Thushan Rajapaksa

About Thushan Rajapaksa

Thushan Rajapaksa is one of the leading global experts on the topic of event staffing & event management. For over 25+ years, Thushan has built this reputation through his innovative and strategic leadership at Allied Universal Event Services, where he currently holds the role of Senior Vice President.A highlight of Thushan’s leadership at Allied Universal Event Services includes staffing and managing events for NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, MLS, Nascar, UFC, WWE, NCAA, Award Shows, Coachella & Stagecoach music festivals, and of concerts and conventions.Thushan has also applied his tremendous leadership skills to successfully acquire and integrate event staffing & event management firms into Allied Universal Event Services. In addition, Thushan has also used his wealth of business skills in turning around struggling branches and divisions within Allied Universal Event Services.Working his way from the bottom, Thushan learned the ins and outs of event staffing & event management from the ground up. Starting as a guest services employee, supervisor, scheduler, recruiter, event manager, account manager to the general manager of AUES\'s largest and most successful branch office to now in his senior leadership capacity as Senior Vice President.As a sought-after world expert on the topic of crowd management, event staffing & event management, Thushan has been featured in American Security Today and has been a featured speaker at IAVM & IAEE. Thushan has a passion for learning and growth, obtaining his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration & Marketing from California State University-Long Beach - College of Business; where he held President titles for Delta Sigma Pi and ABSOC (Associated Business Students Organizations Council). Furthermore, Thushan holds his Oglebay Year1, Oglebay Year 2, and his Oglebay Graduate Institute certifications in facility management.

Experience

1. Senior Vice President - Southwest Event Services

   Allied Universal

   Jan 2016 — Present · Fullerton, CA, US

   Allied Universal Event Services is nationally recognized as an industry leading crowd management, event staffing and consulting company. As the Senior Vice President achieved the following: • Manage and lead a profitable operation using strategy, innovation, finance skills, resource management skills, and applying customer experience principles. • Lead, manage and coach a high performing team of managers in the execution of crowd management, event staffing. • Built key relationships with clients resulting in new business as well as maintaining long-term clients. • Under my leadership, the client retention rate increased to 99%• Manage and oversee the team responsible for Safety Act compliance under DHS (Department of Homeland Security).• A proven ability to lead diverse team members and stakeholders on multiple projects to achieve and exceed goals in operational efficiencies, expense management, revenue generation, event creation, and operational strategies• Applied business skills such as budgeting, strategic planning, and staffing resulting in hundreds of successful diverse events from concerts, conventions, trade shows, sporting events, and special events.• Created both short- and long-term business plans and strategies to enable future growth and development of Allied Universal Event Services. Accomplishments: • Staffing and managing events for NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, Nascar, UFC, WWE, NCAA, Award Shows, Coachella & Stagecoach music festivals, and of concerts and conventions. • Successfully integrated acquired event staffing & event management firms into Allied Universal Event Services. • Turned around struggling branches and divisions within Allied Universal Event Services.

Education

• California State University-Long Beach - College of Business

  Bachelor of Science, Business Administration & Marketing

  1995 — 1999