Cvent Head of Global Events: PTO Matters! Embrace Career Turns!🔥w/Rachel Andrews | Ep. 451

0:00Welcome to Do This Not That, the podcast for marketers. We share quick tips, things you can do right now, and then we add a little bit of chaos at the end of every episode. We also keep it short, like this intro. Let's check it out. We are back for Do This, Not That, presented by Marigold. And we have an amazing human being here. We have a friend here. She's a big deal. So we got Rachel Andrews, who is C-Vent's global head of events. Now, first of all, if you don't know C-Vent, I don't know what rock you're under, but C-Vent's a beast, okay? They have almost 5 ,000 employees, almost 21 ,000 customers, and they're one of the largest, not the largest event technology companies in the world.

0:42They are the platform that everybody uses to plan, to manage, to optimize their events, virtual, in-person, you name it, it's wild. And it's all Rachel's fault. She has this massive team that's overseeing, delivering on over 1 ,000 events a year. She's won all these awards. She sits on all these boards. words if there's anything about the event world that she doesn't know then it doesn't exist and I'm excited to talk with her Rachel welcome to the show. Woo what an intro it's almost up there with the Kelsey intro. Yes well Rachel was nice enough to have me on her podcast earlier today and we wore costumes I was a banana she was Wonder Woman and you are Wonder Woman so let me jump what a cheesy segue let me ask you a question before we get into all this how did Rachel become Rachel?

1:29God, I don't even know. I'm just like this weird thing that exists in the world, right? I've been me for as long as I've known, right? You mean like, how did I become the head of events at CVAN? Yes. What is your path? You know, I've always been an oldest child. So I feel like because of that, I have loved organizing and making sure that I was the peacekeeper and an organizational person in my family. And I always love gathering. I've always loved bringing people together. I always like to make sure this person's okay. And this person's okay. And they've connected. I'm like known in my life and my circle of friends are being the friend that has introduced people like 85 times.

2:12One of my best friends is like, I've met your brother like 10 times. You don't have to introduce him to us every single time we hang out. And I just do that because it's just like inherently my nature. So I think that that has like translated into my love for bringing people together, which is also then translated into planning events. I started my love of kind of the event side of things in college, which most people do. But even before that, I was planning just like, I know like back then I was doing more social things and then I gravitated towards corporate events because I was like, screw the social events.

2:47I don't want to be in charge of someone's happiest day of their life. I want to drive results in business. boring, right? But I started with things like our high school fashion show. I orchestrated a lot of events in college, fundraisers, the silent auction. I planned our 25th anniversary of our Virginia Tech, our comm school. So I just loved it. And then I moved to New York. I got a random, random job. So funny. One of the alumni of Virginia Tech worked for, do you remember the show on MTV called Yo Mama. Of course. I met the producer of that show because he was a Virginia Tech alumni and he introduced me to a company in New York that was looking at the time I thought I wanted to be in PR.

3:34And at the time he introduced me to an events PR company and I interned for them and I just realized doing PR that I really wanted to do the event side. I wanted to get into the nuts and bolts and the logistics and see something come build something with my own hands and see it come to fruition so i left that company and got a job at morgan stanley in new york and doing their financial events which during the 2008 time frame so as you can imagine it was wild like good timing yeah really great you know nailed it um uh but it was a true like test of fire um fake it till you make it situation when um the whole department changed and i was basically handed some of these bigger events, did those for a while, and then ended up getting a job at Cvent.

4:20I've been there for 15 years, but we had like four or five planners at the time, very disjointed team. And I grew that into a team of 40. So, you know, we're just like completely, you know, every year has changed to be like a different team, a different company, different goals. So I feel like even though I've been here 15 years, I have kind of like expanded what we've done, changed it at 18 different times. So it's been great. Well, you know, it's amazing. And before we get into like, I want your perspective on the event world, because you have the perspective. But for people listening out there, maybe you're a marketing manager, maybe you started your job, or maybe you're in a role that you're like, this sucks.

5:04I'm never going to get to the next level, whatever. I went deep on Rachel's LinkedIn. in. And when I did that, she's been at Cvent now 15 years. And at the very beginning, the first thing that she lists is that she worked on Cvent's holiday party at the lowest possible level. Right. And now here you are the vice president of what our director or whatever the hell you are. You're a really important person. It's like, I think global head of world domination. Yeah. You are it. Okay. You're like the Yoda of events. Okay. But you started. And the reason I say people listening you know uh may be frustrated in their role it feels like what you did was every little thing a little little door they opened the opportunity you didn't just laugh at like oh it's the holiday party i can't believe this is what i'm doing you took it seriously and that's how you grew in your career is that what you did were you intentionally like oh my god you know what i was always very like hungry to do more and more and more what else what else what else what else um you know i don't i don't know if that's just like me or i'm insane maybe i'm a sociopath.

