your company provide to the special events industry?
I have worked for The Grand Bohemian Hotel Orlando now for a month & half as Catering & Conference Service Manager. The hotel is downtown Orlando’s landmark luxury hotel with 250 guest rooms & suites, over 10,000 square feet of meeting space, including a rooftop pool terrace for events, the award winning Boheme Restaurant and the Bosendorfer Lounge. We also feature the Grand Bohemian Art Gallery which showcases over 100 rare works of art by local, regional, and internationally recognized artists.

I spend most of my day doing _________?
I service all the corporate groups and room blocks that come to the hotel from our Regional Sales Office, working on rooming lists, reservations, meeting specs, food & beverage, etc… I also block/maintain all wedding room blocks and service intimate weddings (less than 50).

Why did you join ISES?
I joined ISES in October 2007 because I wanted to meet others in this wonderful industry. In August 2009, I joined the Communications Committee and assist with the weekly Monday Morning News, which has been great in getting to know more people!

Name:        Byron Loper
Title:         General Manager
Company:   IceMagic
Email:        byron@icemagic.biz
Website:    www.icemagic.biz

How many years have you been in the event industry? 6 Years

What was your first position? Account Manager

How did you get into this business? I went to college at the Rosen College of Hospitality Management, during my time there I did and internship with IceMagic and then came on board full time after I graduated.

What services do you and your company provide to the special events industry? IceMagic provides event décor for corporate or social parties.  Our main focus is on wireless LED lighting and crystal clear ice. 

What has been your company’s most successful event? It’s tough to pin down just one event; throughout our existence we feel that every event was successful in its own way.

I spend most of my day doing making sure the ice stays frozen,  all kidding aside, no two days are the same for me, whether I’m in the office, on and event, or seeing clients I always try to stay busy.

Why did you join ISES? I joined ISES because Bill told me I should and paid for it!  However once I joined I learned of the many benefits, including the relationships I have formed along with the knowledge I have gained.

What has been your most memorable ISES experience?  My most memorable experience has been co-producing the 2009 WOW Awards.   While it was a lot of work the end result was very rewarding.

Is there a book, person, or story that has strongly impacted your career?  Two people have made a big impact first my dad; he has always been a big influence in my life.  I may not always take his advice, but he has always been there for me not matter what I needed.   Second, Dr. Mary Jo Ross of the Rosen College of Hospitality Management.  When I was in school I could not pinpoint what I wanted to do.  After taking her intro class and seeing her passion and love of the industry, I knew what I wanted to do!

Do you have a career or industry tip you would like to share? You are only going to get out what you put in.

Tell us something personal about you; what you enjoy doing in free time or any hobbies: I am an avid sports enthusiast.  I love to watch and play basketball, football, and golf.  As the saying goes a bad day on the golf course is better than any day at the office!

Name: Scott Ostrom - CSEP, CMP
Title: Distribution Marketing, Event Planning Manager
Company: Disney Destinations
Email: Scott.Ostrom@Disney.com
Website: www.DisneyDestinations.com

How many years have you been in the event industry? 12 years.

What was your first position? Inside Sales Coordinator for the Disney Cruise Line opening team.

How did you get into this business? I volunteered for a lot of “special projects” and earned a spot on a team that led a 15-city tour across the US to help promote Disney Cruise Line’s entrance into the cruise industry to travel agents.   Traveling from city to city, setting up, calling, and tearing down shows, afforded me a lot of valuable event experience from all facets of the business.   That experience led to jobs managing other “special project” events on the Disney cruise ships and eventually across the entire Disney Destinations vacation portfolio at the Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort, and with Adventures by Disney tour vacations. 

What services do you and your company provide to the special events industry?  As a corporate event planner, all the services I offer directly support the needs of Disney’s sales and marketing divisions to promote a wide variety of Disney products and services. However, Walt Disney World is the home of Disney Event Group which provides amazing show production, entertainment, creative media, décor, and floral services to Disney convention clients. 

