CHICAGO — In 2022, Christen Tye, CEM, was named a Trade Show Executive (TSE) Woman to Watch. At the time she was the Education Manager at Informa Markets’ World of Concrete (WOC), where she helped launch a variety of programs to enhance its conference programming.
Now, Tye serves as the Content Manager at the World Pet Association, which produces SUPERZOO and GROOM’D.
TSE caught up with Christen Tye to find out more about how her career has progressed in the last couple of years and how education at trade shows is evolving.
MADDY: You were named a TSE Woman to Watch in 2022. Can you tell us about your role at that time and what initiatives you spearheaded that led you to being nominated for the program?
CHRISTEN: At the time of my TSE Woman to Watch recognition I was with Informa as Education Manager on World of Concrete. A big part of the program that I oversaw were the Hands-On Training sessions and the Live Demonstrations. These were designed to meet the needs of attendees wanting the full immersive education experience. There was a lot of hard work and logistics that went into these to enhance the education program.
I helped launch our emerging professionals track that were specialty sessions curated for those that are getting started in the industry. I also helped launch and curate a new Spanish track that were presented fully in Spanish. This was brought to life to meet the needs of a large sector of the industry that primarily speak Spanish and a gap in education offered to them.
MADDY: You’re now the Content Manager at the World Pet Association, which produces SUPERZOO and GROOM’D. Can you talk a little bit about what your current role entails?
CHRISTEN: As the Content Manager for World Pet Association, I plan the educational programs for both shows. This includes curation of the session topics, developing the education schedule and selecting and working with speakers. I manage speaker logistics from proposal to contract to presentation and evaluation. I collaborate with industry experts to deliver relevant content that meets the diverse needs of pet professionals from retailers to groomers.
My goal is to create an education program that inspires, informs and elevates the professional standards of the pet industry. I want attendees to leave our event with new strategies and ideas that they can immediately apply to their businesses.
MADDY: How do you balance traditional learning formats with innovative approaches at events, like more hands-on experiences?
CHRISTEN: Our shows focus on blending traditional classroom experiences with live demonstrations. Thirty-percent or so of our educational offerings provide a demonstration aspect where we want attendees to feel more immersed in the education experience. We are continuing to innovate how our attendees can get a real hands-on experience where they can really apply the skills that have been taught or perfect their skills.
I am always researching new ways to change up the learning experience and meet the various learning styles of our attendees. Stay tuned, we have some exciting new education formats coming for our shows.
MADDY: Can you share an example of a session or program that exceeded your expectations in terms of engagement or impact?
CHRISTEN: While I was on WOC, we implemented one-hour sessions, which were significantly less time than our other educational offerings. WOC is highly regarded for the top-tier education in the concrete and construction industry, and our educational session lengths were tried and true as longer sessions. Attendees wanted more bite-size and digestible education. It was wildly successful.
Because I saw the success first-hand, it helped me transform our Show Floor Talks stage at SUPERZOO to 15-minute time slots. This provided focused education that made it easier for attendees to participate and get a taste of the wonderful education that our program offers while not having to leave the show floor.
MADDY: How is technology impacting the way you approach educational programming at WPA events?
CHRISTEN: AI is everywhere and I am learning to implement it in strategic ways for our educational attendees. Our organization is doing a lot behind the scenes to make sure we remain as the leader in the pet retail industry for relevant education. Data-driven decisions are allowing us to make strategic moves to create a more dynamic attendee experience that includes more innovative technology.
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MADDY: When you think about the future of trade shows and conference programs, what trends do you see shaping the future?
CHRISTEN: The future of trade show education is defined by connection, customization and continued learning. Attendees want more than just information; they want experiences that are relevant, engaging and applicable to their work. I see the future of conference/education programs really focused on making the attendee education journey more of an experience, and tailoring their journey to be very personalized based on role, experience level or interests.
I think there will also be a focus on the educational experience going beyond just the days of the event. I definitely do not think that we will lose sight of traditional education and the face-to-face experience, but we will continue to enhance the unique attendee journey.
MADDY: You also won the Chapter Merit Award in 2024 from the International Association of Exhibitions and Events®. What did that award mean to you and how has engaging in your IAEE chapter helped you professionally?
CHRISTEN: I was really honored to receive the Chapter Merit Award. I have also had the honor of serving as our the IAEE DFW Chapter Chair for the past two years and will continue serving as chair for 2026. Being a part of IAEE is how I give back to the industry that has given me so much. It has been rewarding to make connections with people that understand the unique challenges of our industry through the association. Through my involvement with the chapter, I have had the opportunity to work with students from a local college that are taking a Trade Show Management course. I love getting to invest in the future of our industry.
MADDY: When you think about your career thus far, what have been some of your proudest moments and what have been some of the toughest challenges that you’ve navigated through?
CHRISTEN: I am most proud of how my professional career has developed me personally. I am much more confident than I was when I started 10 years ago. I love that my daughters get to see that mommy gets to do some really amazing things as part of my career and still show up for them. I am proud that I have a better idea of how to balance being a mom and wife and being a professional. It has been an honor to be recognized for my hard work and dedication to this industry, but I truly love what I do and will continue to put my heart and soul into my career.
MADDY: If you could give early-career professionals in this industry advice, what would you say?
CHRISTEN: Speak up! I wish I knew that my opinions, even as a “baby” in the industry, were some really great ones. I would also learn to better advocate for myself early on. I think that is a big gap that early-career professionals have is not knowing how to best advocate.
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