6:05I have no psychopath. I don't know. I actually don't know. Like I think all people in events are a little bit - I'm staying quiet on all of that. No, I think to do what we do takes a type of hunger and passion and a little insanity in the best way possible, right? So I think that that's part of it. I also think just, I think I'm a different beast of person because I work for an event. It's very meta. Like I work for an event tech company as the event person, uh planning events for event technologists and event planners so like the people that come to my events are me at other companies right and so no pressure right planning events for your own peers i think that that has also motivated me because like i can't fail i can't look bad in front of people not that that's the only motivation but like that's part of it right it's like you want to make sure that you're doing the right thing and then early on i this is really if you Google my name.

6:58It's kind of embarrassing. You Google my name. I think it's like the 10th article that comes up. It says embrace the suck. It's the military motto of embrace the sucker. I think it's the Navy SEALs, but they say embrace the suck, meaning just get through it, do it, learn it, move on to the next thing and just keep reinventing what you want to do. Because if you're just like, okay, I've done the same shit every single year. I have kind of, right? We haven't changed our events program all that drastically, but the company shifted, growth targets have changed. And we try to always level up, even though we're doing relatively the same events every year.

7:37We also try to infuse it with new things. So we give ourselves that challenge on the team to have that kind of service mindset of like, what can we do better? What can we do better? And sometimes to a fault, right? Like sometimes we're like, maybe that's a little bit too much of what we can do better. we're like pretty close to perfect on this thing so all right but i want to i want to dig into a little bit okay so you you're putting on a ton of events you're helping a lot of events you're doing all this stuff what really has changed because everyone's listening like okay i'm going to this event this year i went to it last year what they're gonna have a new sandwich uh that they're handing out like what is things that are actually changing at events that people are like wow i didn't even realize that that's a big thing about everybody's doing.

8:23Yeah. I mean, the best, the best thing I think that people can do is, I mean, I just told you on our other podcast that we did is everybody wants more networking, more networking, more networking, more networking is like the number one thing that people want. And so what we try to do every year is do more of that, but try to invent it in better ways. Like also when you have an event for 5 ,000 people, which is our, you know, one of our bigger conferences gets up to that some years. When you have an event for over, let's just call it over a thousand people, you need to be able to dig into those personas and help those people connect with each other.

9:00Otherwise, you're walking into this like convention center, wherever the hell you're doing the event. And you're like, who the hell do I talk to? And so it's up to event profs or event marketers to create that community for them. That's not new. That's just not well done. Right. And so that's always in people's minds. We are creating communities for people, but are they really throwing people into a room, a keynote room or a panel room and saying, meet each other, or it's not great. Like, even if you have the color coded things on the badges, you need to almost force people to meet up in these smaller formats because not everybody is a big extrovert.

9:35So one of my like focuses right now is figuring out, okay, for this event, who's an introvert? Most people in the events industry are introverts and, or ambiverts is what I call myself is like, I'm very, I'm, I'm very much both. And so how do you plan for that and force people together? So like, I don't know if that exactly answers your question, but I think one other, sorry, I'll just say one more thing about how we're trying to invent the, invent the, invent the events is by thinking through all the trends and seeing which ones are BS and which ones are, which ones are actually valuable to people.

10:09Like, I think, you know, these discussions, peer-to-peer discussions are really valuable. I think doing these fun, silly activations are valuable because it does give people something to do and bond over. I think this trend of the pickleball tournaments popping up at events is awesome. It's just bonding in a better way versus like, hello, we are at a roundtable and we are going to talk about AI. I just don't think that that's good, but not enough. I have a question about the roundtable thing, because I see that now at a lot of events, small events, big events, where they'll say, okay, there's a room over here and there's 10 tables and every table is a little sign on the table and I'll have a topic.

10:50You know, this topic over here is healthcare and this one's nonprofit, whatever. And now go and find your tribe, find your table. And then I always try to do that and it's the most uncomfortable, awkward, horrendous experience ever. And I wound up just looking at my phone. Are those, obviously not how I feel about them, But are those motions, do they work? Because I see them at all the events now. Maybe I'm a loser. Maybe when I will say, and I hate to hate on other conferences, but when you just put signs on a table and say, good luck, have at it, that sucks. That really sucks. And I think that most people would agree with me.

