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With the current personnel shortage in the exhibition business , the next panel provided a solution to the problem : gig workers – or as we prefer to call it , the business of consultancy . Moderated by Courtney Harold , Tied Together Marketing ; Nora Ellingwood , Nora Ellingwood Consulting and Stephanie Selesnick , president , International Trade Information , Inc . ( yours truly ), our session gave advice on hiring and using consultants to supplement teams and increase knowledge by using experts for specific projects instead of hiring a full-time person .
“ For example ,” Ellingwood said , “ hiring a consultant makes sense when your organisation needs to fill a hole or void , has a lack of internal expertise , or wants to
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Above : Michelle Metter Top , inset : Mary Larkin , left , Being Heard at the Table at WLF
“ A contractor
provides a
pair of hands .
A consultant
provides a
brain ...”
launch a new event or programme . We come in with our experience and help your organisation and teams be successful .”
I quoted author Alan Weiss : “ A contractor provides a pair of hands . A consultant provides a brain .” Other benefits of hiring a consultant include a limited time commitment , no added benefits / salary , and expertise – we go to a lot of shows and therefore see a lot of new ideas on exhibit floors . We have fresh eyes and objectivity . Plus , we don ’ t want your jobs !
Harold added : “ Don ’ t view consultants as solely an expense , but instead as a revenue generator . I have developed and launched recurring , scalable , and profitable events and activations for customers ; digitally and faceto-face
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, from ideation to execution .”
Wimberly said : “ The day ended with an important panel called Being Heard at the Table led by Mary Larkin from Diversified , along with Janice Rogers , also from Diversified , Hervé Sedky from Emerald and Fernando Fischer from RX Americas . Now that women are at the business table , how can male leaders help them be better heard ? The conversation was honest , very raw , and impactful .”
When queried , 100 % of the audience raised their hands in affirmation : “ Have you ever been at a meeting where you proposed an idea , it was ignored and five minutes later a man in the meeting said the same thing – and everyone thought he had originated the idea , even though you had ?”
How to solve the problem ? Larkin said training , coaching and awareness is needed for both sexes . Both Sedky and Fischer said being more aware of the bias has helped them become better leaders . Rogers said it ’ s still up to women to present themselves more strongly and confidently – and to use strong language just as their male counterparts do .
Clearly there ’ s more work and discussions to be had to resolve this issue .
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