Mike Stengel was named Encore’s Senior Vice President, Strategic Partnerships and Venue Relations in September 2020. He leads Encore’s focus on developing relationships with hotel chains, hospitality ownership groups and management companies. This team also concentrates on business development with individual event venues, such as hotels, conference and convention centers, and stadiums.
Stengel joined Swank Audio Visuals in 1995 as Manager of Hotel Services in St. Louis, and served as its Regional Manager, Divisional Manager and Vice President of Operations before the integration of Swank and Encore. He was appointed Senior Vice President at Encore in 2013 and led Encore’s revenue management and process improvement groups, which included enhancement of the brand through the development of the Encore Customer Experience (CX) and Service Excellence (SX) departments.
Beginning in 2015, Stengel led the global Specialty Services group, which is comprised of specialized technical solution departments supported by industry expert groups inside Encore. These include rigging solutions, power distribution, digital services, internet services, creative services and simultaneous interpretation teams. He also began leading Encore’s businesses in Canada, Mexico and South America in 2017. Since 2018, Stengel has also led the venue services team in the Central United States. Throughout his tenure, he has led and participated in the post-acquisition integration efforts of the organization to ensure adoption and development of best practices through the enterprise.
Stengel has served on the Live Events Council Steering Team and has chaired the Membership Committee of InfoComm (now AVIXA). He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Management Companies Institute (AMCI).
Stengel earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Journalism with an emphasis in advertising and a minor in business management.
Outside of work, he serves on various local boards, including Marygrove to help with their mission of providing residence, hope and health to children in need. In his free time, Stengel enjoys scuba diving, snow skiing, traveling and attending his kids’ sporting events. He lives in St. Louis with his wife, daughter and son.
It has become increasingly clear to executives that bringing staff together for training, team building and communicating business initiatives is imperative when companies operate with a dispersed workforce. This driver for group business, combined with pent-up demand for face-to-face experiences, is driving a strong recovery for the meetings and events industry.
Feeling optimistic about group business? You should. Events are roaring back. But they won’t look the same as they did in 2019. Here’s what you need to know now.
