People to Meet

Senior vice president of brand marketing and digital, USA Network, New York
Claim to fame: Shapiro joined USA Network in 2001 and develops highly visible and somewhat unconventional public campaigns that are closely aligned with the brand’s “Characters Welcome” tagline. She has helped the network stand out—and top the cable ratings for more than five years—through efforts like the Characters Approved awards and last year’s upfront that used talent instead of executives to introduce programming.
Big innovation: As part of its ongoing initiative called the Character Project, USA partnered with directors Ridley and Tony Scott to commission eight shorts. Then, Shapiro and her team developed 18-seat screening venues inside old shipping containers. “The intimate way of watching the films created a dialogue that might never have happened if someone had seen it privately in their home or in a movie theater.”
Quick tip: “Never underestimate the power, the halo effect that the right partner can have on your brand—it’s priceless.”

Vice president of corporate events and community relations, AOL, New York
Launchpad: She may have dreamed of being a cheerleader for the Dallas Cowboys, but experience with a family wedding business and jobs as a nonprofit event manager and conference planner for a telecommunications company brought Gross into corporate events. With AOL for nearly nine years, the team-oriented planner and her crew of 10 oversee more than 200 events and promotions, including the digital company’s sponsorship of AdWeek.
Big innovation: Attending a session at the 2011 Meeting Professionals International’s World Education Congress proved to be a defining moment, after which Gross decided to commit to a corporate sustainability policy that would be used by vendors throughout the planning, execution, and breakdown of her events. “It’s not just calling your event sustainable, but actually digging in and taking the tactical steps in each area of your event planning to really make a difference.” This approach was first implemented in the October Huffington Post Game Changers party, where discarded electronic parts provided decor and were later recycled, and the items on the catering menu were sourced locally and leftovers composted.
Work philosophy: “Assemble the best team and execute, execute, execute. We only win as a team.”
Hidden talent: “Baton twirling or tying the perfect bow.”
On Twitter: @racheljgross

Vice president of global events, Discovery Communications, Silver Spring, Maryland
Launchpad: Kaplan got his start in sports operations before landing at Discovery Communications.
Claim to fame: He now oversees a team of nine people, executing public-facing promotions and B-to-B events for the entertainment company’s various brands. This includes annual fan fest CatchCon for the Discovery Channel’s Deadliest Catch show and Discovery's upfront presentations. For the royal wedding last year, his crew built a 1,000-person viewing party in Times Square that also included three weddings, a fashion show, and a concert. “We are entrusted to protect the brands in an experiential setting. I don’t take that responsibility lightly.”
Career highlight: “Bringing the premiere of Life to the the Getty Museum where the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra played live to the most amazing content you have ever seen. Then we took the show to Alice Tully Hall, with the New York Pops playing live.”
Major life goal: “To have someone explain the ‘work-life balance’ to me in terms I can understand and, more importantly, utilize.”

Executive director, Fashion for Paws, Washington, 31
Claim to fame: Launched by de Nicolas, Fashion for Paws is a fashion show and fund-raiser that benefits the Washington Humane Society. Its debut in 2007 raised $70,000; last year’s event raised $524,000, and the 2012 goal is $625,000. In total, the event has generated $1.5 million.
Big innovation: “The standard gala and methods of fund-raising are not necessarily the way to successfully raise funds and PR attention in the economic climate of today. Creating a unique fund-raiser—representative of the mission of the organization—that allows supporters a new way to donate and gives media a different story to tell is the brightest way to stand out and raise revenue yearly.”
Mentor: “[Documentary filmmaker and environmentalist] Philippe Cousteau, who fully embodies the notion of doing work to make a positive difference in the world. He has been a constant sounding board for me, giving concrete advice along the way.”
Up next: While continuing at Fashion for Paws full-time, de Nicolas will attend Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business to receive a master’s degree in leadership.
On Twitter: @TdeNicolas

Design director, 28; owner, 58; Sandi Hoffman Special Events, Washington
Launchpad: Producing grand galas and fund-raisers throughout the ’80s and ’90s, Hoffman made it official in 2006 and launched her eponymous company. She’s gone on to helm the past four Opera Balls and regularly produces some 60 annual events in Washington and beyond. After Wolman launched his own interior design firm at age 18 while still in college and worked on more than 60 residential and commercial jobs in South Florida, he joined his longtime friend and collaborator Hoffman at her firm in 2011.
Dynamic duo: “I’m a 28-year-old gay interior designer from Miami Beach. Sandi’s a middle-aged event legend in Washington,” Wolman says. “Together we produce events that are timeless and trained but break the mold and are unconventional.”
Style signature: “No matter how large the event, I prefer cozy configurations of space, with small seating nooks and even smaller dance floors,” Hoffman says. “This ensures there are no dead spots. A guest is always in the middle of the action, regardless of where they are in the room.”
Design philosophy: “After my designs were described as a mix between Dr. Seuss, Willy Wonka, and Alice in Wonderland, I realized my design philosophy is to dream big and design even bigger,” Wolman says. “Take the laser show at last year’s Opera Ball,” Hoffman says. “Most planners would have done pagodas and lanterns, but I wanted to focus on technology and to mirror how modern the [chancery of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China] was.”
Best place to get inspired: “Everywhere,” says Hoffman. “Once, while driving down Dixie Highway outside of Palm

