Three Bray Leino Events ‘Rising Stars’ Nominated
The Conference News Awards has unveiled their finalists and Bray Leino Events earned a spot in the Employer of the Year category.
Over the last couple of years, in the most brutally competitive recruitment environment any of us can remember, we’ve grown our headcount by more than half.
Three of these recent arrivals also appear in the CN Awards finalists list. The Rising Star category, which recognises new talent flourishing in the industry and features three Bray Leino Events newbies.
Gabrielle Clarke: Gabby takes everything in her stride, always with a smile on her face. Words colleagues use to describe Gabby are, “wonderful”, “delightful”, “infectiously happy”. She doesn’t shy away from difficult conversations with suppliers, and somehow invariably manages to turn any sticky situation into a positive outcome.
Andy Lucas: Andy joined us as an intern in May 2022 and we saw immediate flashes of the aptitude and positivity that would quickly become his hallmark. Very soon he was trusted to handle key project elements on his own. Colleagues say his enthusiasm and positivity is infectious. “Confident”, “calm”, and “professional” are all words they use to describe him.
Katie Young: Katie’s flourished in this environment. Here’s a great example: In Amsterdam for Sibos, one of our clients made a last-minute request for more floral displays, which our local supplier was unable to provide. Katie set forth into the city, located and sourced the correct plants, the correct containers, then was still busy creating floral displays (which the client loved) on the stand at 8am. Katie is all about a can-do attitude. She approaches everything with a calm positivity and concludes in brilliant results.
We attract excellent people - who tend to stay for longer than the industry average. But why?
Well, there’s flexibility – many of us are on flexible contracts, and many of these are parents with young children. Having kids doesn’t jeopardise career progress at Bray Leino Events, which is why there are so many mothers killing it here.
There’s transparency. Financials, business development, wins, losses, comings, goings, team moves and news, it’s all out in the open. Senior leaders host monthly ‘Ask Me Anything’ sessions where people can literally, in confidence, ask anything.
People build careers here - there are individualised development pathways with bespoke training. A health cash plan covers certain healthcare costs and provides 24/7 private GP access. And employee-led teams keep the business on point on all the important stuff like wellbeing, social good, sustainability, and social events.
The social events are, as you’d expect, killer! And together, these elements form the bedrock for a culture that’s high achieving but prioritises support, inclusivity, and friendship.
Last year we canvassed our people for their ideas on what it’s like working here. Among the anecdotes of adventure and hilarity (a giant scale model rectum lost in an airport, never recovered), one theme kept cropping up. “I work with some of my best friends.” - “I’ve made friends for life.” - “I travel around the world, visit amazing places, and I do it with my best friends.”
Congratulations to our three rising stars. The Conference News Awards results will be announced on 3 March.