In this latest Next Gen Edit, Georgia Wootton, account director at Strata and member of the micebook Shadow Board, looks back at her career to date and explains why more young people should consider entering the industry.
It’s a question I get asked a fair amount at dinner parties, when I tell people I work in events. Oh, so you’re like a party planner? And while I don’t mind the comparison at all, I think it speaks to a wider misunderstanding of the entire events industry.
Unlike a lot of my peers, I studied events management at university, and even I wasn’t aware until I started working in the sector how wildly diverse it can be. I started out in venue management, moved to publishing, and now I work at Strata, an events and experience agency. That journey has given me countless opportunities to observe, gain experience and shape my career around what I discovered I loved. With so much in the news about it being brutally hard for new graduates to find work, I wonder if we’re doing enough to promote events as a career path?
There’s no doubt in my mind that live events are having their moment. In an incredibly noisy landscape, experiences can cut through and make a memorable impact. What this also means is that we’re hiring, when a lot of sectors are having to hard-pivot or reassess their whole business model – whether that’s due to international politics, the rise of AI or any one of a hundred other reasons for change.
The events industry is often perceived from the outside as either glamorous and champagne-soaked or high-vis jackets in a field, when the reality is that it can be incredibly diverse and interesting. As an account director at Strata, I get the opportunity to build relationships, plan out complex and rewarding projects and travel. It’s creative, challenging, and every day is totally different.
The events that I help create are experiential; way beyond “just a party”, I get to work alongside the client to translate their goals into designs that take audiences on a journey. It’s incredibly rewarding to see a vision built out with the help of tech, production and design into something three-dimensional and multi-sensory. A lot of the roles that are essential to creating successful events aren’t advertised widely or fully explained.
Industry exposure is limited for most people, but I find that once people enter the sector and start building experience, they quickly find their niche. It’s also very much an industry where you can prove yourself; I’ve never found age to be a barrier to ambition in events, and I’ve been fortunate to have a lot of amazing role models encouraging me to advance.
In recent years, I’ve taken on managerial responsibilities, and I’ve found it particularly inspiring to watch a colleague discover work that they love. It’s something I was privileged to experience myself, and now I love helping others discover what excites and motivates them in their careers. I find that once people find their passion it’s a sector that quickly rewards dedication.
My ability to push through, problem solve and drive powerful relationships is something I’m proud of, and this career has been a rewarding home for those skills. My advice to anyone starting out? Take every opportunity with both hands. You never know where it might lead.