C.E.O., Event Farm, Washington, 32
Launchpad: Costello co-founded event production firm Volta Live shortly after graduating from Georgetown University. In 2007, the company developed its own software to handle ticketing and guest registration for its events when it couldn’t find anything on the market to meet its needs. Gradually others started asking if they could borrow the software, so in January 2011 Costello launched Event Farm.
Career highlight: “Attracting the most amazing list of clients in our first 12 months and working with inspiring, creative event producers.” Clients include Facebook, Hermès, People magazine, and Bentley, for whom Event Farm designed an elegant registration page for a driving event in Pebble Beach, California.
Up next: “The new launch of our software platform will accommodate assigned seating to handle events being held in seated environments—charity dinners, award shows in theaters, music venues, etc.”
Work philosophy: “The best things come to the people that do. Persistence and enthusiasm can make anything happen.”
Hidden talent: International sailing.
Typical day: “Inspired, passionate chaos.”
On Twitter: @eventfarmhand

President, NKPR, Toronto and New York, 40
Launchpad: Ten years ago, Koifman started a PR company in her basement. Now, NKPR represents more than 30 national and international clients with offices in Toronto and New York.
Claim to fame: A master of social media and creating buzz, Koifman and her team execute events, pop-ups, and stunts for clients. She works 24/7 during the Toronto International Film Festival, managing PR for events like Artists for Peace and Justice fund-raisers and a Skyy Vodka aerial stunt.
Big innovation: “We were one of the first agencies to take an integrated, 360-degree approach to communications. It’s not only about the message but how we deliver it as well.”

Events director, Long View Gallery, Washington, 33
Launchpad: After working in galleries and events for six years in New York, Molak set her sights on Washington. Working with her business partner, curator Drew Porterfield, she oversaw the construction of Long View Gallery, which opened in 2009, and drew up a model for how the venue would host events. Today, the raw space—unusual in still-traditional Washington—hosts three to five events a week, including the “industrial farmhouse chic” wedding Molak planned for Porterfield.
Claim to fame: “Showing the D.C. arts scene that a gallery doesn’t just have to be a gallery.”
Big innovation: Molak created the simplified “party in a box,” which allows clients to pick a menu from seven caterers for an all-inclusive price that includes the gallery rental, food and beverage, staff, and equipment.

President and owner, Creative Edge Parties, New York, 49
Launchpad: Ruben started her catering company at 27, working out of a small New York apartment. She did everything herself, from cooking the food and driving the van to bartending, bussing tables, serving the meal, and packing up at the end of the night. More than 20 years later, Creative Edge is one of the city’s most respected caterers, trusted by organizations like Target, the Museum of Modern Art, and Bravo to dream up creative menus that Ruben describes as “clean and intelligent, not tortured or pretentious.”
Big innovation: Last year the company launched the Creative Edge Culinary Council, a global exchange program that brings guest chefs to cook in New York, while sending its own chefs to other cities to learn new techniques. “We believe innovation does not come from just one chef, but from a collaboration of ideas, skill, and inspiration.”
Career highlight: “Catering a 1,800-person lunch and then flipping the room in 90 minutes for a 2,300-person seated dinner.”
Up next: “Tablecloths are a thing of the past. Buffet tables are the backdrop to our food—we consider them an extension of our design. So it’s not just a matter of interesting vessels to present the food in, but what type of material or furniture you’re putting it on.”
On Twitter: @CarlaRuben

C.E.O., A Vista Events, Beltsville, Maryland, 46
Launchpad: “I used to design my own invitations for the fashion PR office I ran in London, and when I came to the U.S., a friend introduced me to a stack of people in the events industry and showed them my artwork portfolio.” Before long, Senatore was designing events, setting up her own business after eight years working at production company Hargrove in Maryland. Staffed with 12 employees, A Vista works on about 300 events a year.
Claim to fame: Last year, she produced the Trust for the National Mall’s benefit luncheon and its Ball on the Mall, events just two days apart and both located on the grounds of the historic park. Inspired by Japan and the Mall’s cherry blossom trees, the daytime event had a live tea ceremony, while the nighttime affair included white origami cranes and paper parasols suspended from the ceiling. Senatore is also known for the annual Oscar viewing party hosted by Starwood Hotels, for which she has created Best Picture-inspired environments and a fashion show.
Up next: “Launching the new revised company and a product coming out in spring.”

Co-founders and C.E.O.s, Civic Entertainment Group, New York
Claim to fame: Cohn and Ruderfer’s experiential marketing agency, which they established after launching New York City’s marketing and special events division under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, is behind some of the biggest publicity stunts and events for brands like CNN, Kiehl’s, and Southwest Airlines. In addition to projects like an education summit hosted by NBC News and a full-service restaurant and studio hub for CNN during South by Southwest and the 2008 Republican and Democratic National Conventions, Civic Entertainment Group is responsible for a number of HBO promotions. In 2010, that meant flying 250 Pacific War veterans to Washington to attend a wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II memorial as part of the premiere for The Pacific. In September, the company put a  Prohibition-era train back in service to herald the upcoming debut of Boardwalk Empire’s second season.
Big innovation: In looking to create strategic public-private collaborations, Cohn and Ruderfer have found that brands and civic entities can be surprisingly valuable partners. HBO and the U.S. Postal Service collaborated to promote letter-writing and the miniseries John Adams; the campaign allowed consumers to send free postcards and marked post-office receipts and cancellation stamps with the URL of a dedicated Web site.
Typical day: “Busy, busy, busy,” says Ruderfer.
Quick tip: “Be unusually resourceful and uncommonly tenacious,” says Cohn.