It's a Jungle...Hybrid World Out There!

Paul Zickert, Vice President of Partnerships, Cadmium. Over the past 22 years Paul has been involved with technology and sales within the healthcare, trade show and corporate events industries. Paul previously worked at CVS Health, CDW, Flexera and GES. Recently at GES he led the global team for product and pre-sales for client facing technology. Paul has spoken at events such as Dreamforce (Salesforce.com annual event), CAEM, IAEE, CEMA and more. For 2022 he was selected to be on the IAEE Tech Committee. Paul loves technology, the data that tells a story and the overall success technology brings in helping people reinvision their roles and the efficiency gains technology can bring.

Arjun Chakravarti is Managing Partner of COGKNITION, a Chicago-based strategy and analytics firm. A thought leader in experiential design analytics, Arjun serves as a member of the CEIR Research Council as well as a founding member of RSDE Global, the industry standard in data reporting for digital events. He was previously Senior Vice President of Analytics at GES and Managing Director of Level 100 Innovation. Prior to his industry career Arjun was an award-winning business school academic, having published in leading academic journals and serving as a founding faculty member for graduate and executive programs in analytics, design, and management. He received his Ph.D. and MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Derek oversees INSPIRE’s Show and Event Services Sales Division, client acquisition and management, and industry strategy. Over the past 26 years Derek has held various technical, managerial and sales positions including the account management for 70 trade association, corporate and government clientele. Derek recently completed his third term on the Meeting Professionals International Potomac Chapter Board of Directors. In this capacity he was charged with overseeing the chapter’s signature Annual Conference & Expo and served in a Director of Meetings capacity, providing him continual and unique insight into the event planning needs and challenges that the INSPIRE customers face on a day to day basis.

I have worked in the non-profit marketing field for over five years now and love how it's forever evolving! I search for alternative ways to capture trends, culture, consumer behaviors, and design into compelling content experiences. I have had the opportunity to work in marketing for various fields (firefighting, neuroscience, Veterans health) and am excited to bring my knowledge and ideas to Cadmium! I hold a Dual Masters of Global Innovation Management from Aix-Marseille Graduate School of Management and North Carolina State University. I was born in Mississauga, Ontario but grew up in Greenville, North Carolina, most of my life. I enjoy adventures of all kinds, including food, and have traveled, worked, and lived through parts of Europe and Asia. I also have two Maine Coons I adopted during COVID - please feel free to share your animal photos with me!