My Role
Program Owner and Strategic Lead
End-to-end strategy, experience design, vendor leadership, budget ownership, and operational execution.
Program Overview
The Industry Leadership Summit (ILS) is a flagship, invitation-only executive conference bringing together leaders across the insurance, automotive remarketing, and charity sectors from the U.S. and Canada.
This multi-day, hosted experience was designed as a high-touch relationship-building environment combining strategic content, executive networking, and immersive brand experiences. The program rotated biennially between Four Seasons, The Biltmore Santa Barbara, and The Cloister at Sea Island, requiring complex multi-venue planning, destination logistics, and a highly curated guest journey.
As the program owner, I led the end-to-end strategy, experience design, and operational execution of this multi-day conference, including all general sessions, breakout experiences, evening events, transportation, production, and guest experience design.
Program Details
Event Type: Flagship Client & Industry Conference
Venues: Four Seasons, The Biltmore Santa Barbara, Sunstone Winery & Vineyards
Audience: Executive clients across insurance, automotive remarketing, and charity sectors (U.S. & Canada)
Attendance: 250 hosted executive guests
Program Length: 3 days
Business Objective
The objective of the Industry Leadership Summit was to:
- Reinforce the company’s position as a first-class industry leader
- Deepen relationships with top-tier clients and strategic partners
- Create an environment that balanced education, executive dialogue, and relationship building
- Deliver a premium, highly curated experience that strengthened loyalty and long-term partnerships
Because this was a hosted event (no registration fee, lodging covered), every element of the experience had to justify the investment through exceptional quality, strategic intention, and relationship impact.
Experience Architecture: Designing the Guest Journey
Rather than treating the conference as a series of disconnected events, the summit was intentionally designed as a multi-day experience journey with emotional pacing, narrative flow, and strategic purpose behind each major moment.
The experience was structured around four core phases:
- Arrival & First Impression: Reduce friction and immediately spark connection
- Opening Night: Set emotional tone and brand atmosphere
- Peak Experience: Deliver a memorable, high-impact centerpiece moment
- Closing Experience: Reinforce relationships, celebrate engagement, and create a strong final impression
Each phase was designed to support both the business objectives and the human experience of the attendees.
Operational Scope & Complexity
As program owner, I led and managed:
- Multi-venue production and logistics
- Transportation and guest movement
- All food & beverage strategy
- Activities and gifting programs
- Vendor sourcing and contract negotiation
- Event website, registration, and communications
- Audio/visual and production
- Speaker coordination and breakout sessions
- Budget management, forecasting, and reconciliation
- Staffing and on-site operations
Results & Impact
- Executive leadership and clients described this as the strongest ILS in the program’s 13-year history
- The experience design model became the new standard for future conferences
- The program strengthened client relationships, executive trust, and brand perception at the highest levels
SIGNATURE PROGRAM MOMENTS
The Registration Lounge
Reimagining the Arrival Experience
Instead of a traditional check-in desk followed by “see you at the reception,” I redesigned the arrival experience into a fully activated registration lounge that immediately started the networking and engagement process.
This space functioned as:
- A social hub
- A comfort-forward decompression space after travel
- A soft launch into the conference experience
Guests could register, schedule activities, connect with peers, and relax in an environment designed to feel intentional, welcoming, and energetic.
Highlights:
- Coffee & craft beer stations
- Lounge seating and conversation zones
- Chair massages
- Pool table and casual networking areas
- Business center and concierge-style activity coordination
- Freestanding screens and soft brand integration
Impact:
The concept was so successful that it became the new standard arrival experience for future programs.
Welcome Reception
Setting the Emotional and Brand Tone
The opening night reception was designed to establish the emotional tone of the entire summit and immediately immerse guests in a premium, thoughtful environment.
Working closely with an award-winning event designer and production partners, I led the creative direction and execution of a Spanish-themed evening that balanced elegance, warmth, and social energy.
Theme: Spanish Nights
Highlights:
- Tapas and sangria stations
- Seafood raw bar and carving stations
- Interactive Spanish painter
- Live Spanish guitar
- Cigar roller and cordials lounge
Custom lounge environments, uplighting, and layered textures
The goal was not just a beautiful evening, but to engineer easy, authentic networking in a relaxed, emotionally warm setting.
Sunstone Winery Reception
The Emotional Apex of the Program
This offsite experience served as the centerpiece and emotional high point of the entire summit.
Guests were transported by coach to Sunstone Winery in Santa Ynez, where the experience unfolded in stages:
- Optional early wine tasting and cocktail hour
- Family-style dinner in front of the villa and vineyards
- Evening experiences including dessert, wine tasting, shopping, and lounges
One of the signature design elements I introduced was string lighting across the front of the villa, something the venue had never done before. The result was so impactful that the venue adopted the concept for future events.
Theme: An Evening at the Vineyards
Highlights:
- Vineyard dinner under string lights
- Fire pits and lounge environments
- S’mores and dessert stations
- Wine and olive oil tasting
- String duo musicians
- Custom décor using wine bottles, grapevines, and candlelight
- Branded retail and gifting experience
This evening consistently delivered the highest emotional impact and strongest memory imprint of the entire program.
Closing Reception
A Thoughtful and Memorable Send-Off
The closing night was designed to bring the experience full circle by blending reflection, recognition, and celebration.
Held overlooking the Pacific Ocean, this event combined:
- Interactive food stations
- Live surf-inspired music
- Branded environments and lounge spaces
- A visual retrospective of the conference projected inside the ballroom
- An informal awards ceremony recognizing activity and tournament winners
Theme: Coastal Farewell
Highlights:
- Branded ice bar
- Sushi station with live rollers
- Surfboard artist and live music
- Ocean-inspired lighting design
- Fire pits, rattan lounges, and cocktail environments
- Memory montage and awards moment
This final experience reinforced relationships and ensured guests left with a strong emotional close to the journey.