WASHINGTON, D.C. —The Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance (ECA) announced its 2025 Elected Officers and Board of Directors members.
ECA’s Officers are elected by its Board of Directors and will serve a one-year term ending on December 31, 2025:
- Hervé Sedky (Chair), President & Chief Executive Officer, Emerald — representing the Society of Independent Show Organizers (SISO)
- Mark Bogdansky (Vice Chair), Vice President, Trade Shows and Community Engagement, Auto Care Association — representing the International Association of Exhibitions & Events (IAEE)
- Chris Griffin (Treasurer), President & Chief Executive Officer, Crew XP — representing the Experiential Designers & Producers Association
- Fernando Fischer (Secretary), President, Americas, RX — representing SISO
Related. Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance Releases 2025 Public Policy Agenda
Also, the alliance’s 2025 Board of Directors will contribute fiduciary and strategic leadership for its alliance partners:
- Mike Carlucci, Chief Operating Officer, Clarion Events North America — representing IAEE
- Beth Cowperthwaite (Ex-Officio), Senior Vice President, Communications, Emerald
- Janet Dell (Ex-Officio), Chief Executive Officer, Freeman
- Martha Donato, Founder and President, MAD Event Management — representing UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI)
- Douglas Emslie, Chairman, Cuil Bay Capital — representing SISO
- Marsha Flanagan (Ex-Officio), President & Chief Executive Officer, IAEE
- Senthil Gopinath, Chief Executive Officer, International Congress and Convention Association
- Sherrif Karamat, President & Chief Executive Officer, PCMA
- Kevin McLaughlin, Executive Secretary-Treasurer, Mid-America Carpenters Regional Council — representing the Trade Show Labor Alliance
- Trevor Mitchell, President & Chief Executive Officer, International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM)
- Vincent Polito (Ex-Officio), Chief Executive Officer, SISO
- Chris Schimek, Chief Operating Officer, Event & Exhibit Services, Freeman — representing the Exhibition Services & Contractors Association
- Nancy Walsh, President, North America, Informa Markets — representing SISO

“With such a cross section of industry leaders from throughout the industry, ECA will be able to sense and respond to developments on the show floor that have policy-related causes and implications,” Tommy Goodwin, Vice President of ECA said. “This way, ECA will always have its finger on the pulse of the industry.”
When announcing this news, ECA also recognized three former members of its Board of Directors, who departed at the end of 2024: Mary Pat Heftman (representing IAEE), Mary Larkin (representing UFI), and Kerry Painter (representing IAVM).
Learn more about ECA here.