Will Curran, 35, is a strategic advisor for Bizzabo. He's based in Glendale, Ariz. A quote from his nomination: "Will has consistently pushed boundaries by embracing new technologies and adapting to changing industry landscapes. During the pandemic, he championed virtual and hybrid event solutions while emphasizing the importance of community-building through events."
My day-to-day: "I previously worked at Bizzabo as the head of Klik, where I helped educate customers on how wearables can increase networking, increase sponsorship revenue, and give detailed data they never had access to for their in-person events. Most of my days were spent speaking to customers who produce the largest events around the world and helping them make their events better."
My career journey: "I started building websites in high school, then started an EDM internet radio station when I was a freshman in high school. I became a DJ and created a DJ company when I was 17. I grew that DJ company into a production company my freshman year of high school where we started doing AV and technical production for large corporate events across the country. From there, we started creating content, blogs, podcasts, video content, and that made us very influential in the event technology space.
A few years later, we transitioned to becoming a full-fledged event management company that produces multimillion-dollar events for the largest corporations across the world. This company is known as Endless Events. In 2022, I hired a CEO to replace me at Endless Events and entered early retirement at age 32.
Curran helped Bizzabo grow Klik by 320% in revenue and 200% in pipeline and solidified the wearables category in the industry.Photo: Courtesy of Will Curran
A few months in, I got bored so I decided to announce I was looking for my next adventure. Bizzabo recruited me to come run the wearables portion of their business and help them grow that product category in the industry. After a year and a half, I helped Bizzabo grow Klik by 320% in revenue and 200% in pipeline and solidified the wearables category in the industry. Now, I’m looking for my next big adventure. Stay tuned!"
My greatest career accomplishment: "Honestly, being able to enter the industry while I was barely 13. I feel I have years of experience but the energy to make an active change, and I still have so many ideas left to implement, and I'm excited to see where events go into the future."
The advice I would give my younger self: "You might be an entrepreneur now, but don’t be afraid [to] exit that chapter in your life and have real impact within an organization. Some folks need to remain entrepreneurs, but some can transition from entrepreneurship and have great impact within an organization as an 'intrapreneur.'"
My most memorable event: "When I DJed and headlined for 100,000 fans on New Year's. That memory is seared into my brain. That also is what pushed me from thinking small about events and [to] start thinking about how I could create amazing experiences for larger and larger events."
"I still have so many ideas left to implement, and I'm excited to see where events go into the future," Curran says.Photo: Courtesy of Will Curran
My leadership style: "I love creating systems, processes, and ideas and hiring talented people and giving them the autonomy to do great work. I love my people and love getting to see them do great things."
My ideal day OOO: "Just getting lost in a project that forces me to use my knowledge and skills. For example, recently, I spent a weekend day improving the production of my Twitch streams and getting lost in research of software, hardware, and design to make my latest studio setup."
What's next: "I am looking to help grow another company via events and utilize my expertise and trendsetting nature. Stay tuned. In the meantime, as a fun side passion project, I’m relaunching my DJ career and regularly playing shows across the country, and livestreaming on Twitch."
