Sara Beth Raab is the 39-year-old global events manager-contract for St. Jude Global, a network of programs and facilities dedicated to treating childhood diseases. She’s based in Memphis, Tenn.
My career journey:
I started in the events industry at the young age of 16—in photography! My parents owned a photography company, and I got the event-loving bug at the very first wedding I photographed. I was obsessed and studied everything about weddings with the hunger only a 16-year-old can have!
Fast forward a few years, after working for a few photographers (and managing their operations because they didn’t realize I was so young!), I opened my own company at 21 and ran that for seven years until I decided I wanted to shift into event management full time.
I retired my camera but kept my creative hat on and shifted into corporate communication with a focus on event management and, of course, I continued working with photo and video but as a director. This role at EdR (now Greystar) expanded my resume to include both internal awards for event management excellence and a Telly Award for video production directing. I then shifted my event management skills to a high volume (up to 100 bookings a month), high-touch, elegant, historic country club in Memphis, Tenn. I had a short pre-pandemic role in communications and development for a nonprofit before I landed at the American Contract Bridge League where I managed three bridge tournaments a year—like the card game—that lasted 11 days, gathered 3,000-5,000 people, used 10,000-plus room nights, and contracted about 130,000 square feet of event space that hosted about 45-50 events and meetings during those 11 days of bridge play.
Just a few months ago, I was recruited by St. Jude Global for a contract position to lead its global event management initiatives supporting the mission to improve the survival rates of children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases worldwide through the sharing of knowledge, technology, and organizational skills.
My greatest career accomplishment:
When I took the wheel at American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) as the director of national events. The department was scrambling to operate due to little to no written documentation of how things worked—and the team was in the middle of a pandemic, needing guidance on how to negotiate out of multimillion-dollar city-wide contracts in multiple cities. Together, with a very talented executive team and our housing partner Conference Direct, I successfully negotiated out of these contracts, saving the organization $5.4 million in financial damages.
Concurrently, I renegotiated standing contracts (booked up to six years in advance), saving a potential attrition risk of 1.7 million by using historical data and booking room blocks more suited to data.
Further, one of my proudest moments was when one of the second-shift event coordinators came on-site at a tournament and announced, “I don’t know what to do because everything is so organized.” This was when I knew the policies and procedures I—with my amazing team—put into place have allowed us to appear like swans—cool, calm, and collected while paddling like hell below water! This is especially a telling comment when the team is managing an event for 3,000 people in the middle of a pandemic!
Raab cited taking the wheel at American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) as the director of national events as her greatest career accomplishment. She recalled managing three tournaments per year during her time at ACBL, including an 11-day event (pictured) that gathered as many as 5,000 people for 50 events.Photo: Courtesy of Sara Beth Raab
What inspires me:
Esthetically, I’m wildly inspired by nature. I know it’s so cliché, but right now, outside my window in the woods, there was recently an ice storm. The look and feel of an ice storm makes you feel a certain kind of way. I’ll pack this memory and these details away and recall it for a gathering that requires its guests to feel “a certain kind of way,” like in the stillness of an ice storm.
Further, I firmly believe in surrounding myself with brilliant people. I am constantly inspired by folks that are so good at what they do and the subject that they know that they make the very complicated look beautiful. I’m always trying to figure out how I can set brilliant people up for success, whether it's through gatherings, moments on stage, or time in front of a camera. I can connect the logistical dots, but give me the brilliant minds to showcase!
A time I averted a complete event disaster:
So here's the deal: What happens at events stays with those events. I would never call a team out publicly for a mistake. Mistakes and last-minute issues happen—this is why we do our best to plan early, be early, and respond to issues early.
When an issue happens, yell “pivot,” laugh at the loony that is our job, and go into fix-it mode. The absolute worst thing you can do is lose your cool and continue gossiping for years about some "issue" at an event. Yelling, pitching a fit, or otherwise coming apart does not fix a problem but can cause many more. After the event, solve the process that allowed for the problem and just simply move on.
What’s next for me:
My new role at St. Jude is a delightful challenge.
The mission of St. Jude Global is to improve the survival rates of children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases worldwide through the sharing of knowledge, technology, and organizational skills. To do so, we have to gather brilliant minds from all corners of the world—in all corners of the world—to solve complex issues.
How can I develop an events and travel team that can both handle the volume to support the 30-plus different regions and transversal programs initiatives, globally, as well as set the stage for each gathering of brilliant minds to think “outside the box” to find solutions? How do we cope with the various cultural, religious, and individual needs so elegantly that they feel supported and comfortable enough to think the deepest thoughts possible, even when they have traveled some 30-plus hours to be with us? These are all questions I muddle through daily with the reminder that “no child should die in the dawn of life” as Danny Thomas, our founder, said. It's a delightful challenge and one I'm thrilled to be chosen to work on and help the team work through.
My ideal day OOO:
You know, I travel so much for work that I really love spending an easy day on my farm. I have goats, chickens, and horses; honestly, there is nothing I would rather do than clean stalls and scrub water buckets with no timeline of when it all needs to be done. Add in some time with the loves of my life and I am a happy camper!
The advice I would give my younger self:
Be early, prepared, and well dressed for every meeting, always.
Pace yourself, it is not a race.
Create balance and find peace.
You are only as good as your boss and the people that work for you; choose both carefully.
When an opportunity has begun to run its course, go ahead and look for your next. Delaying only delays your next advancement.
Networking is one of the most important things you can do with your time.
BizBash's 2023 40 Under 40 list is sponsored by VDA, a Massachusetts-based experiential marketing and event design agency that specializes in custom live, hybrid, and virtual experiences designed to drive business growth through client collaboration and creative thinking.
