SPecial Guest

Dave Lutz
Managing Director, Velvet Chainsaw Consulting

In 2006, Dave founded Velvet Chainsaw Consulting, an industry-leading business improvement consulting firm that helps conference & tradeshow organizers grow or transform their major face-to-face events. Prior to going down the consulting road, Dave was with Experient for 22 years where he served as President of the Meeting Planning and Registration divisions. He has also served on the Board of Directors of two leading event technology companies – Passkey and eventcore. 

Dave is a frequent industry speaker and pens thought-provoking articles to help meeting owners and professionals’ progress. For over a decade, he has authored a monthly column in PCMA’s Convene magazine on performance improvement for annual conferences and trade shows.

Phil Rappoport
Virlybird

Phil founded Virlybird to support meeting planners in their quest to deliver quality virtual/digital meeting experiences. Prior to Virlybird, he served as VP and General Manager of the AgendaPop mobile event app, which has been trusted by planners around the world. Phil is the VP, Communications for the MPI Potomac Chapter, and is a member of PCMA, ASAE, SGMP, AMPs, and CSAE. He has served as the programming lead for the Reston Herndon Meeting Planners for several years and conceived the popular Summer Camp event. His career has spanned the Internet and broadcasting, holding management positions at AOL, Surefire Local, Sony Corporation, Fox Television New York, and radio stations in Chicago, Cincinnati, and New York. He also produced a weekly late-night program for the ABC Television Network featuring the top rock and roll artists.

Technical Producer

VINNU DESHETTY
General Manager

EVAreg.com

Raised as a coal miner’s daughter in western Kentucky, Vinnu stays true to her southern roots by valuing community in both her personal and professional lives. She obtained a Bachelors of Science from Vanderbilt University and a Masters of Public Administration.