As Women’s History Month comes to a close, ENN continues to honor and celebrate the achievements of women in the exhibitions and events industry.

In the second of a series of interviews spotlighting stellar event professionals and their insights on how their organizations support women, their advice for the next generation of female leaders and their thoughts on women to watch, ENN had the pleasure of connecting with Diana Boxey, global marketing director for AMF Bakery Systems. 

Boxey leads a team in managing, planning and executing AMF Bakery Systems exhibits at trade shows. One of the company’s largest exhibits was at the International Baking Industry Exposition (IBIE), a triennial trade show that was held Sept. 18-21, 2022, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. She developed and executed the company’s strategy for its massive footprint – with nearly 15,000 square feet of exhibit space across five booths at IBIE. Boxey has served in her current role since 2012.

What are you most proud of in terms of the ways your organization supports women?

I’m proud to be a part of an organization that embraces our people and diversity of thought as the company’s greatest asset. For more than a decade, I’ve had the privilege and opportunity to work alongside an incredibly diverse, multicultural leadership team at AMF and within our larger Markel Food Group family, where dynamic women leaders always have both a seat and a voice at the table.

Empowering teammates to reach their own personal potential, AMF Bakery Systems ensures our teammates throughout the organization have access to training and individual development opportunities that set them up for continued success with resources like the Markel Business System University and AMF Academy. By creating a culture of inclusivity, women are given the same opportunities for professional growth and compensation as our male counterparts and equally encouraged to challenge the status quo in pursuit of finding a better way to do things.

With a corporate vision to work alongside our baking customers to help create better food for families around the world while creating better lives for our teammates, families, customers and communities, AMF is focused on our corporate social responsibility as part of our larger sustainability approach. At AMF, we envision a future workforce that is more inclusive, diverse and prepared to make an impact on the baking industry. Critical to our vision of “Better Food. Better Lives.,” our organization believes that we have a duty to learn, teach and mentor the youth throughout our local communities in order to develop the workforce of tomorrow.

What advice would you give for the next generation of female leaders in the exhibitions and events industry?

Build a supportive, diverse network of collaborators and creators. The success of AMF’s event marketing program can be attributed to close industry partners that have enabled us to take calculated risks while combining innovative tech stacks with compelling messaging for truly engaging, experiential exhibits. By connecting your network of trusted experts, you’re able to transform your events and go beyond the limits of what was originally thought possible.  

Also, it’s critical that you’re confident in your decision-making and know your own personal strengths and weaknesses. Transparency and consistent communication with key stakeholders while event planning allows you space for guidance and feedback as well as the ability to leverage the skill set of your wider team. This also ensures buy-in or trust throughout the organization as your events scale and the organization grows. By prioritizing communication, you’re able to share success with your teammates and foster positive, long-term relationships.

What can we do to help the women in the events industry?

By developing a network of mentorship and networking opportunities, experienced women within the industry can help empower future industry leaders. With the globalization of the event industry, initiatives focused on pairing mentors and mentees across cultures and regions could help foster more unique perspectives, improve access to a greater variety of expertise and foster faster innovation throughout the industry.

In addition to ENN’s interviews with Boxey and TED Conferences Head of Events Monique Ruff-Bell, our sister publications — TSNN and Corporate Event News — also shared insights from four more female event leaders in the feature, WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH: SIX TRAILBLAZERS HONOR THE ROLE OF FEMALES IN THE EVENTS INDUSTRY WITH INSIGHTS AND ADVICE. Find out how female CEOs from the Events Industry Council, San Diego Tourism Authority, Courtney Stanley Consulting and Soliman Productions are blazing a trail for women in the trade show and events industry.

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