Manager Executive
Resume:
Darren Davis, CVE
Las Vegas, NV 89129
***************@*****.***
PROFESSIONAL PROFILE:
Accomplished Senior Executive with over 24 years of combined experience in booking, operations and event management for both public and privately-owned venues. Expertise in operating a variety of entertainment venue types including four major market arenas, convention centers, theaters and outdoor venues. Knowledgeable in all aspects of sports and entertainment including prior experience working with sports leagues: NBA / WNBA basketball, NHL / ECHL hockey, MASL indoor soccer, AFL football, EVO e-sports, USOC Olympic qualifying events, UFC, and NCAA Division I basketball championships. Extensive industry contacts, depth of facility management knowledge, highly motivated, strong interpersonal skills and practice a strategic booking philosophy. EMPLOYMENT HISTORY:
Mar 2016 – May 2019: Vice President of Entertainment Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino / MGM Resorts International; Las Vegas, NV Head of entertainment providing leadership and direction to all performance venues including the 12,000 seat Mandalay Bay Events Center, 4,000 capacity outdoor Beach Concert Venue plus administrative and operational oversight of Cirque du Soleil’s Michel Jackson One show. Liaison with Live Nation’s House of Blues, Play Management’s Light Nightclub and Daylight Beach Club.
• Led successful launch of the new MGM Resorts owned Las Vegas Aces WNBA franchise including inaugural season venue logistics and planning for both property and team stakeholders
• Assisted with development and implementation of $10,000,000 basketball specific facility renovation
• Hosted internationally televised UFC championships and title match Boxing events annually
• Responsible for all aspects of entertainment including long-term planning, policy administration, budget forecasting, goal development and overall management of the Mandalay Bay entertainment venues
• Contributing member of the Mandalay Bay Executive Committee and Corporate Entertainment’s Property Leadership Team
• Management of annual $100,000,000 property-wide entertainment revenue budget
• Ensured successful and profitable partnerships with clients including AEG, Live Nation, House of Blues, Aramark, Cirque du Soleil and cultivated relationships with artist managers, agents and promoters
• Provided vision and inspiration to 16 full-time entertainment professionals and hundreds of on-call staff Jun 2008 – Mar 2016: Executive Director
Orleans Arena / Boyd Gaming Corporation; Las Vegas, NV Top executive of Orleans Arena, responsible for overall operations and booking in an extremely competitive market. Maintained a profitable and successful schedule that included multiple sport franchise tenants and a variety of traditional arena shows. Hosted over 250 events annually.
• Managed tenant relationships with 4 franchises simultaneously (hockey, soccer, basketball and football)
• Instrumental in successful launch of ECHL Las Vegas Wranglers hockey and continued success for 13 consecutive seasons, reaching ECHL Conference Finals on two occasions.
• Annual home venue to the West Coast Conference (WCC) and Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Men’s and Women’s NCAA Basketball Championships.
• First ever venue connected to a sports book to host NCAA non-conference tournament basketball games; with an average of 16 teams annually playing in the Las Vegas Invitational and Las Vegas Classic.
• Home to Nevada’s first ever Olympic Curling, Wrestling and Weightlifting qualifier events
• Garnered international attention with unique and profitable events; achieving a #1 ranking in industry trade magazines for venues of this size
• Directed all operation departments including administration, marketing, ticketing, guest service, production, security and food & beverage
• Led Premium Sales Department which managed 22 Luxury Suites and 250 Club Seats plus all venue sponsorships generating over $3,000,000 in revenue annually
• Responsible for financial management of $10,000,000 revenue budget
• Successfully aligned booking goals with business goals of hotel/casino resulting in 45,000 hotel room nights and over 500,000 casino patrons attributable to arena events annually
• Provided direction and leadership to 21 full-time staff and over 250 on-call personnel
• Consulted on, programmed and advised regarding operations of sister property venues in Wichita, KS: 6,000 seat Kansas Star Arena, 900 capacity showroom and their outdoor equestrian facility Jan 2007 – Jun 2008: Senior Director of Booking and Events Orleans Arena / Boyd Gaming Corporation; Las Vegas, NV Responsible for maintaining event calendar and overseeing planning, contracting, execution and financial settlement of each event. Selected by Boyd Gaming senior management to take over role of Executive Director. Dec 2005 – Jan 2007: Director of Operations
Orleans Arena / Coast Casinos; Las Vegas, NV
Executed day to day operations including front and back of house departments. Promoted to Senior Director of Booking and Events.
Jan 2003 – Dec 2005: Event Manager
Orleans Arena / Coast Casinos; Las Vegas, NV
Integral member of grand opening team; assisted in planning and construction decisions, implemented arena guidelines, instituted policies and procedures that are still in place today. Promoted to Director of Operations. Jun 1999 – Jan 2003: Event Coordinator
Fort Worth Convention Center / City of Fort Worth; Fort Worth, TX Publicly owned facility with 10,000 seat arena, 300,000 sq. ft. exhibit hall and performing arts theater. Responsibilities included planning, execution and settlement of all event types. Assisted with design and implementation of an expansion for the exhibit hall and build-out of new ballroom. Recruited by Orleans Arena specifically to assist with grand opening.
Apr 1995 – Jun 1999: Ticketing, Merchandise & Special Events Manager Showboat Branson Belle / Herschend Family Entertainment; Branson, MO A 700-passenger riverboat offering sightseeing cruises with a meal and entertainment. Directly responsible for the operation of box office and retail locations in addition to coordinating all special events. EDUCATION:
Louisiana State University; Baton Rouge, LA
Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication / Advertising and Minor in Business Administration International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) Venue Management School; Wheeling, WV Two-year course covering all the disciplines of facility management and operations VMS Graduate Institute, Wheeling, WV
Advanced venue leadership and strategic planning course offered by IAVM IAVM, Trained Crowd Manager; Minneapolis, MN
Certified education program covering all aspects of Life Safety and Emergency Operation Planning CERTIFICATIONS & ACHIEVEMENTS:
IAVM Certified Venue Executive (CVE designation)
Exemplifying a commitment and expertise in the venue management industry IAVM Venue Excellence Award
Orleans Arena was awarded arena of the year. The winning venue is selected based on achievements in overall operational excellence, staff development, sustainability, safety & security, training and community service. One arena is awarded this prestigious recognition annually from the 810 arenas worldwide that are represented by IAVM.
Safety & Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP certified) Designation given to Orleans Arena by OSHA as their highest level of safety awareness. Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) The Orleans Arena was the first venue in Nevada to be recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council for its level of sustainability and one of few arenas in the country to achieve LEED Gold certification. SERVICE:
MGM Resorts International Corporate Entertainment (Center of Excellence) Strategic Plan Business Priority committee member – 2016 to 2019 International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) Chair, Member Growth and Recruitment Committee – 2015 / 2016 Chair, Membership Value and Retention Committee – 2014 / 2015 Boyd Gaming (ownership group of Orleans Arena)
Diversity Committee Member – 2012 to 2015
Venue Coalition (booking membership group)
Advisory Board Member – 2012 to 2016
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