As Chief Advocacy Officer, Jack Johnson manages the overall public policy operations at Destinations International including member advocacy education and training, development of destination tools and best practices, coalition work with peer organizations, industry research and related public affairs activities.  

Johnson brings unrivaled experience developing innovative strategies, policy solutions and civic consensus for government, not-for-profits and small businesses. During his previous tenure with Choose Chicago, Johnson oversaw the public policy, research, membership and strategic partnership efforts. He played a leading role in the extensive reforms of the McCormick Place Convention Center and the Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau, resulting in a new convention center operating model with both a travel industry and a citywide civic perspective. Johnson was integrally involved in the merger of the Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau and the Chicago Office of Tourism, resulting in maximizing their resources, unifying the message and embedding the organization into the city’s economic development strategy. In addition, in his final year at Choose Chicago, Johnson also served as Choose Chicago’s Chief Administrative Officer.

Howard Givner is the Founder and CEO of the Event Leadership Institute, the leading provider of certification courses, curated summits, thought leadership content, video classes, and other professional development resources for the meetings and events industry.  

Previously he was the founder of an award-winning event agency, and CEO of North America for two other global agencies. He advises corporate event teams, event agencies and other businesses on growth, innovation, ROI, strategy and branding. Howard is a frequent industry speaker, writer and educator on a broad range of topics.

He is an avid hiker, crossword solver, podcast junkie, fiction writer and cancer survivor.

Dave’s role, as the leader of our Corporate Sales organization, is to lead a team of Sales Vice Presidents, Account Executives and Account Managers who are responsible for the company’s top line growth as well as ensuring that we are delivering strategic and financial value to our 200+ corporate clients.  Dave has over 30 years of experience in the events industry and with Maritz.  He has worked with clients across all of Maritz’ key client sectors, including Financial Services, Pharmaceutical, Technology, Automotive and Retail.

Jessie States, CMP, CMM, is the Vice President of the MPI Academy for Meeting Professionals International, where she leads and advances MPI’s professional development strategy, developing and managing MPI’s portfolio of educational products, including live and digital events, educational experiences, professional certificate programs and educational partnerships. Jessie has received the Pacesetter Award from the Events Industry Council, an honor that recognizes emerging leaders and industry supporters. She has also earned spots on the lists of 25 Most Influential People in Meetings and Events (Successful Meetings magazine) and Trendsetters (Meetings Today magazine).