I spend most of my day doing:  Building and managing event project plans.  A great deal of time is also spent communicating with key stakeholders and executives throughout my event project cycles to ensure the plans will adequately deliver against their goals and objectives.   

Why did you join ISES? I wanted to build relationships and network with the key players in the event industry.  I also wanted to earn my CSEP and have exposure to the education that it offers.

What has been your most memorable ISES experience? Working on the 2009 Orlando Wow Awards planning committee.   It offered an opportunity to see the specialized talents of other ISES members in action.  Working with ISES members on projects and committees offers a different perspective than simply talking to them at monthly meetings, so I enjoyed getting to know everyone on a different level as well as the opportunity to have a part in how the event came together.  

Is there a book, person, or story that has strongly impacted your career? In 2002, I took a sabbatical from Disney to work as the AV and Events manager on a ship that took a 100-day voyage around the world.   We went to some amazing ports in places like Cuba, Brazil, India, South Africa, Vietnam, and China.  While it’s a quite simple concept, a common thread that struck me amongst all the places we went, no matter how different socially, politically, or economically, was that every place had a culture where people wanted to laugh and be entertained.  While cultures, people, and places varied vastly where ever we went, I never encountered a place, not only where people didn’t have a way to celebrate life through ceremonies and events, but where it wasn’t abundant.   For me that experience made it clear that there will never be a day when the demand isn’t there for people to be entertained through events, only a time when we fail to package them in a way that works for them. 

Do you have a career or industry tip you would like to share? In addition to a resume, maintain a ”self-promo” document that catalogues visuals of your key project work so you can easily show someone your skill sets. 

Name:              Brian Jenkins
Title:                Event Producer

Company:        PRI Productions
Email:              bjenkins@priproductions.com

Website:          www.priproductions.com

Monday Morning News: How many years have you been in the event industry?

Brian: 3 years

Monday Morning News: What was your first position?

Brian: Event Facilities Manager, FAIRWINDS Alumni Center at UCF

Monday Morning News: How did you get into this business?

Brian: By accident. Isn’t this everybody’s story in the event industry- haha. Starting college as a Business major and after a year at UCF, I decided to explore my inner ‘nerd’ and change my major to Electronics Engineering. Yes, the courses were challenging but more importantly I didn’t feel a connection with the environment. With a hemorrhaged GPA, I thought I would count my losses and go back to the Business world. Just before making the transition back, my roommate suggested that I look into Hospitality Management; adding that he thought it would be a good match for my personality. Hesitantly, I took the Intro course to Hospitality and discovered that there was much more than just making beds and serving draft beer- not that there is anything wrong with that. We discussed a little bit about the Event Management, Meetings, Convention and Conference world and I was hooked ever since.

Monday Morning News: What services do you and your company provide to the special events industry?

Brian: PRI Productions is a full service Event Management and Production Company providing the following services:

• Event Design
• Event Management
• Event Props
• Video Production
• Event Photography
• Audio Visual
• Tent, tables and chairs
• Tradeshows
• Linens
• Video Conferencing
• Just to name a few ; )

Monday Morning News: What does a normal day consist of for you?

Brian: I spend most of my day creating individual proposals for clients. Getting to know my clients to better understand the ‘goal’ of their event.

Monday Morning News: Why did you join ISES?

Brian: I joined ISES knowing that I will be in an environment of other like-minded people who will motivate me to see and reach beyond my current skills; further enhancing my professional growth.

Monday Morning News: What has been your most memorable ISES experience?

Brian: Event World 2008 in St. Petersburg. It was my first industry conference and a slightly overwhelming experience to be amongst such a diverse and talented group of people. You know, as opposed to a ‘group of dry erase markers’. Duh, of course people.

Monday Morning News: Is there a book, person, or story that has strongly impacted your career?

Brian: My high school Football Coach Alex Albert, “Anybody can quit. That’s the easy part. It takes a special drive and determination to stick with something when it gets tough and difficult.” It is the phrase and not the person that has always stuck with me and kept me motivated to do more.

Monday Morning News: Do you have a career or industry tip you would like to share?

