Kelley Frenkel Pittman, CMP, HMCC, CGTP

I would say my ability to create and maintain relationships with the people I've worked with and the clients I've worked for has been key to my success. Being considered as a trusted resource for the people I have worked with along the way is something I'm really proud of. In many instances, I still have some of those relationships today, even from many, many years ago. I think being able to build relationships and continue to grow those relationships - whether it's with an internal team or an external team, meaning vendors and venues and clients and prospects - the more you can grow those interpersonal relationships, I think the more successful any event or program will be. It just gives a more solid foundation and trust by the vendors, by your internal team members, and by the clients that you're working with. If they view me as a planner as really more of a partner and an extension of them, it just makes that working relationship and the give and take so much easier and more successful.

I would say definitely, it's an exciting opportunity. It is what you make it, and however wide a net you want to cast - if you want to have opportunities to work on global programs and if traveling the world is something that you aspire to doing, it certainly is a great way to be able to do that while working. I'd say be sure to be flexible, adaptable, and patient. Find your niche and find your style, because the career path does allow for a creative mind and you're always looking for new opportunities. Love what you do and make it what you want to make it. There's a lot of room for creativity, so find your niche, but be willing to be adaptable and flexible and kind of roll with the punches as you go along. Take advantage of the opportunities that may arise as you go through your career - being able to travel to cool places and having those things come up that you may not have ever thought might happen. And don't be afraid to ask questions. Nobody knows everything, and every day I learn something new in the field, even though I've been in it forever. Find the people that you feel comfortable with that are in your world and ask those questions. The worst that can happen is somebody either tells you no or they don't know, so that's not really so bad.

I would say that the economy is most definitely a consistent challenge in the industry as a whole, because typically if and when the economy doesn't look so good, budgets get cut. And one of the first things to get cut from any organization is generally their marketing budget, and events fall under that marketing budget umbrella more often than not. So the economic uncertainty and sort of riding those waves throughout the years is something that we certainly don't have any control over, and we just have to really adapt as best as possible to the times and what happens with any kind of economic hardships or budget slashes along the way. And then of course, COVID taught us a whole new perspective on everything - that really developed the entire virtual event capacity. It existed before, but it obviously became the only way that people could continue to get together and have programs and meetings. We all had to evolve so quickly and get up to speed on the how-tos so fast in order to not lose our audiences. But ultimately, the pain resulted in something that did facilitate and open some more doors for even bigger, better programs by adding that virtual component and creating hybrid meetings as well. Now people who can't attend in person can still be a part of the program by attending virtually.

The values most important to me are building strong, trust-based relationships, delivering client-focused service with creativity and adaptability, and contributing to my communities—including supporting animal welfare. I also prioritize patience and integrity in both my professional and personal life.