Aligning Events with Organizational Goals
Great events should do more than fill a calendar. They should support the bigger picture. This session will explore how events can be intentionally tied to tourism, economic development, placemaking, community engagement, fundraising and organizational priorities. Attendees will walk away with ideas for evaluating whether their events are truly serving their mission and how to better communicate that value to leadership, sponsors, partners and stakeholders.
Fail Forward: The Events That Finally Got It Right
Not every successful event started that way. This session will feature real stories from event professionals about events that struggled, shifted or completely missed the mark before eventually finding success. Speakers will share what went wrong, what had to change and what lessons other event planners can take with them. This session is designed to be honest, practical and encouraging for anyone who has ever had to rethink an event after things did not go as planned.
Lunch Session: The Guest Experience Blueprint – Sheriah Gibson, Posh Occasions By Sheriah
Wedding planners are experts at managing timelines, emotions, vendors, expectations and the tiny details guests may never notice, but definitely feel. In this 30-minute lunch session, attendees will hear how lessons from the wedding industry can translate to festivals, community events, conferences and destination experiences. From creating smoother arrivals to thinking through flow, signage, hospitality, vendor communication and memorable guest moments, this session will focus on simple ways event planners can make their events feel more intentional, organized and welcoming.
After the Final Whistle: Lessons Learned from the Summer of Soccer
The summer of soccer brought major energy, attention and opportunity to Metro Atlanta and surrounding communities. This session will explore how cities, destinations, hotels, venues and event organizers responded to that momentum. Did communities create watch parties or related programming? Did hotels see an impact? How did destinations try to drive visitors beyond downtown Atlanta? What worked, what missed the mark and what opportunities were left on the table?
Chamblee Tour
End the day with a chance to experience the City of Chamblee firsthand. This tour could highlight Downtown Chamblee, public spaces, redevelopment areas and unique community assets that show how the city is using events, placemaking and destination development to bring people into the area.
Sheriah Gibson – Owner, Posh Occasions By Sheriah
Sheriah is a two-time graduate in Hospitality Management from The University of Alabama. She began her career in the hospitality industry as a young business owner in college in conjunction with a corporate career in hotel sales and venue management. Her multidisciplinary background is the key to her creativity, production savvy, and innate flexibility. As time has passed, Sheriah’s skills have been utilized to encourage and inspire other business owners on a variety of topics. She truly understands the importance of everyone’s role and believes in community above all. Sheriah’s love for mentorship and education has evolved over the years to provide information for the future of the industry. Sheriah works as an instructor at The University of Alabama where her students and colleagues can count on her funny and candid yet inspiration and honest advice paired with actionable steps to get them into the careers of their dreams.
She is the recipient of the Jack Davis Professional Achievement Award, United Way of West Alabama Young Leaders Award among other recognition for her dedication to entrepreneurship and community. Sheriah has been blessed to speak at the Wedding Summit Series, Grow and Flourish Workshop, and is a regular speaker for mentorship/networking organizations locally.
Gabriela Gonzalez-Lamberson – Senior Director of Community Impact and Business Development, Telemundo
Gabriela Gonzalez–Lamberson is the Senior Director of Community Impact and Business Development for Telemundo Atlanta. Her primary focus is to foment key community, civic and corporate partnerships. Her role oversees the strategic execution of leveraging global media resources to empower community contributions and propel the economic development of Hispanic businesses and professionals. With the upcoming FIFA World Cup, she is leading efforts with local, regional and global stakeholders. She is a passionate professional with a concentration on the establishment of strategies to ascertain diversified financial resources, economic sustainability, corporate and civic partnership engagement, and the positive evolution of strategic plans.
Under her leadership, she has successfully executed strategic initiatives such as INROADS Vision 2020, Public Safety First 2022, and 40 into the Future with the GHCC. Throughout her career, Gabriela has demonstrated a talent for building partnerships and alliances between civic, public, and private corporate entities, and has successfully raised over $65M. Her proficiency has enabled her to foster positive organizational change with special emphasis in the nonprofit sector. Additionally, she is the founder of Celerity Strategies, a firm dedicated to innovative leadership development programs and creative solutions that identify, accelerate, and elevate underrepresented initiatives.
Prior to joining Telemundo she was the Chief Operating Officer at the GHCC, the Chief Development Officer at Techbridge, the Vice President of Development at the Atlanta Police Foundation, and Director Development at INROADS. As Director of the International division of the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau (ACVB), she represented the city with projects such as the bid for the Secretariat of the North American Free Trade Agreement as well as the route development of Delta Air Lines throughout Latin America.
Her professional trajectory began at Kodak and has worked with global companies such as AeroMexico Airlines as the Director of Southeast Region and the US division of the Swiss based company Kuoni as the Director for Europe and South Africa. Furthermore, she also served for seven years as the Executive Director of The Institute of Mexican Culture (the cultural arm of the Mexican Consulate and formerly the Instituto de Mexico), and was the Development Director for LaAmistad, which supports Latino students and their families by providing a comprehensive support system through tutoring, mentoring and resources that promote academic, physical and personal growth.
She has served on a variety of boards including the Hispanic Corporate Council of Atlanta, the High Museum of Art, the Diversity and Inclusion Committee of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, served as the Co-Chair for the Atlanta Dogwood Festival, the Latin American Chamber of Commerce, the Children’s Museum of Atlanta, the Latin American Caribbean Studies Institute of the University of Georgia, served as an advisor to the Atlanta History Center for the Atlanta Stories Initiative, and sat on the Hispanic initiative of the Girl Scouts of America. She has served as president of the National Society of Hispanic MBA’s Atlanta Chapter, in addition to serving board terms with the Hispanic Initiative of Prevent Child Abuse Georgia, The Mexican Center of Atlanta, and the National Latina Business Women’s Association amongst others. Amid her recognitions, she has been recognized as one of Atlanta’s Heroes by La Amistad, was named Southeast Rising star by Southern Living, Women Leaders in Atlanta by Atlanta Woman Magazine and was chosen to participate in one of initial classes of the Coca Cola Diversity Leadership Academy In 2025, she completed the Cultivating Hispanic Leadership Institute. She currently is the Board Chair of Latina Leads, a board member of H.O.P.e, and is a parishioner at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church.
Mrs. Gonzalez-Lamberson is a proud Cuban American and has an International Finance and International Marketing degrees from the University of Georgia. She lives in Atlanta and is married to Bart Lamberson, who works in business development with a local chemical company that focuses on the flourishing hospitality industry of Georgia. They live in Atlanta and have a 16-year-old daughter, Gabriela Elisa and a 13-year-old dog, Lola.