11:27And again, most people are introverts walking up to a table and just saying, I'm here to talk about healthcare. And then there's a sheet on the table that tells you what to do. It's like, how lame is that? I think if you have facilitators or what I've seen now are like influencer facilitators that really know their craft and like really help the conversation, those work. I will say that those work and those do help the table. But it's tough, like especially with people that don't have budgets. That's a very cheap way to bring people together. I'm just going to be honest. No, that's smart. I mean, you have to have the right person working the table.

12:03And I think that people aren't thinking like that. So I want to pivot here and I have something super random to ask you about life in general, because you have a lot going on. You're traveling. I don't know if I know a person that goes to more events than you do. Okay. You're all over the place. And the thing that I want to dig into is I go on LinkedIn. I'll message you. You're one of the few people that'll message me back relatively quickly. And I see you online commenting on things. I want to know, are you the most efficient human being? how does Rachel manage her time? Do you get up at four in the morning?

12:38I want to know your every day because everyone's about to get inspired because I don't know how the hell you're doing it. I don't either. You know what my superpower would be if I had one to buy locate? Like, I think that it would be great if I could buy locate, but I haven't figured that out yet. No, I just think, you know, LinkedIn's my favorite platform I use and I love engaging with people. The thing I love the most is there's a lot of people that are looking for mentors out there and reach out and want to just chat about something. Sometimes the best messages are just people being like, hey, I have this problem.

13:08What do you think? I love that. And so that's why I continuously am on it. I probably went to a little bit too many events this year, but part of that is just the fact that I have to produce events and bring the latest and greatest to the events industry as a person that plans an event for the events industry. I felt the need that I needed to go and see what was going on because for a while there when i was when i was you know grinding i wasn't going to anything and then we were expected to bring all the latest and greatest trends all the latest and greatest activations and i'm like uh pinterest or reddit please tell me what or like please fill out this survey on linkedin like the like trying to get crowdsource some stuff was not enough like going to events is is uh is in there but i i don't know if i have tips and tricks i i try to sleep a full eight hours and it's just it's that's a pretty tough but it's a good question but do you do you like uh are you intentional about your time like i'm trying to my 2026 mantras to come from a place of no because i always come from a place of yes like oh you want to be a part of this i say yes and then i wind up why is this on my calendar it's a waste of my time and i have no time for myself and whatever like are you do you have it set up where you know your day is every 30 minute block is something really really important or are you more fluid than that like how can you get it all done.

14:28I was telling someone, I think I had 18 meetings yesterday. And at the end of the day, I was like, I don't know what the hell I'm going to do all my work. So I had to, you know, reprioritize and shift some things. I also am like a very strong, strong supporter of PTO. If you take PTO, take the damn PTO. And I try to tell my team that to try not to bother them when they're on PTO. I think it's just so important to get a mental health break and not shame people for it because we have it for a reason and mental health is serious crisis in the events industry people are burning out at crazy speeds just because this do more with less my least favorite saying in the freaking world do more with less like what the hell does that mean that's the mantra of most corporations and most event props or especially heads of events are feeling that really deeply so anyway I'm I I don't think I have the right answer for you I think that like Like I'm doing the best that I can with what I got, like most of us.

15:27But I'm just really trying to be present. When I'm present with my family, however, I am present with my family. Like I have made that like line very clear. Like when I'm off, I try to really be off. Yeah. I think that's good. I hate the phrase work-life balance because I think that you need to have a balance in your life. but I'm not one of these people that believe you're just shutting off at 5 p.m. on a Friday and not thinking about it again until Monday morning. But that being said, whatever you are doing, I think you need to be present doing what you're doing or else you're a big loser and you're accomplishing nothing.

16:01So I love the prioritization of PTO. I need to take more PTO. So give me the outlook as we're heading into 2026. I think one of the biggest issues when I talk to event people in the industry, they're always, I think, too optimistic. They're like, oh, our numbers will kick in the last three weeks. We need a lot of registration. The walk up in person is going to be great. That's going to make our numbers or some other horse crap. When, you know, this year is tough. I mean, international travel coming in for any events is like tough, right? And people don't have the budgets for stuff. Is 2026 going to be a year where things kind of get back on track a little bit or are we still going to be in kind of an unknown chapter here?

