Member since December 2022
Jen Santos has spent 30+ years working inside complex systems — first in IT consulting, then in enterprise-scale event technology. She brings that same systems lens to the stage: not just the stories that get retold after hours, but the structural patterns underneath them, and what organizations can actually do about them.
Her work is grounded in behavioral science and systems thinking — the combination that explains not just what goes wrong in event delivery, but why capable teams keep producing the same outcomes. That's what makes her talks useful rather than just entertaining.
Jen has spoken at Rainfocus INSIGHT, and appeared on Engaging Virtual Meetings, The Sunday Lunch Project Manager Podcast, Eventist365, Bizzabo's Event Experience, Beyond the BEO, and MemberFix Radio. She hosts Mayhem & Method, a podcast about the people, politics, and platforms behind modern events. She has also delivered continuing education programming for MPI.
Events don't need more heroes, they need better systems. When event teams struggle, the problem is almost never the people. We build event operating systems that address missed handoffs, unclear ownership, and reactive planning so great teams can focus on delivering great events, not just getting through them.
Two summers ago, I visited the National Museum of African American Music in Nashville. When I walked in, they handed me a wristband. As I moved through the exhibits, I could tap displays to build a curated personal playlist — music I'd "composed," a video we'd created together, moments I wanted to keep. By the time I left, I had something entirely mine.
And all I could think about was the expo floor.
Not the wristband itself — but what it represented. Every day at trade shows, attendees walk past booths they're genuinely interested in and keep walking, because stopping means a badge scan, which means a sales call they didn't ask for, on a timeline that isn't theirs. So they take a photo of the QR code instead. Or they just don't stop.
What if they could tap and collect — product info, links, a demo video — on their own terms? What if that same wristband connected to the selfie station, the step-and-repeat, the moments they actually wanted to remember? What if attendees left an expo with something that was theirs, the way I left that museum?
The technology isn't the obstacle. The imagination is.
Jen didn't set out to become a speaker. She set out to fix things that were broken — because leaving a broken system alone has never been something she's capable of doing.
After three decades working inside complex organizations, she kept seeing the same pattern: talented event teams producing the same preventable outcomes, year after year. Not because they weren't good at their jobs. Because the systems around them were failing them — and nobody was talking about why.
That pattern became impossible to ignore. So she started talking about it.
A stakeholder who won't engage with ROI data. A VP who controls one system and won't let anyone else near it. A leader who changes the brief halfway through the planning cycle and can't understand why the team is rattled.
All three are annoyingly predictable human responses once you understand the mechanism behind them.
That mechanism? Behavioral neuroscience. In this session, Jen Santos unpacks why the people derailing your events don't seem themselves as being irrational — they're being completely rational given what they're protecting. Once you understand what someone is protecting, their behavior stops being an obstacle and starts being information.
This talk advocates for a fundamental shift in how event tech is perceived and integrated into event planning to improve event ROI. Rather than being seen as a necessary afterthought, event tech deserves a seat at the table from day one. Through practical insights and real-world examples, attendees will learn how early collaboration with tech teams leads to smarter, more seamless events and how tech pros can cultivate a consultative, growth-driven mindset to earn and maintain that seat. This session will equip event professionals with strategies for bridging gaps, fostering cohesive team dynamics, and achieving unified event visions.
Whether you’re hosting a worldwide conference or a multi-city roadshow, your attendees expect a seamless experience. But most event tech experiences aren’t truly designed for global execution—and you may not discover those limitations until it’s too late.
From registration hurdles to AI translation failures, poorly planned tech frustrates attendees and jeopardizes event ROI. Aligning your tech with your event’s objectives from the start is the key. This session breaks down the biggest mistakes event planners make when taking events global—and shows you how to plan smarter.
Responsible AI integration for event teams who want to get use out of it, not get run over by it.
Two summers ago, I visited the National Museum of African American Music in Nashville. When I walked in, they handed me a wristband. As I moved through the exhibits, I could tap displays to build a curated personal playlist — music I'd "composed," a video we'd created together, moments I wanted to keep. By the time I left, I had something entirely mine.
And all I could think about was the expo floor.
Not the wristband itself — but what it represented. Every day at trade shows, attendees walk past booths they're genuinely interested in and keep walking, because stopping means a badge scan, which means a sales call they didn't ask for, on a timeline that isn't theirs. So they take a photo of the QR code instead. Or they just don't stop.
What if they could tap and collect — product info, links, a demo video — on their own terms? What if that same wristband connected to the selfie station, the step-and-repeat, the moments they actually wanted to remember? What if attendees left an expo with something that was theirs, the way I left that museum?
The technology isn't the obstacle. The imagination is.
Jen didn't set out to become a speaker. She set out to fix things that were broken — because leaving a broken system alone has never been something she's capable of doing.
After three decades working inside complex organizations, she kept seeing the same pattern: talented event teams producing the same preventable outcomes, year after year. Not because they weren't good at their jobs. Because the systems around them were failing them — and nobody was talking about why.
That pattern became impossible to ignore. So she started talking about it.
A stakeholder who won't engage with ROI data. A VP who controls one system and won't let anyone else near it. A leader who changes the brief halfway through the planning cycle and can't understand why the team is rattled.
All three are annoyingly predictable human responses once you understand the mechanism behind them.
That mechanism? Behavioral neuroscience. In this session, Jen Santos unpacks why the people derailing your events don't seem themselves as being irrational — they're being completely rational given what they're protecting. Once you understand what someone is protecting, their behavior stops being an obstacle and starts being information.
This talk advocates for a fundamental shift in how event tech is perceived and integrated into event planning to improve event ROI. Rather than being seen as a necessary afterthought, event tech deserves a seat at the table from day one. Through practical insights and real-world examples, attendees will learn how early collaboration with tech teams leads to smarter, more seamless events and how tech pros can cultivate a consultative, growth-driven mindset to earn and maintain that seat. This session will equip event professionals with strategies for bridging gaps, fostering cohesive team dynamics, and achieving unified event visions.
Whether you’re hosting a worldwide conference or a multi-city roadshow, your attendees expect a seamless experience. But most event tech experiences aren’t truly designed for global execution—and you may not discover those limitations until it’s too late.
From registration hurdles to AI translation failures, poorly planned tech frustrates attendees and jeopardizes event ROI. Aligning your tech with your event’s objectives from the start is the key. This session breaks down the biggest mistakes event planners make when taking events global—and shows you how to plan smarter.
Responsible AI integration for event teams who want to get use out of it, not get run over by it.