The company also appoints Patrick Sullivan as Director, Global Sustainability
Encore is pleased to announce a new platform for responsible business, Illuminating a Brighter Future. The platform unites Encore’s breadth of initiatives that make the world a better place through a spotlight on people, spotlight on planet and spotlight on responsibility.
As a hospitality company with a commitment to its approximately 12,000 team members who live and work in communities and venues around the globe, Spotlight on People has always been Encore’s north star. This comes to life through nurturing an inclusive culture where diversity is celebrated, all feel a sense of belonging, and team members share in the growth of the company. Nine business resource groups have been established, fostering social impact, networking across the industry, and influencing business strategies.
A focus on leadership, training and recruitment aims to prepare the next generation of audio visual and event technology talent. The Encore Leadership Enrichment and Development (LEaD) program is a one-year talent preparation program for high potential leaders, with 60 percent diverse representation. Encore introduced the Women in Audio Visual Events (WAVE) program to provide free pre-hire certification for women considering audio visual event production careers. And, the National College Leadership Program (NCLP) provides an eight-month rotational program for college graduates that mixes on-the-job experiences with classroom and on-demand education.
Encore’s extensive programs to foster a supportive and diverse employee culture earned the event technology leader Great Place to Work certifications in the U.S. and six other countries.
As a global enterprise, Encore is on a journey to align and transfer environmental best practices across all geographies. Spotlight on Planet integrates efforts to reduce energy emissions and waste, increase recycling and reuse, and create sustainable offerings to its customers. To lead the charge, Encore has appointed Patrick Sullivan, a 10-year company veteran, as its first-ever Director of Global Sustainability.
“Our first priority within Spotlight on Planet is to measure and decrease scope 1 and 2 greenhouse emissions for both internal operations and external events,” said Sullivan. “The scale of our footprint of locally stored equipment and staff plays a major part in helping us reduce these emissions for Encore and customers. From here we will be developing a roadmap to evolve green event solutions in support of the meetings and events industry.”
Encore is also piloting electric vehicles to transport equipment locally and plans to expand to a fleet in the coming years.
With thousands of team members, working in approximately 2,200 venues globally to ensure execution of 350,000 events per year, Encore’s Spotlight on Responsibility has focused on strong data privacy, security, programs to ensure business continuity, and active engagement in the communities served. Encore’s commitment to engagement shows up through giving, volunteering, and in-kind donations across not-for-profit charities, events and causes, with millions of dollars of support each year.
“Illuminating a Brighter Future exemplifies Encore’s core values,” said Ben Erwin, Encore President & CEO. “Being a responsible business partner means that we consistently pursue delivering value for team members, our customers and the communities we serve.”
Encore plans to share milestones under each of the three Illuminating a Brighter Future pillars – people, planet, and responsibility – throughout 2024. Event planning tools to help event professionals positively impact their goals will roll out later this year.
About Encore
Encore creates memorable experiences that engage and transform organizations. As the global leader for in-person, hybrid and virtual events, the Encore team of innovators and experts deliver real results through event strategy, design, technology, production and digital solutions. Encore operates in more than 20 countries across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and Asia Pacific. It is the trusted partner of choice for more than 2,100 premiere hotels and venues worldwide. The company is headquartered in Schiller Park, Ill., within the Chicago metro area.