What strategies can help women achieve a more prominent role in our industry?
No. 1: Be more confident in your craft. No. 2: Never stop learning. No. 3: Be able to explain your WORTH in dollars. No. 4: Clearly communicate your accomplishments. This strategy is a game changer. Unfortunately, women view sharing professional accomplishments as bragging. You’ll find men easily work their achievements into a dialogue, enabling the “expert” perception.

Describe a game-changing idea that you have implemented.
Augmented realty (AR) originated in the B2C space; I added AR to our marketing strategy by using the Zappar app. This app allows our print ads and promotional branding to come alive, showcasing time-lapses, galleries and more. As a quasi-nerd, the data collected serves our convention center well, as we target Boomers, Gen-Xers and Millennials.

Describe a strategy that shifted your company culture.
First, developing leaders and not managers became a priority; after all, “You manage projects and lead people.” The second culture shift was developing trust. Lastly, functioning as an effective team, which involved breaking up workplace silos. By involving all hands that touch a project, we quickly learned the effectiveness of teamwork.

What’s the best advice someone gave you?
My grandfather, Paul Foster, reminded me that, “It’s not who you know, but who knows you! We all know the president, but he doesn’t know us.” From his advice, I strive to make mutually beneficial quality connections. What’s the benefit? When I call, my number is recognized and greeted with, “Hi Tiffany, what’s going on?”

What role does social media play at work?
Facebook keeps fans informed about public shows. Twitter promotes current conventions and relevant facility content. Instagram captures trade show moments. YouTube houses our time-lapse videos. Pinterest, our newest addition, displays fun facts, facility upgrades, concessions, a board for meeting planners and more.

BIO
Employed by MBCC for 15+ years, Tiffany Mage Andrews prides herself on being a tourism-hospitality professional, marketer and measurable achiever.