We sat down with one of our all-star event planners to find out more about what Cvent Certification has done for her and her career. We are excited to share her experience - please meet Emily Thompson, Sr. Event Manager at Pierce Communications!
Emily started working at Pierce Communications in 2012 as a production assistant. She worked her way up to Senior Event Manager, and now works directly with clients in various industries from finances to medical to automotive to help plan their events using Cvent. Having the Professional, Advanced, CrowdCompass, and Supplier Network Cvent Certifications gives her credibility with her clients, and, in turn, helps the relationship by adding trust and confidence.
A Q&A With Emily Thompson
What certifications do you have?
Event Management Professional, Event Management Advanced, CSN, Mobile App
What made you want to become Cvent Certified?
“I started using Cvent back in 2014. I made the push to try something new to streamline and organize the event planning and data collection process. Cvent fit in perfectly, and I have loved using it ever since. In the beginning of being a Cvent user, my Account Manager pushed me to get my Event Management certification as a tool to see where I stood with my Cvent knowledge. I was happy I was able to pass back then and love the opportunity to get certified for free over this past year so I could take more certifications, as well as renewing those certifications I took previously.”
How did you prepare to take the exam?
“The prep guide was a really helpful tool to get certified. I was certified at Cvent CONNECT in the past, so there was a prep class being offered there as well, and I was able to take that which also helped a lot. I did some studying on my own too, and it was helpful to have the working knowledge of Cvent when going into the exams because that real-world experience helped me to make connections while taking the test.”
Now that you are certified, how has it helped you in your job role?
“Now that I am Cvent Certified, it has given me a leg up around peers. I am definitely a power user and it is nice that my team always knows to look to me first when they have Cvent questions. I feel more confident in my own abilities and can think about Cvent on a deeper level to accomplish more than maybe what it was even intended for by finding alternate solutions. Beyond helping me with my role internally, being Cvent Certified is a great selling tool to clients. My clients trust me to manage their events in Cvent, but I also have proof of my skills. Some of my clients have trouble with new technology, so this has really helped them to feel confident in my abilities too. Confidence and trust are the biggest takeaways for me to build that client relationship on trust.”
Do you have any advice for someone considering becoming Cvent Certified?
“My biggest learning item was making sure you know other functionalities you might not personally use Cvent for but will be on the exam. For example, I do not usually use the fees functionality in my own events, but fees are included on the Cvent Event Management Professional Exam. This is why it is key to review the prep guide – you do not want any surprises during the timed exam! This is a great tool to benchmark and test your Cvent knowledge. Cvent is also super well known across our industry, so it does not hurt to have on your resume and in your LinkedIn.”
A huge shout out to Emily for sharing her certification takeaways with us!
This blog post was prepared by Amanda Guido, Learning & Development Specialist at Cvent. Amanda enjoys needlepoint, traveling, cooking, and hanging out with her cat.
