The Elevate Story So Far...

Five years ago, Melissa Noakes and Max Fellows – both experienced event agency professionals and successful event experts in their own right – felt that there was a distinct gap in the events industry. The sector lacked support and the duo believed that events professionals were missing out on continuing professional development (CPD). Noakes and Fellows plugged the gap and created ELEVATE, a mentoring programme and community, designed to elevate confidence, capabilities and the careers of events professionals.

To date, ELEVATE has helped more than 1,000 people to “elevate their careers” – 434 of them since March 2020 – instilling confidence with an enriched learning and mentoring experience that is accessible to everyone, including those in senior positions as well as junior roles. We calculate that’s 3,000 mentoring hours and counting. The programme has engaged agencies, including Jack Morton, Amplify, First, and Engine, as well as brands that include Tiktok, Amazon and Netflix. What’s more, the six-month programme, which connects mentors and mentees, is completely free to access.

ELEVATE’s mission is simple. Its aim is to inspire, empower and inform events professionals so that they can achieve their full potential. In any normal year, this is a huge task, as those taking part in the programme dig deep. Mentees identify their skills, strengths and weaknesses whilst mentors guide them through the personal development process.

?COVID-19 amplified ELEVATE’s purpose. With an industry on its knees, severely impacted by coronavirus, the programme simply had to do more. It was a gigantic undertaking. Uncertainty rocked the sector, businesses closed, employees were placed on furlough and many people sadly lost their much-loved jobs in a sector they adored.

Motivation and collaboration were key. So, ELEVATE did what it does best. It rallied its army of volunteers. Now, more than ever, the events industry needed the programme. It was paramount that events professionals did not lose hope, they had to stay motivated and had to focus on the future.

Events professionals needed help to navigate a turbulent path, personally and professionally, and despite a tough and uncharted business landscape, ELEVATE was not going to abandon the industry it loved at a time when it needed guidance and support the most.

In any “normal” year, ELEVATE enlists the expertise of 50 mentors. Each mentor is then partnered with a mentee. It means that 100 events professionals get the opportunity to collaborate and talk candidly about their experiences, in a bid to grow. The programme lasts for six months and comprises face-to-face events, training and meetings. But not this year.

Incredibly, ELEVATE – supported by other inspirational and motivating events professionals – moved the entire mentor programme online. In less than a week! Furthermore, to support even more events professionals, Noakes and Fellows made the decision to expand the programme, increasing capacity by 80 per cent.?

Ironically, the launch event – which was the most well-attended ELEVATE event ever hosted – took place online on March 23, 2020, the day that Boris Johnson announced the UK’s first lockdown.??????????????????????????????????????????????????

On this day, event agencies and businesses entered uncharted waters. Events professionals needed advice and guidance. But instead of shying away from vast unknowns and the “what ifs”, ELEVATE bolstered the mentoring programme. It was incredibly important to build a more engaged and supportive community that could access the programme free of charge.

Over six months the ELEVATE team provided its community with the following:

·??????Increased programme capacity to accommodate 90 mentee/mentor pairings

·??????Developed onboarding sessions for mentors and mentees

·??????Delivered online how-to training for new mentors

·??????Managed 16 facilitator support groups

·??????Conducted weekly check-ins, bi-weekly networking events and pulse check surveys

·??????Launched a bi-weekly programme of learning and development (L&D) events

·??????Provided group coaching sessions

·??????Conducted regular speed networking sessions

·??????Offered subsidised training courses, which were free for those made recently unemployed

·??????Created content and a support network specifically to help with the mental well-being of the community???

Max Fellows said: “We worked really hard to make sure that our now digital mentoring programme supported our community through knowledge sharing. We developed the new training programme in order to help everyone! Whilst events professionals are great at problem solving, sometimes, when life throws you a curveball – or in this case COVID – you need a helping hand so that you can refocus. It can take time and effort to be comfortable with change.

Currently, the ELEVATE programme supports mostly UK event professionals. However, in the last three years, the programme has expanded, supporting professionals in the USA, LATAM, EMEA and Australia. Therefore, Fellows and Noakes are looking at developing localised ELEVATE programmes around the globe.

Over the last five years, by listening to the experiences of our mentors and mentees, ELEVATE’s concept, structure and comprehensive support network have fuelled its own success. This success could be global and ELEVATE sees great potential for the programme in other territories.

Where the programme goes next is not yet finalised but needless to say, the global interest and update has been massive. Whilst the need remains the mentoring programme will always be free to access. In order to support this work further, ELEVATE is actively seeking partners and sponsors that align with its vision, ambition and ethos.

With regards to the programme’s current project, plans and future, ELEVATE has built an online library, featuring educational content collated over the last two years. This content is free and can be accessed by even more events professionals taking part in the ELEVATE mentoring programme in 2021.

Finally, building on the success of last year, and as a direct result of COVID, ELEVATE has paired 274 mentors and mentees and has doubled its L&D programme to include more than 98 different events.?

Our next season will be opening for applications at the end of 2021 for our 6th Season which will kick off early 2022.

?

?

?

?