Mar 24, 2022
This is the second episode of our Women’s History Month-themed shows. All four women this month have been amazing examples we can all learn from. Our industry has made some progress in recent years. And, more progress definitely needs to be made in terms of diversity in leadership. The data is there – businesses with more women in leadership are more profitable!
Our guests on this episode are not only women in leadership themselves, they are following the research, and trying to educate the industry. Amanda and Annette share their thoughts on how we all benefit from diversity of not only gender and race, but also of diversity of thought.
Contrarians help us make positive progress.
We talk about the importance of volunteerism, mentorship, feedback loops, and so much more. This is not your typical conversation about women in leadership!
Our Guests
Amanda Armstrong, CMP, CSEP, CMM, DES
Amanda was named in the top five Women of Influence by Meetings Net Magazine and one of the 25 Most Influential People in the Meeting Industry by Successful Meetings Magazine.
She is the senior vice president of Brand and Community Engagement for Encore and she supports the stellar team members of Industry Relations, Communications, Social Media, and the Marketing Creative team. Amanda is responsible for the strategic development and management of Encore’s brand story and increasing their presence and impact in the events industry.
Staying active in the industry is a top priority; she was the 2018 Chair of the International Board of Directors for Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and was the Vice Chair of Finance in 2016. Of course, she held several volunteer roles as a lead-up to serving on the global board. Amanda currently serves on the Event Industry Council’s Business Recovery Task Force and chairs the Event Leaders 100 think tank.
Annette Gregg, CMM, MBA
Annette is Senior Vice President, Experience for Meeting Professionals International (MPI), leading its community engagement, events and education teams and delivering programs for its 13,000 members worldwide. She has an extensive background in the meeting and hospitality industry, serving in executive level positions for corporations, associations and non-profits.
Through her consulting company Difference Makers Consulting, she regularly delivers keynotes on topics including diversity and unconscious bias, promoting women in the workplace, and a variety of professional development topics. Annette has taught at several universities including UCSD and SDSU, and was elected Instructor of the Year at SDSU and inducted into the Center for Business Intelligence’s Circle of Excellence for her training and speaking. She is an honoree for Women in Tourism and Hospitality, and has won the Coach Award for the Association of Women in Events and Planner of the Year for MPI San Diego.
Annette served on MPI’s Board of Directors, the board for the Kim Center for Gender Equity, and San Diego Commission for Women and Girls. She was named to the MeetingsNet Changemakers list for her work in women’s empowerment.
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The "Trade Show Talk" podcast is publishing two episodes per month, focusing on a different theme each month. If you'd like to be a sponsor or a guest or you have a topic to suggest we cover, please let us know by emailing podcast@tsnn.com.