Chardia Christophe-Garcia, 36, is the executive director of audience and community marketing at Forbes. She's based in Bronx, New York.
What I do:
I’ve been a marketing and events professional for over 13 years, working directly within the publishing and media space. I’m currently the executive director, audience and community marketing at Forbes focusing on event audience development, where I manage the strategy, marketing and delegate recruitment directly for over 30 ForbesLIVE events (virtual, in-person and hybrid) and oversee process and systems across 70-plus events yearly. Highlights include the Forbes Power Women's Summit, the Forbes Under 30 Summit, the Forbes Small Business Summit and many more.
Why I love my job:
The business of events is so multifaceted. One has the ability to craft experiences that people can remember for years to come. What I love about my role is it merges my passion for delivering amazing experiences with the journey that it takes for someone to commit to attend. Being a marketer for events, I’m able to really dive deep into people’s why and think strategically about the attendee voyage. From the promos, registration and marketing we deploy, to the on-site check-in process, I’m able to build a journey that ultimately leads to an incredible experience. Working at Forbes, I have the power of a strong brand that people respect behind me. This—partnered with my type-A personality, love of events and love of marketing—makes this role a perfect fit.
My career journey:
I started my career working as an EA to the CEO and CFO of a media company called NewBay Media (now part of Future Plc). I was able to grow so much there and take on roles way bigger than one would imagine. From there, I was recruited to join American Express Publishing, working originally in their consumer marketing division followed by a promotion that led to managing a collection of membership clubs for Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure and Departures. I stayed in a similar role at Time Inc. and then went back to NewBay to oversee their event marketing completely, including email, social, partnerships and more! When Forbes reached out for my next opportunity, it was truly a perfect fit and the natural next step to grow my career.
My greatest career accomplishment:
There have been many moments in my career that the young me looks back on and smiles, recognizing how far I’ve come. One that stands out in particular was being selected as one of 10 honorees for Event Marketer magazine's Experiential in Color Recognition Program. This initiative recognizes Black and brown leaders across the events/event marketing ecosystem who shape the events industry and create/build a pipeline and additional opportunities for people of color. To see my face in a magazine for the first time, not only for my work in events but also for DEI, was a big moment for sure.
How I helped my organization during COVID:
When COVID hit, the world was not only in the middle of a public health emergency but also in the thick of a civil rights crisis. As a Black woman working in the business of events, it was important for me to not only help my team come up with a virtual event solution but change the paradigm of how we hold ourselves accountable for ensuring a diverse audience across all our events.
As we entered this new normal, I established a process within the registration flow that allows us to collect data around race across the events we produce. As a result, my team now has benchmarks of where we are across each vertical and how far we need to go. We can now pivot in real time to ensure we are not only meeting our revenue goals but our DEI goals as an organization. Accountability is critical, and it’s driving initiatives like this forward that continue to help us thrive as a team.
The time I averted a complete event disaster:
In my first year working at Forbes, I was told only a few days prior that I’d be traveling to work on-site at our flagship event out of town. This event was a week prior to my wedding—so to say I was stressed is an understatement. To make matters worse, the on-site experience was one of the most challenging of my career! I was so used to planning meticulously to avoid situations like this and felt completely out of control. I remember walking in, not knowing what to do or how to proceed.
I took a breath and realized that in the business of events, crazy things happen and you need to, in real time, decide if you going to sink or swim. I was going to swim! I jumped in right away to help—thinking on my feet and coming up with solutions for things that weren’t even in my job description. So many learnings occurred on this trip, and as a result we got through the experience as a team. I also knew what needed to happen to build a better attendee experience moving forward—which continues to prove invaluable.
My most memorable event experience in the past year:
My return to in person proved to be a full-circle moment for me. Last year I had the opportunity to completely own the entire marketing strategy and on-site check-in process for the same event that only a few years prior had caused me to freeze in my tracks! From audience development, marketing strategy, social media campaigns, registration set-up and the on-site check-in experience, everything was seamless. I used to walk into this event feeling completely overwhelmed and unprepared. Last year, I felt so proud to walk in feeling confident, knowledgeable and ready to tackle anything that came my way! Best feeling for an event professional.
Best advice I’ve ever received:
One piece of advice I was told by someone I admire is, “Never forget you’re replaceable.” This may seem harsh, but what I like about it is it keeps me so hungry to be the best and never underestimate my seat at the table. There will always be another person out there trying to step in your role, so it’s important to stay relevant. Stay consistent. Stay reliable. Stay creative. It matters because you can be replaced.
Impressive stats I’m responsible for:
There have been a few big wins over the course of the last one to two years, but there are two that really stand out. My team and I were responsible for driving audience development for our 2020 Forbes Power Women’s Summit, which landed a record-breaking 20,000-plus registrants, the largest in Forbes event history. I am also super proud of the system I created and implemented (mentioned above) to track and record race across the registration process. As a result, we’ve seen 70% of our 2021 events exceed our internal BIPOC attendance goal—and our plan is to keep increasing that number and be a part of the solution!
What’s next?
The next big event coming up for me is the 2022 Forbes Under 30 Summit Africa! This amazing experience will bring together the world’s most elite multigenerational entrepreneurs and game-changers in one of the most beautiful countries, Botswana. I’ll be leading the marketing and audience recruitment for this event, and I’m so excited to see this one come to life!
What I do outside of work:
I currently sit on the board of directors for the New York Women in Communications as their VP of corporate partnerships/membership, and work as their executive director, audience development, for their annual Matrix Awards! For the past 50 years, this award celebration honors women in media who exemplify excellence, the courage to break boundaries and steadfast commitment to champion the next generation of trailblazers.
Outside of this, I love to travel and I’m a self-proclaimed foodie! Show me a rooftop, give me a cocktail and throw in a beach—that’s all it takes and I’ll be a very happy woman!
Dream vacation:
If money and time-off weren’t a factor, I’d love to visit Australia because I’ve heard such amazing things about their beaches. I tend to favor locations with warm weather—but Iceland is still on the list! I’ve heard amazing things.
Favorite icebreaker line:
Never underestimate the power of direct eye contact and a smile. More times than not, someone will smile back and leave an opening for me to say, “Hi, my name is Chardia. What’s yours?”
Connect with Christophe-Garcia on LinkedIn.
“Connect x BizBash 40 Under 40” is sponsored by VDA, an experiential marketing and event design agency based in Massachusetts that specializes in custom live, virtual and hybrid experiences.
