PCMA Announces 2020 Board Officers, Trustees


Proposed Slate of 2020 Directors Elected

The PCMA Leadership Committee has elected its PCMA Foundation 2020 Board of Trustees.

Officers and trustees will take office immediately following PCMA’s Convening Leaders annual meeting Jan. 5-8 in San Francisco’s Moscone Center.

Board of Trustees 2020

Top row, from left to right: Douglas Bennett, Jerry Cito, Jennifer Erney, Christopher Finelli, Mary Pat Heftman, Tony Lorenz, John Loveless | Middle row, from left to right: Karen Malone, Carol McGury, Gary Murakami, Kirsten Olean, Gladys O’Mahony, Angie Ranalli, Henry Rosales | Bottom row, from left to right: Stuart Ruff-Lyon, Claire Smith, Charles Starks, Valerie Sumner, Danielle Urbina, Heidi Welker (Photo illustration by PCMA)

PCMA Foundation 2020 slate of Trustees

Chair:
Valerie Sumner
Principal
VRS Meetings and Events, Inc.
Term: 2020 –2021

Chair-Elect:
Angie Ranalli, CMP
Vice President of Sales – Midwest Region
San Diego Tourism Authority
Term: 2020 –2021

Secretary-Treasurer:
Charles Starks
President and CEO
Music City Center
Term: 2020 –2021

Immediate Past Chair:
Carol McGury, MPS
Executive Vice President
SmithBucklin
Term: 2020 –2021


The following individuals will begin serving two-year terms (2020 –2022) as Trustees:

Douglas Bennett, CTA, CASE
Senior Vice President Convention Development
Louisville Tourism

Tony Lorenz, CMM
Founder
Headsail, LLC

Gladys O’Mahony
Vice President, Association Sales
Marriott International

Henry Rosales
Vice President, Strategic Events
CoreNet Global

Danielle Urbina, CMP
Vice President, Meetings
American Heart Association

Heidi Welker
Senior Vice President, Business Development
Freeman Audio Visual Canada


The following individuals are currently serving two-year terms as Trustees (2019 –2021):

Jerry Cito
Executive Vice President, Convention Development
NYC & Company

Jennifer Erney, CMP, CMM
Regional Vice President Sales
Associated Luxury Hotels International (ALHI)

Christopher Finelli
Regional Vice President Sales – Hyatt Sales Force
Hyatt Hotels Corp.

John Loveless, CEM
Senior Vice President Exhibition Sales
GES

Karen Malone
Vice President
Healthcare Information Management and Systems Society (HIMSS)

Gary Murakami, GTP, GLP, CMP, CMM
Director Global Sales
MGM Resorts International


The following PCMA Foundation Trustee positions are determined by PCMA:

Mary Pat Heftman
Vice Chair
Winsight Exhibitions
Term: 2019 -2021

Claire Smith, CMP
Vice President, Sales and Marketing
Vancouver Convention Centre
Term: 2020 –2022


The following PCMA Board of Directors members also serve as Trustees:

PCMA Chair:
Stuart Ruff-Lyon, CMP, DES
Vice President, Events and Exhibitions
Risk & Insurance Management Society, Inc. (RIMS)
Term: 2020 –2021

PCMA Chair-Elect:
Kirsten Olean, CAE
Director of Meetings
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
Term: 2020 –2021

Board of Directors 2020

Top row, from left to right: Lisa Astorga, Neil Brownlee, Ben Erwin, Bianca Ferrer, Robert Heard, Derrick M. Johnson, II, Desirée Knight | Middle row, from left to right: Diane Kovats, Gregory A. O’Dell, Kirsten Olean, Amilie Parent, Frank Passanante, Carolyn Pund, Kathleen Ratcliffe | Bottom row, from left to right: Kelly M. Ricker, Paula Rowntree, Stuart Ruff-Lyon, Valerie Sumner, Megan Tate, Christine Trimmer, Ana María Viscasillas (Photo illustration by PCMA)

Also, the PCMA Board of Directors’ proposed slate announced Sept. 16, 2019, has been elected and will take office immediately following PCMA’s Convening Leaders annual meeting in San Francisco in January:

Chair:
Stuart Ruff-Lyon, CMP, DES
Vice President, Events and Exhibitions
Risk &Insurance Management Society, Inc. (RIMS)
Term: 2020-2021

Chair-Elect:
Kirsten Olean, CAE
Director of Meetings
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
Term: 2020-2021

Secretary-Treasurer:
Kelly M. Ricker
Executive Vice President Events & Learning
CompTIA
Term: 2020-2021

Immediate Past Chair:
Gregory A. O’Dell
President and CEO
Events DC
Term: 2020-2021


The following individuals will begin serving three-year terms (2020-2022) on PCMA’s Board of Directors:

Lisa Astorga, CMP, DES
Director of Meetings
International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis

Ben Erwin
President
PSAV

Bianca Ferrer
Creative Director + Experience Designer
Bianca Ferrer Creative

Diane Kovats, CAE, CMP, DES
Executive Director
International Society for Computational Biology (ISCB)

Paula Rowntree
Head of Events & Experience
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners

Ana María Viscasillas, MBA, CDME
President and Chief Visionary
Business Tourism Services


The following individuals are currently serving terms as Directors:

Neil Brownlee
Head of Business Events
VisitScotland
Term: 2018-2020

Robert Heard, MBA, CAE
Associate Executive Director
American College of Emergency Physicians
Term: 2019 –2021

Derrick M. Johnson, II, CMP, DES
Executive Director
The National Behavioral Intervention Team Association (NaBITA)
Term: 2019 –2021

Desirée Knight, CAE, CMP
Director, Education and Meetings
American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association
Term: 2019 –2021

Amilie Parent
President
Showcare Event Solutions
Term: 2019 -2021

Frank Passanante
Senior Vice President, Hilton Worldwide Sales – Americas
Hilton Worldwide
Term: 2019 –2021

Carolyn Pund, CMP, CMM
Senior Manager, Global SMM and Event Business Operations
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Term: 2018–2020

Kathleen Ratcliffe
President
Explore St. Louis
Term: 2018–2020

Valerie Sumner
Principal
VRS Meetings and Events, Inc.
Term: 2020–2021, Foundation Chair

Megan Tate, CMM, DES
Chief Operating Officer
RAW AMZ
Term: 2018–2020

Christine Trimmer
Vice-President of Membership, Marketing and Communications
The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions
Term: 2018 – 2020


For media queries from the Americas, APAC, EMEA, and requests for interviews with Sherrif Karamat, please contact: Meghan Risch, PCMA Chief of Staff, Vice President, Corporate Communications

About PCMA

PCMA, PCMA Foundation and CEMA educate, inspire, and listen, creating meaningful experiences where passion, purpose and commerce come together. We are the world’s largest community for Business Events Strategists, providing senior-level education, networking, and market intelligence for the global business events industry. Our mission is to drive social and economic progress through business events. Headquartered in Chicago, IL PCMA has 17 North American Chapters, regional communities in APAC, EMEA and LATAM, and members in 59 countries. The Corporate Event Marketing Association (CEMA), a PCMA subsidiary, advances strategic event marketing and marketing communications for senior-level event marketers and industry professionals. Visit us at pcma.org.

About PCMA Foundation

The role of the Foundation of PCMA is to support the mission of PCMA through fundraising and grant-giving focused on scholarships, education and research that will advance the business events industry. Annually the Foundation funds over $700K in impact, and since 1985 has funded over 2,500 scholarships, 100 research studies and education programs, and $2.7M in charitable giving.

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