Award Winning Event Strategist Driving Growth and Transformation For YOU | Plug-and-Play Project Manager | Technology Enthusiast | Always Curious

Shaping the Future of International Meetings | Collaborative Growth | Event Transformation

Curiosity - Innovation - Storytelling

As the Regional Director for North America at ICCA, I am passionate about driving growth and fostering collaboration within the global meetings and events industry. ICCA has stood at the forefront of shaping the future of international association meetings since 1963, and I'm honoured to be part of a team that champions innovation, sustainability, and advocacy on a global scale.

Over the years, I've had the privilege of strategizing, planning, and executing transformative events—from intimate gatherings to international conferences. My career has been built on an unwavering commitment to innovation, creative problem-solving, and a collaborative approach to ensure that every event exceeds expectations. Along the way, I've been fortunate to be recognized with honours such as "Planner of the Year" by Smart Meetings and a spot on the "40 Under 40" by Connect x BizBash.

But more than accolades, it's the connections I've built and the stories we've shaped together that truly inspire me. It was the Guinness World Record attempt to host the largest online event gathering, GMID Goes Virtual, in 2020, which connects almost all the industry associations across the globe. It was #EventprofsBreakShit that I co-founded in 2021, seeking an honest, authentic, but joyful way to explore event technology. 

These are the real rewards of our work, and they underscore the power of collaboration in our industry.

At ICCA, we're not just organizing meetings—we're creating spaces where ideas flourish, communities grow, and the future of our industry is redefined. I'd love to connect if you're interested in exploring how we can collaborate, build meaningful partnerships, or simply share ideas. Let's work together to amplify the value of international meetings and create sustainable, innovative solutions for the future.

Are you ready to shape the future of international association meetings? Let's connect and make an impact together.

Shawn (Yih-Hsiang) Cheng

Online News Association

Events and Membership Manager

National Business Officers Association (NBOA)

Developed and led process for speaker and faculty management related to all NBOA professional
development programs.
Created and managed timelines and deliverables for all professional development programs, webinars, and online program offerings.
Conducted and analyzed post-event evaluation surveys to assess the efficacy of professional
development programs, knowledge management, and continuously improving the quality of the future
events, including managing the feedback loop with presenters and other NBOA staff to ensure
attendee feedback was understood and acted upon.
Worked within the association database to maintain all historical records related to events
including participation registrations, budgetary information, program details, speakers and
presenters, including the ability to run queries and produce reports.
Responsible for ensuring that professional development programs maintain CE eligibility as
prescribed by NASBA, SHRM, and HRCI guidelines.
 Collaborated with marketing staff to ensure the development of effective marketing strategies
and the timely production of all marketing materials.
 Coordinated with Director, Corporate Relations to ensure that all sponsor obligations related to
NBOA professional development programs were met and delivered.
Served as Tier 2 point of contact to ensure the program's email inbox and phone calls.
Managed the technical delivery of the NBOA webinar program by providing speaker training
sessions, as well as moderating the live sessions.
 Managed logistics of an external partnership to ensure a seamless flow of information and attendee experience in online courses; managed agreements with external faculty of online courses.
Provided support to the Chief Learning Officer and the Senior Director, Programs and Events.

Manager, Professional Development Programs and Events

As the Executive Assistant and Coordinator, Programs was responsible for providing the first response to NBOA member and customer inquiries, assisted with program registrations, and developed and executed
strategies to manage the support needs of NBOA’s varied programs, which include live meetings,
webinars and online courses. In addition,  supported the functions of the Executive Office and
provided key administrative support to the President and CEO, as well as general support for day-to-day
administration of the NBOA national office and other major association functions.

Executive Assistant and Programs Coordinator 

Johns Hopkins University School of Education

Managed the overall financial administration of the Development and Marketing and Communications team; including budget planning and expense management, resource allocation, budget reconciliation, expense processing (including vendor, honoraria, and other payments), and financial reporting.
Provided calendar coordination, scheduling, and travel for two Associate Deans.
Assisted two Associate Deans in the creation of agendas and meeting information.
Created and managed task files and follow up daily on activities and projects, staying informed regarding all ongoing projects for the two Associate Deans. 
Handled Contribution Processing Application (CPA) Input and Allocate Funds in ALADIN/RM/Link/ Gifts/ Pledges/Grants via CPA (Development and finance databases).
Handled John Hopkins University School of Education special projects and other duties as required.

