Alissa Hurley, CMM, CED Nice to Meet you! Back in February, Ignite, in partnership with Tami Adams, founder of TA Speakers Management, and Samantha Mele, founder of The Creative Connoisseur, launched the #ReintroducingMeChallenge on LinkedIn (read the full story of how the initiative came to fruition on page 3). Get inspired by this sampling of the submissions. Highlights from the #ReintroducingMeChallenge on LinkedIn Allow me to re-introduce myself. (I am hearing Jay-Z when I read this). I am a proud Guyanese-born Canadian. Ever since I was in high school and organized my fi rst talent show, I have had the bug for producing events. The joy and passion I had for creating experiences in high school and leaving a positive impact on all attendees has not changed. I have been fortunate to have planned radio station launch parties, events for Wyclef Jean, Jamie Foxx, Morris Peterson from Toronto Raptors and so many more. I am an advocate for treating people with kindness and being my authentic self. This is what I bring to every interaction I have and it is what I am bringing to the amazing team of people I work with at MPI Toronto Chapter. I am the co-chair of the MPI Toronto Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force where we are keeping the conversation going about how to make meaningful change to create a more inclusive society starting with our chapter. The last couple of years have been turbulent for the industry, but, in 2022, I am optimistic about where the industry will go. We know our clients want to have amazing in-person experiences and as soon as it’s safe we will take it to the next level. I’ve been in the events industry for 25 years and counting! On March 1, 2020, I started a new job as vice- president, customer marketing at Encore. I was about two weeks in at my new offi ce in Chicago—and was actually preparing to move—when the world shut down. For over a year, I worked remotely as part of a team of incredibly hardworking marketers focused on educating clients on the pivot to virtual events while also implementing a global rebrand. What an adventure! In mid-2021, I’m not ashamed to admit the pandemic got the best of me and I needed a break. Call it divine intervention, but shortly after making the diffi cult decision to leave my job, I was diagnosed with early-stage endometrial cancer. Words cannot express the gratitude I have for the amazing team at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. Thanks to them, I am cancer-free! Now, I’m happy to be back on the agency side as vice-president at PRIME Event Partners, leading a team of talented #eventprofs who are enthusiastic about the future of in-person events. Who else is excited? Dwayne Rutherford, DES (re) Dwayne Rutherford, DES Alissa Hurley, CMM, CED Founder and managing director, Debonair Corporate Events, Toronto Vice-president, PRIME Event Partners, Toronto 38 | Ignitemag.ca | Spring 2022
