The Tea - Kristen Trevisan

Meet new MPI Ottawa Chapter member Kristen Trevisan!

The Intro: Kristen Trevisan is the Lead, Convening and External Events for Canada's Drug Agency (CDA-AMC). Trevisan juggles multiple duties; the primary one being the planning and management of their national hybrid symposium. The symposium hosts around 750 in-person and 300 virtual attendees and is starting to rotate to different cities again after the pandemic. Trevisan is proud to work for the CDA-AMC where she sees firsthand how, despite the real challenges patients face waiting for care, “it's all a system trying to work together as best as possible to deliver faster, more affordable care for Canadians,” in addition to efforts to make health care information “more approachable for the average Canadian.”

An experienced planner for many years, Trevisan was intrigued to join the MPI Ottawa Chapter to “lean into the community” and to connect with other planners and suppliers. An introvert at heart, she appreciates how welcoming MPI has been so far (especially since her first event was on a 4-hour boat cruise, with no escape)!

Early aspirations: Eight-year-old Kristen was planning on being a world-renowned horseback rider before eventually finding her way into events instead. (No horsing around!)

Entry into events: Trevisan acquired her diploma in hotel management and launched her career in Ottawa at the Delta Hotels Ottawa City Centre as an Event Manager. A naturally curious person, Trevisan loved meeting people and more specifically, “people at so many different moments in their lives - celebrations, hardships, everything in between. There was always a story behind why they were travelling, and I found that endlessly interesting.”

Outside of work: Trevisan describes herself as a “hobby-enthusiast” and likes taking on different craft projects. In particular, Trevisan is passionate about puzzles and belongs to a puzzle club (“club” = puzzles + beverages in a pub)! Like events, they require attention to detail and putting all of the pieces together to make a bigger picture. Staying active is also high on Trevisan’s hobby list, she can be found out bird watching on a hike or volunteering at the yoga studio for free classes.

Fun Fact: Kristen and her husband are really into the Oscars. It is a serious pastime! They watch all of the movies nominated in all the major categories to be prepared for Oscar night!

Killer keynote? With money as no object in this scenario, Trevisan would choose Oprah: “She's fantastic, so much fun. I just think she would be a wealth of knowledge!”

Top tips: Trevisan’s annual symposium has remained hybrid. Her advice to other planners is to consider whether online attendees can truly engage and benefit from the symposium and to also consider the costs and logistics of offering hybrid too. Human connection needs to be the central to planning your events.

For events in general, Trevisan shared that planners need to keep top of mind, respect for the time and money invested by attendees: “reminding ourselves that attendees are taking time and energy out of their busy schedule to join our events. I want to make sure that they know that their time and energy is valued while they are with us.”

Three words: when asked, what words describe you - Trevisan’s answer was: “curiosity, authenticity, and acceptance. I love being able to just accept people as they are and welcome them into the space.”

Speaking about curiosity, if you are curious learn more, be sure to say “hi” to new member Kristen at a future MPI event!

 Article edited by: Darlene Kelly-Stewart, Stonehouse Sales & Marketing Services