Updated Friday, Dec. 6, 2:50pm ET with statement from Derek Sharp.
CWT Meetings & Events has restructured its management team, which follows the departure of former global head Cindy Fisher, according to the company. BTN has learned that Tony Wagner, who has been with the company since 2007, will continue through year-end in his current role as VP for the Americas and South Pacific and serve as an advisor to the new M&E team. The company confirmed he will "continue at CWT into the new year," but at press time would not provide further detail.
SVP and managing director of CWT M&E Derek Sharp will continue to oversee the group, which now comprises six divisions. One is led by new hire Cristina Scott, VP of global operations, who started in September. Stuart Whatley, head of product and technology strategy, transitioned from CWT's product technology team in June. Kari Wendel, VP of strategic customers, will manage M&E's top accounts, including many strategic meetings management accounts. Ian Cummings, VP of commercial, will head up local, multinational and regional customers. Saskia Gentil, VP of global sales and marketing, will add to her current portfolio. Nathan Brooks, global lead of supplier management, will continue to manage M&E's global supplier strategy.
"We are doing business with more and more global companies who want to add new services and scale services into new countries or markets," Sharp said in a statement. "Our goal is to strengthen our global capabilities in SMM, while building out a truly global operating model for the sales and delivery of all our other M&E services. What this means is building scalable and consistent services across our entire business because that's what customers are demanding. This new organizational structure helps us do that more effectively."
CWT M&E needed to break down the regional or country silos and make sure that "best practice, technology and information are flowing more seamlessly across our enterprise," Sharp said, noting the new structure will make that easier while not changing the way clients interact with the company. "We want them to engage with us the same way they have in the past, but I believe the quality and consistency of what we deliver to clients going forward is going to be much better."
Fisher in October joined GoldSpring Consulting as SVP of strategic business development.