Lauren Bekesh

About Lauren Bekesh

Record of success in aligning strategies, tactics, and cross-departmental stakeholders to meet and exceed objectives within brand-building environments. Resourceful problem solver who engages a background in marketing, events, project management, and business operations to strengthen department and team performance. Blends forward thinking with mindful attention to detail, making space for new ideas while executing with care and efficiency. Repeatedly selected to lead and deliver strategic initiatives with visibility at the senior executive level.Leads with natural curiosity, open and clear communication, responsiveness, relationships across functions, a commitment to ongoing improvement, and a passion for internal and external opportunities to create social and community impact.HIGHLIGHTSo Led the end-to-end planning and orchestration of company’s physical presence at the 10-day Sundance Film Festival. Leveraged long-standing vendor relationships to create a seamless and engaging marketing-focused experience for +400 clients, talent, and employees.o Project-managed the identification-to-implementation process for the integration of a new event management system. Fully onboarded team in 6 weeks.o Serving in a Chief of Staff-like role, co-led development, scale, and day-to-day management of business operations shared services departments serving all functions across Fortune company. Put processes and structure to drive efficiency.o Member of the marketing and account management team that accelerated brand awareness and U.S. market expansion for an international edtech company. Work was key in positioning it for a Smart Media Academics’ Choice Award.

Experience

1. Manager, Global Travel Services & Events

   AMC Global Media

   Nov 2016 — Present · New York, NY, US

   Currently leads event planning & production while also managing key travel and corporate card functions for an enterprise of employees worldwide & 12 content brands (AMC Networks, AMC+, BBC America, IFC, SundanceTV, WE tv, Acorn TV, Shudder, Sundance Now, allblk, HIDIVE, and IFC Films). Reports to VP with a dotted line to the senior leadership team. Created a culture of cross-departmental alignment & collaboration, positioning department as a strategic partner to finance / audit, compliance, marketing, legal, programming, HR, and IT. Drafted and distributed onboarding guidelines to assist employees with corporate card management, expense reporting (Oracle iExpense tool), policy, and the scheduling of global travel. Continues to serve as the key point of contact on all hotel contracts. In the midst of corporate restructuring, took on event management roles previously managed by an SVP and VP. Identified and led opportunities to more strategically align employee strengths with event objectives. Led the sourcing and integration of a new event management system, Aventri (now Stova). Worked with analytics team member to build the business case and requirements. Orchestrated a demo. Gained buy-in and onboarded users. As a physical production lead for companies presence at the Sundance Film Festival, manages the creation of a 2-week experience for U.S./ global advertisers, distributors, talent and their guests, along with senior leadership and sales employees. As part of Sundance, oversees all travel, the build-out of an operations / hospitality center, F&B, 3 banquet nights, musical talent, room reservations (800+ nights), ground transportation, film tickets and schedules (+1,100), on-sight concierge for daily activities, and premium gifting / merchandising. Works closely with dozens of vendors to ensure a seamless experience. Renegotiated and restructured event-related contracts to maintain vendor relationships during COVID lockdowns.

Education

• School of Visual Arts

  Photography

• St. Francis College

  B.S, Business Administration-Marketing

  2002 — 2006

Skills

• Outlook
• Organization
• Microsoft Office
• Sales
• Office Management
• Accounting
• Human Resources
• Salesforce.com
• Marketing Event Planning
• Microsoft Outlook
• Executive Administrative Assistance
• Photoshop
• Event Management
• Budgets
• Employee Training
• Trade Show Exhibitor
• Project Management
• Bank Reconciliation
• Order Processing
• Travel Planning
• Events Coordination
• Bookkeeping
• Management
• Customer Service
• Event Planning
• Account Management
• Marketing
• Powerpoint
• Microsoft Word
• Marketing Strategy
• Social Media
• Travel Management
• Invoice Processing