Sarah Skavron, CMP, DES │ Online and Offline Events Manager at Wikimedia Germany

Sarah Skavron, CMP, DES │ Online and Offline Events Manager at Wikimedia Germany

How many years have you been a CMP?

I’ve been a CMP for almost four years.

Where did you grow up?

My hometown is Stuttgart, Germany. After I finished school, I started to move abroad and have lived in 10 cities in the past 15 years.

What did you want to (or think you’d) be when you grew up?

I had many ideas and they changed often. Some of the most persistent were photographer, journalist and fashion designer.

What was your educational field of study (college major or whatever, as applicable), and, if notably different from what you do, what is your how/why/story?

After my gap year in China, I wanted to do something related to cultural studies and the Chinese language and started a bachelor's programme in Cologne. However, since this was not the right choice for me, I decided to move to Sweden (where I had a boyfriend at that time) and took a degree in tourism geography. This is where I got to know that there is something called the Business Events Industry. While studying, I was working for the local tourism board and event staff so I could learn and apply my new knowledge at the same time! I was really fascinated and got more and more into the industry. However, everything changed when I took part as a student in the IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum, which opened the doors to an internship at MPI and a bit later to my first real job at the IMEX Group. I am really grateful for this opportunity and how welcoming this industry was to me as a newcomer.

What advice would you give, either to your younger self or to newer professionals now?

It will all be ok! Flexibility and adaptability is everything. Circumstances, situations and conditions change all the time, so don’t get stressed out but keep calm and come up with a plan B that fits the situation.

What advice would you give to anyone preparing to take the exam?

What helped me a lot was to have regular meetings with my study group. Our experiences are so different and we might have focused in our professional careers on some domains over the others, therefore it was very enriching to discuss the study material with other knowledgeable colleagues. Another tip is to make sure to practice with some mock exams and test questions so that you are familiar with the way the exam runs.

When did you first hear about the CMP designation and what drew you to this certification?

At IMEX, we worked with meeting and event professionals from around the world. Many of them had this certification and it made me curious. I liked the community feeling around it and there you feel instantly connected to other CMPs. My colleague at that time, Miguel Neves, who was already certified, held some intro meetings for colleagues who were interested, so this was a great opportunity to get to know more.

Even if I already had a similar degree, I thought that the certification showed that I have a certain professional standard on which partners can rely. Especially since I was traveling a lot in the first years of my career and looked very young, I felt that having the CMP designation in my name built a deeper level of trust.

What inspires you the most when you think about the future of our industry or the impact of our industry?

After several years in the industry, I still have goosebumps and love the feeling when you are finally onsite or online at the event. There is something about the energy and the stories from the people involved that I find so inspiring.

I am very curious to see how technologies will evolve and how we can use them to create more value and stronger experiences for our participants and partners. I am very interested in how the touchpoints before and after the event can be enhanced through online experiences and new tech possibilities such as using AR or VR elements.

I am also very excited that measuring (long-term) effects are more and more established and that more and more events are creating metrics to measure and improve their impact.

Favorite snack?

Avocados, rice crackers and olives.

What is the biggest life lesson you have learned during the pandemic?

Explore and test! I am grateful that my employer during the pandemic (German Convention Bureau) was very open to exploring how we can switch to online and was open to trying out. With colleagues but also with some industry friends, we built a safe space where we could try and experiment with new platforms, software and technology so that we can get a better understanding of how they work and how we can potentially use them in our work. I realised that participants are sometimes a bit reserved or feel overwhelmed in new online spaces, but giving room to click and test these environments can help tremendously.

What is the most memorable in-person experience you planned? What is the most memorable virtual event you have done so far?

In-person:

At IMEX, my main project was a forum for students who wanted to start their careers in the business events industry. For me, it was important to have balanced panels of speakers and already engage participants before the event, so that the ice is already a bit broken and they know what they are getting themselves into. At one event, this worked out magically! There was such a great atmosphere right from the start. The participants bonded really quickly, the speakers engaged beforehand and joined in and there was a lot of experience-sharing and lively discussions. This really left an impact on me.

Virtual:

I was impressed by some comments from a recent online event. We learned that some of the participants would have not been able to attend any similar events onsite because personal circumstances do not allow them to be away from home. Having them online at the event really brought in more facets of the diversity of the community, and enabled them to be part of the conversations and bring in more perspectives.

What are the benefits you like of hosting virtual events? What do you miss the most for in-person events? Or do you miss it at all?

I think that virtual events can help to create deeper and more valuable conversations in between in-person events or help people to connect when they cannot come together because of location or time constraints.

I think we can also think completely outside of the box and create spaces and engagement opportunities that go far beyond what we can do in the physical spaces. For example, we can bring information and social interaction together in the digital space that would never work onsite. However, what I miss is the serendipity and the little side conversations that we have when we meet in person.