As Industry Restarts In-person Events, PCMA and Encore Enter Three-year Partnership for Digital Event Strategist Program to Support Hybrid Future

SCHILLER PARK,Ill.,June 2,2021 -- PCMA's Digital Event Strategist (DES) certification for event professionals has secured a new partner to extend its impact on the industry recovery. Encore,a leading global event technology and production company,is partnering with PCMA as part of a three-year agreement to include scholarships and other direct benefits to the business events community.

Digital and hybrid event education has proven to be important during the global pandemic to re-skill the industry. Organizations needed to find a way to meet,and the rapid transition to leverage digital platforms was the only path forward. Now,with PCMA and Encore continuing to lead the path to innovation for immersive event experiences,we can expect more sophisticated learning models,technology platforms and business solutions.

The partnership agreement will center around PCMA's DES program,a certification designed to help future-proof events. "Over the past year,PCMA's globally-recognized DES course has delivered a much-needed educational resource for event professionals designed by event professionals," said Sherrif Karamat,CAE,PCMA president and CEO. "This exciting new partnership with Encore will provide us with the platform to elevate DES to the next level." The DES program is comprised of six expert-led modules that cover topics from business plans and monetization to measurement and ROI. PCMA's global community of graduates and students continue to reinforce the course learnings with active participation in expert-led webinars and discussions.

"We are thrilled to partner with PCMA on this established and proven certification," said Ben Erwin,Encore President and CEO. "In-person events will be made stronger with the possibilities that virtual and hybrid events bring to our industry,enabling us to reach more people. We are proud to help our industry build for the future with expertise in a digital environment."

For more information on the Digital Event Strategist (DES) program,please visit www.PCMA.org/DES.

About Encore

Encore creates memorable experiences that engage and transform organizations. As the global leader for event technology and production services,Encore's team of creators,innovators and experts deliver real results through strategy and creative,advanced technology,digital,environmental,staging,and digital solutions for hybrid,virtual and in-person events. Encore operates in more than 20 countries across North America,Europe,the Middle East,Australia and Asia Pacific.Encore is the trusted partner of choice for leading hotels and venues worldwide and was named to the Forbes 2018 and 2019 America's Best Employer list. The company is headquartered in the Chicago metro area in Schiller Park,Ill.

About PCMA

PCMA believes that business events can economically and socially transform communities,enterprises and individuals. As the world's largest platform for business events strategists and their business partners,PCMA's success is driven by a commitment to providing provocative executive-level education,face-to-face networking and business intelligence to its membership of 8,400 professionals and students and global audience of over 100,000 business event stakeholders.

Through its Ascent leadership initiative to promote inclusion and diversity across the business events industry and beyond,PCMA seeks to empower those challenged by gender,sexual orientation,race,ethnicity or disabilities to find success.

Headquartered in Chicago,PCMA has 17 chapters throughout the United States,Canada and Mexico with members in more than 40 countries and regional offices in Ireland,Australia and Singapore. Visit us at pcma.org or onLinkedIn,Twitter,FacebookandInstagram.

Media Contact

Bob Niersbach

Meghan Risch

Director,Communications

VP,Strategic & Corporate Communications

bob.niersbach@encoreglobal.com

mrisch@pcma.org

www.encoreglobal.com

312.388.1174

847.385.3619

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