Exhibitor liaison executive

Kasia Hagan puts the finishing touches to the Mystery Creek Fieldays map.

Name: Kasia Hagan
Age: 25
Job title: Exhibitor liaison executive
Working hours: 8.30am to 5pm, longer hours leading up to events
Employer: Mystery Creek Events Centre, other event organisers
Pay: $35,000-$60,000 depending on experience
Qualifications needed: Communications or marketing degree, events experience, a good attitude to deal with event stress
Career prospects: Developing expertise in events such as conferences, conventions, expos and sporting events; other marketing and client liaison roles; self-employment

Describe your job.

I am the key contact for all national agricultural Fieldays exhibitors. I plan the exhibition site, book and sell sites, do budgeting, organise the premier feature, which is what defines the Fieldays and gives it its look and feel. In a typical day I'd be dealing with lots of emails and phone calls. I manage more than 900 exhibitors. There are management meetings as well, discussions about sponsorship opportunities, on-site meetings with exhibitors to find the best ways to maximise their investment. It's all relationship management. I also do database management.

Why did you choose the job?

I really like event management. I've got a Bachelor of Communication Studies with a double major in PR and Media. I'd had a taste in previous positions and this is such a unique job I really jumped at the chance nearly three years ago. It's really challenging working with 900 agricultural companies. It gives you a unique perspective on agriculture.

Why is the job important?

It's really a cornerstone role for exhibitors. You help them to pull it together, feed information through to them. Because you plan the site you create the bones of the event. A lot of people ask what you do after the Fieldays but it definitely is a full year's work. After the event there's a debriefing and you start working on the prospectus detail for the next one. After I'd finished the first Fieldays I felt so elated, so excited. You work on it the whole year and it's great when it finally comes to fruition. I'd attended Fieldays as a kid but you just don't realise what's involved. Some businesses do 80 per cent of their sales at Fieldays so it's economically a significant event.

What's the best part?

Working with so many people. You get an insight into so many companies. It's great to be working for an event that is so successful. The worst part is in the lead-up to the event and keeping up with all the phone calls and inquiries. Because it's so successful exhibitors' demands can be high and it's difficult to meet everyone's objectives. I've got 50 on the waiting list wanting a site. We have a few passionate exhibitors. For instance, we don't usually allow jewellery because it is not agriculture-related and I turned down a company that sells jewellery on a party plan. I got a 12-page proposal from them about why it was related to agriculture with testimonials from rural women who sell it on the party plan. They sent me a gumboot done up with jewels.

What are your strengths?

I can work well with stress and I'm a real people person. You need to be good with relationships. A marketing and event background is helpful in this role, and being organised. There's tons of paperwork that you have to keep in check. Time management can always be improved and it's such a big role that you can always improve customer service - 900 companies is a lot to get around.

Where would you like to be in five years' time?

I'd still like to be involved in events, possibly on the other side of the fence as an exhibitor - being a product manager using exhibiting as a marketing tool. But I could also still be working at Mystery Creek.

What's your job hunting advice?

Definitely get involved in events in some capacity. You can volunteer at some non-profit events. It helps if you've got a communications or marketing background. You need to be able to cope with stress, not get frazzled and be a quick problem solver, be a good communicator, well organised and a people person.