VMA announces 2019 Venue Industry Awards finalists

The Venue Management Association (VMA) has announced the Finalists in its 2019 Venue Industry Awards – to be presented at the upcoming Venue Industry Congress in Melbourne.

The VMA’s Awards are the premier Awards program in our the venue industry for the Asia Pacific region. Since 2010 the Awards have been showcasing the best of the venue industry’s talent across the following categories: Venue Professional of the Year, Allied Professional of the Year, and Young Achiever of the Year for professionals under the age of 30.

A statement from the VMA advised “our industry is unique and draws to it some incredible individuals who are passionate about what they do.

“From memorable moments for their patrons to iconic events that form part of our nation’s culture and history, these are a rare breed and we love to celebrate them.”

The Venue Industry Awards have a rich history of recognising leaders, game changers and innovators in our business and are awarded based on the achievements of the nominees over the last 12 months only - the 2018 calendar year.

The Finalists for 2019 are:

Venue Professional of the Year Award
• Neil Mather - Senior Manager, Food and Beverage, Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC)
• Gary Mears CVE - General Manager, The Events Centre – Caloundra
• Meagan Walker - General Manager - Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne and Olympic Parks

Allied Professional of the Year Award
• Eddie Idik AVM – Director, Vital Risk Services Group
• Steve Mackenzie – President, Event Booking
• Paul McCarthy – Director, PBM Safety

Young Achiever of the Year Award
• Eliza McGrath - Sales Executive, MCEC
• Eray Saban - Stadium Event Manager, Marvel Stadium
• Joanna Tai - Corporate Catering Coordinator, AEG Ogden - Qudos Bank Arena

VMA President Steve Harper CVE noted “the VMA loves to recognise and acknowledge the unsung heroes of our industry and this year is no exception.

“The very high calibre of nominees, and their significant achievements helped create one of the strongest pool of candidates we have experienced. We look forward to announcing the winners at our annual Venue Industry Awards Gala Dinner in addition to bestowing our second Lifetime Achievement Award on another industry legend.”

The 2019 Venue Industry Awards are supported by industry leading organisations including AEG Odgen (Venue Professional of the Year), NCR (Allied Professional of the Year) and Ungerboeck (Young Achiever of the Year).

The Venue Industry Award winners will be announced at the 2019 VMA Gala Dinner held on 28th May 2019 at the MCEC in Melbourne. The Gala Dinner is a key social event on the 2019 Asia Pacific Venue Industry Congress program.

For a full list of past winners visit www.vma.org.au/awards