Brian: Shut up and listen. Hearing is not listening.

Monday Morning News: Tell us something personal about you; what you enjoy doing in free time or any hobbies:

Playing football, baseball, tennis. I enjoy the beach and nearly any water activity, but not the long walks- sorry Holly.

Monday Morning News: Any family?

I am the baby of nine siblings. Thank you to the third grade teacher who told my father that nobody will remember him unless his name is in a book.

The ISES Orlando Board of Directors is pleased to announce that our February 2009 Member of the Month is Stephen McGregor from afr (American Furniture Rental).

The ISES Orlando Board of Directors is pleased to announce that our February 2009 Member of the Month

Nicole Hernandez

Title: Sr. Event Design Manager
Company: Destination Planning Corporation
Email: nhernandez@destinationplanning.com
Website: www.destinationplanning.com

How many years have you been in the event industry?

Over 7 years

What was your first position?

Event Assistant at Metro Orlando EDC

How did you get into this business?

I started to take “unpaid” internships all throughout college, even after fulfilling all my required internship hours. I continued to do internships for no credit and no money because they taught me all of the hands on training that I needed to then jump into a job in the industry after graduation. Of course this was not easy, but well worth it in the end! To this day, the relationships, mentors, and on the job training that came from those internships have molded me into the designer/producer I am today. Whenever I am in front of the college students at Rosen or any other school, my most important topic is always the importance of internships.

What services do you and your company provide to the special events industry?

Destination Planning Corporation is a full service destination management company that specializes in event design as well. We offer services in transportation, conference management, tours/activities, event design, entertainment, themed events, AV, and the list goes on. Our design team is one of the best I have worked with as we strive to find that new and different edge that keeps us on top of our game for our clients and keep them coming back for more! I spend most of my day….learning & taking care of my clients. I have three major hotels in Florida that are my accounts as well as other corporate accounts. In working with them for the past two years, they become like family to me. I spend my days assisting them in winning business for the hotels and then designing events and selling our many services to the clients once they are in house. Learning is a key component to every day…I learn about my client’s goals & expectations; I learn about new trends in the industry and then decide if they are something of value to share with my clients; I learn how the economy is changing everyday and how I need to restructure our designs to work for my clients. From color trends, new entertainment, lighting, etc…the list goes on and so does the learning!

Why did you join ISES?

The hospitality and events industry is probably the most fun as well as the most work of all industries. With that being said, I have found it is the vendors that I work with that not only make my life easier and my events more successful, but they also help me love my job a little more every day. The members of ISES become your mentors, friends, co-chairs, event vendors, and sounding boards. The members of ISES have helped me continue to learn the value of our industry, the talents that are within it and the commitment from each of our members to success! That is all the reason I need to join!

What has been your most memorable ISES experience?

Being that my short term memory is much better then the long term, I would have to say it was the joint holiday luncheon that we produced in December. It further answers the question of why I am part of ISES. All I had to do is call some of my GO-TO friends in the industry and mention the luncheon and they were on board in a second. It amazed me that in a year that we would all like to forget because of the economic crisis we have been experiencing, our ISES members were still digging into their pockets, into their talents, and providing our members and the members of MPI, NACE , and ABC with some amazing elements to create a fantastic holiday event. That is memorable for me….that is why our ISES chapter is so special to be a part of!

Is there a book, person, or story that has strongly impacted your career?

After watching a movie one day about a famous clothing designer, a statement was made and it is the motto I live by in my life as I found it to be so true….”If you are going to be irreplaceable, you must be DIFFERENT!” Coco Chanel. This is so true in our industry and it is important to remember every day!

Do you have a career or industry tip you would like to share?

My only tip is the obvious…as our economy may cause our industry to suffer a bit, it is important for our industry to pull together and share our own stories, survival tips, and stick together so we can make it to the end in one piece! We are all talented and passionate about our work and we won’t go down without a fight! I know my inspiration always comes from my husband and my daughter as we work as a family to make it through the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Congratulations Nicole!