Administrative Financial Coordinator

BioMed Central

Commissioned and recruited contacts in the Open Access field.
Content Management System (CMS) experience in managing a portfolio of journal homepages and content delivery.
Developed and maintained working relationships with Editors-in-Chief, society contacts, Editorial Board members and other stakeholders, as their point of contact for journal publications.
Assisted with generating leads and opportunities for potential journal acquisitions and recruitment through attendance at conferences, and liaising with Editors, society representatives and key opinion leaders.
Ensured Editorial Board members qualifications are representative of the aims and scope are internationally recognized and include emerging markets. 
Worked with internal and external Editors to ensure journals were recongized on soical media platforms i.e Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter.  
Kept Editorial Boards engaged and refreshed. 
Build relationships with key contacts within the fields the journals operate in.

Journal Development Editor- Oncology

Johns Hopkins University Press

Coordinated all logistics associated with JHUP Journals exhibits including scheduling, managing expenses, materials preparation and ordering, sponsorship coordination, booth set-up and installation; on-site sales/customer service, results reporting, and prospect follow-up.
Administered and streamlined the  internal and external mailing lists.
Coordinated journal abstracting and indexing processes.
Processed all advertising insertion orders and materials to ensure that advertisements are accurately published.
Provided advertising sales support to the Journals Production, PR, and Advertising team.

Exhibits and Advertising Coordinator

Giant Food

Interviewed, hired, trained, mentored, coached and evaluated the performance of hourly front end associates.
Responsible for accounting, bookkeeping, office operation, and accountability.
MOD (Manager on Duty shifts) three times a week for the entire store operation.
Assisted Store Manager with budgeting, payroll, and overall store operations.
Extensive experience and cross-training, including payroll, Rights of Merchandising (right item, place, price, time, quantity and condition), category studies, top 10's, seasonal transitions, endcaps & impulses, displays, productivity, sales plan & adjustments, customer service, production, P&L, shrink/hidden shrink, and inventory control.

Assistant Front End Manager

Dayplayerdish

Dayplayer Dish, is an Internet podcast show focusing on Soap Operas and Primetime television. It was founded in 2009 by  Lee Meyer  and myself  as a way for soap and television fans to connect with the talent and behind the scenes talent of some of their favorite soaps, web soaps and discuss the what goes on in the  entertainment industry. 

Duties include: Writing  blog entries, host weekly talk radio shows and communicate directly with PR and talent agencies to secure talent for our shows. I also manage the social networks for Dayplayerdish. Interacting and engaging with our fans on Facebook and Twitter.

Founder and Co-Host of Dayplayerdish-An Internet Radio Show

Informa

Provided support duties to Five Managing Editors, The Publisher, and assist the Marketing and Sales team as needed. Performed my assignments independently, with minimal supervision.  
Trained Editors, Authors, and  Editorial Assistants in ScholarOne's Manuscript Central website. 
Processed payments to editors.
Monitored group spends on editor payments and royalty payments.
Updated journal web pages as necessary.
Assisted in the coordination and planning of editorial board meetings.
Completed special research projects on behalf of Managing Editors including scanning journal content for reprint opportunities.

Editorial Assistant- Medicine Journals

Soap Opera Digest/Weekly

Assist editors with interview transcription, issue writing, archival, constructing newsletters, and organized website material on the official website with a web content management system for www.soapoperaweekly.com.

Editorial Intern

Finiti

Disbursed loan proceeds for transactions originated by the Smart Solution Network. 
Processed Title Searches and Property Reports pulled from the Abstractor Reports.
Handled all refund/check reissues. 
Periodically train new disbursement processor employees. 
Disbursed of loan proceeds according to the instructions of the Document Examiner.  
 Balanced the HUD 1 settlement statement and ensured that the escrow accounts were properly reconciled. 
 Generated billing invoices for title, appraisal, flood, and closing fees. Disburse an average of 500 mortgages per month. 
 Issued checks to retire the obligations of secured and unsecured creditors. 
 Created Senior Disbursement Processor Procedure Manual to use for training of new employees.  Prepared disbursement packages, averaging 3000 transactions per month, with error statistics at less than 1%. 
Met and exceeded projected sales goals on a daily basis.

Senior Disbursement Processor

As the Events and Membership Manager at the Online News Association (ONA), I have been planning, executing, and evaluating high-quality and innovative events and programs for the world's largest membership organization of digital journalists for over a year. I have also been managing and growing ONA's membership base, ensuring that our offerings and benefits are aligned with our mission and values of advancing digital journalism and fostering a more inclusive and informed society.

With over a decade of experience in the fields of publishing, education, and associations, I have developed a strong background and interest in the media and events industry. I have also obtained certifications in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and Project Management, and enhanced my skills in web content, social networking, and marketing communications. 

I am passionate about creating impactful and engaging events and programs that connect and empower people around the world.

taplio

The Battle

Shawn (Yih-Hsiang) Cheng

Lauren Anderson

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