16:43I'm still in limbo about that, if I'm being honest. I want to be positive and say it's going to be great, but we're still in a lot of socioeconomic crises with certain industries, like the association, government, education spaces are feeling the heat. And I think that then also corporations are also feeling the heat of things like tariffs and other factors hitting their budgets, like the do more with less stuff. Also, there's a big turning of heads to what can we use AI to increase efficiency? Not that that reduces headcount, but maybe that helps us get more efficient. So we can do more with less.

17:26And there's a big focus on that. So I think that that's going to be the case. I mean, my, the, the, your original point of just like this last minute registration thing, it's real. Like that happened to us. We got last, it was the last year. I think it was both years. We had almost a thousand people register in like the last six weeks. Wow. It's just like for it. I mean, but I think about my own behavior. I know that I'm going to go to that event, but sometimes I don't register for it until a month out. Like sometimes I just don't have the mental capacity to think about what I'm doing in that month.

17:58I know it's on my calendar. I know I'm doing it, but I'm like, okay, now I will do it. I'll book it. I'll, I'll focus on it. And then I'm, I'm, I'm, that's just my behavior. So other attendees are behaving that way too. Um, onsite registration, meh, not so much. Like, especially when you're flying somewhere, maybe the local component comes in, but if you're flying somewhere, nobody's like walking up to that unless it's like a local London event and they can just pop out of their office and come in. Um, but I, I just, I don't know what, I don't know what the twenties, 26 will have in store. I kind of feel like in my gut, it's going to continue to grow.

18:32And then there's going to be like a flat line at some point. That's super interesting that there's like a hockey stick the last few weeks, like you just talked about. Because I wouldn't expect it. I would just think that people are trying to grab whatever the deal is, the best deal. But I love hearing it. I love hearing it. Last big, most important question. You fly a lot because you travel a lot. What is the TV and movies that you are downloading that are like Rachel Andrews is like this is what you need to be watching because this is the best stuff. I just watch. So I use the apps. I use Netflix and Amazon Prime apps to watch because I feel like I get on these.

19:09The screens on the TVs are just I don't know. I can't deal with them. And the sound never works. I don't even know. So I download all my apps. But I just watch Black Rabbit on Netflix. Oh, I'm in the middle of it. If you screw me up on that, I'm not talking to you. Yeah. And then I usually download, you know, like, like every basic woman, I love some true crime. So I'll download some true crime stuff. But that and then what did I watch on Amazon? I'm like a sucker for the summer. I turned pretty. I know it's for like, you know, I think millennials were, were, were targeted and attacked by that.

19:41Like, those guys are like, like what we grew up with, with the teenage heartthrobs. Yes. But totally, totally into that. That's a good choice. i you know jason bateman who's in black rabbit we we wanted to get him for our email then our google conference but he was busy filming black rabbit he said he was gonna be promoing or whatever so that's how we wound up with it kind of like um we got nicole kidman instead but what's the other show he did it's kind of like um ozark vibes like ozark vibes it is yeah i really i just i i'm obsessed anything jason basement bateman does i'm in like he's just so talented yeah he cracks me up He's a funny dude for sure.

20:16But you're a funny dudette. And I appreciate you being here. The clip that we're going to put all over social is when Rachel says she loves getting DMs on LinkedIn. And then we're going to put like a billion dollars boosting behind it. So that way she'll get 10 gazillion DMs. But most importantly, we're putting her LinkedIn in the show notes. Everybody should reach out to her. She's actually an incredible follow, incredible person to connect with. Rachel, what else should we do to get involved with your world? Gotta do a shameless plug for Steven Connect. we're coming to Nashville next year it's going to be awesome we're going to get Jay there he's going to do something crazy he'll have his great hair on display for everyone to see I'm going I think that's what I would recommend to people check that out it's an event tech conference but it's not just all CVent it's an industry event as well big family reunion every time love it but yeah just thanks for having me on I don't have anything else to plug other than CVent Connect is the jam and I'm excited to participate in the conference you have coming up.

21:18Yes, we're getting you to do air guitar. I cannot wait to go to Nashville, do C-Vent Connect. Everyone connect with Rachel Andrews. She's incredible. Thanks for being here. You crushed it. Woo! Thanks for having me. You did it. You made it to the end. But wait, the party is not over. Listen, I want to keep hanging out. Subscribe to this podcast. And if it wasn't the worst podcast you've ever listened to, give it a five-star review. Why not? But you know what? I want to do even more with you. Go to gurumediahub.com and we can partner there. You can find out about all of our free events, all of our stuff.

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