Insights

Exploring the perspectives that form and fuel the future of brand movements.

The 2022 Event Strategy Report

The report that set the narrative on what event executives were thinking before the pandemic—is back.

Brand Movements — The Next Era for Marketing

What is a Brand Movement? And why is it emerging as the platform for next-gen marketing strategies?

Celebrating Women Achieving Great Things

Insights and advice from four of Opus Agency's leaders.

Six Tips for Reimagining Incentive Programs

In a reopening world, here's how incentive travel programs are being renewed.

The Metaverse: Taking Events Out of This World

Exploring new realities for the future of events.

The Inside Story: Taking a Microsoft Event into the Metaverse

How we brought future-building technologists together in a groundbreaking metaverse experience.

Looking Back to Look Ahead – A Reflection on 2021

After a year of incredible transformation and growth, we’re looking ahead to 2022 with optimism.

In-Person Events Are Back – And We’ve Got Yours Covered!

Here’s what you need to know before hitting the show floor.

How Global Monoculture and Growth Marketing Strategies are Changing Event Portfolios

Across a reopening world, these are the latest insights and inspiration for evolving global events.

Turn Meetings into Movements by Designing Transitions, Traditions, and Thrills

By capturing inspiration from the movement maker playbook, let’s uplevel experiences.

How Event Marketers Can Catalyze the Fourth Era of Brand Communities

A hot new marketing strategy is creating opportunities for a brand’s events and experiential marketing.

New Interfaces Bring Inspiration for In-person Interactive Experiences

A technology revolution is pushing us into spaces and, soon, into a world without screens.

Insights From the Journey Toward Greater Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Our very own Cori Brown joined Event Marketer magazine to share her unique perspectives on the plans, actions, and progress our industry is making.

How Under-resourced Teens and the Arts Provide a Roadmap to the Future of Employee Experiences

Beyond the immediate focus on the hybridization of everything, our shared time of renewal and reopening foreshadows an unimagined next for the future of employee experiences.

Three Standout Perspectives on the Future of Experiences

These are the trends, ideas, and experimentations that address the most crucial question all of us are asking: “what will people want next?”

Four Paths Into the Future of Virtual Events

The trails blazed in 2020 are opening these new ways forward into 2022.

Mapping the Future of Digital Sponsorships

While the industry embraces digital-first events, how is digital sponsorship strategy changing to meet the moment?

Join us at PCMA Convening Leaders 2021

Get ready for a week-long gathering of the top leaders in the events and experience industry.

How to Choose a Digital Event Platform

Use our digital event inventory to make sure you’re asking the right questions.

7 Trends Driving Growth in Digital Sponsorship

Marketers are using innovative approaches to ensure digital-first events create value for digital sponsors.

Going Remote: New Realities for Virtual Employee Engagement

With remote work as the norm and not the exception, all companies are looking for ways to drive employee engagement in new and sustainable ways.

Virtual Music Festivals: Experiences For The Masses, Curated For The Individual

Where the digital experience can be curated to be a personal adventure.

How to Keep Employees and Customers Motivated in Quarantine

Your team’s incentive travel planned for 2020 (and beyond) may be on pause, but the need to motivate and retain your top performers and customers is in overdrive.

How to Build (or Rebuild) Your Brand’s Experience Architecture

Emotional outcomes and non-linear thinking form the foundation of an all-new landscape for the experiences of tomorrow.

Five Big Transformations Driving the Future of Virtual Events

The first half of 2020 has shown us that change is the ultimate constant. With constant change comes new opportunities to learn, design, and drive innovation within virtual and digital-first events.

Virtual Events: Four Key Lessons from the Broadcast World

Virtual options are the hot topic in the events industry, and companies using the power of digital in their event strategy are gaining value from alternative approaches to content delivery.

How Events Advance the International Women’s Day Mission

The event and experiential industry has a huge part to play in furthering this empowering global movement.

Getting Virtual: Why Your Strategy Should Include Hybrid Events

Are virtual components a part of your event strategy? Here’s why they should be.

The Rise of Sensory Branding Is Music to Our Ears (and Noses and Tongues)

What does your brand sound like? Smell like? Taste like? Breaking traditional boundaries, brands are now incorporating signature smells, tastes, textures, and sounds.

Event Managers Need to Pay Attention to the Sober-Curious Movement

Is 2020 the year your events go alcohol-light? Here’s what event professionals should know about sober events.

Opus Agency’s Take on 2020 Event Trends

Are you sifting through all the 2020 event trends articles and wondering which trends actually matter?

Content Trend: Fireside Chats, Rekindled

Breaking from their conventional confines, new formats are putting the fire back in fireside chats.

One Content Strategist’s Top 7 Takeaways from Adobe MAX 2019

Earlier this month, Adobe convened its annual “creativity conference,” Adobe MAX, in the heart of downtown Los Angeles. After more than 17 years working in the creative and marketing fields – and five-plus in the event business specifically – I’d long had MAX on my radar...

Event Attendees Want You to Value Their Mental Health

Emotional well-being and mental health have long been undervalued – not just in events, but also in society in general. Driven by today’s younger generations, emotional wellness is more of a priority than ever before.

Event Trends: Syndicating Conversations

From social keynotes to full broadcasts, brands are putting conversations at the forefront of their virtual event experiences.

How to Make Attendee Wellness a Priority at Your Event

Event managers, take note: Attendees prioritize their wellness more than ever, and they don’t want to sacrifice their diet, fitness, or lifestyle standards in order to attend an event.

Opus Talks 2020 Event Strategy with Oracle, Sprint, Ford, and Atlassian

As part of a collaboration between Event Marketer and Opus, we held two roundtable conversations with industry experts from leading event marketers. In the second Strat Chat of this series, we look forward to 2020 and the event portfolio strategy, innovation...

Technology Trend: Smart Surfaces

Newly commercialized smart technologies are bringing state-of-the-art interactivity to the surfaces around us.

Experiential Marketing and Social Media Trends: The Authentic Aesthetic

Since it is no longer “cool to be manufactured,” brands are evolving their social media-centric activations in favor of authenticity.

Opus Talks 2020 Event Strategy with SAP, Condé Nast, Cisco, and Microsoft

As part of a collaboration between Event Marketer and Opus, we held a roundtable conversation with industry experts from leading event marketers.

Augmented Reality Wayfinding for Events: Transform Your Signage and Sponsor Strategies

Google I/O, Google’s closely watched annual developer conference that takes place in May, is where Google announces their latest technology and product developments. This year at the I/O keynote, Google revealed a new augmented reality wayfinding feature in their event app...

You Need a Messaging Matrix for Your Next Event

Here are the top five reasons why. Note: If you haven’t already, I recommend reading part one (discussing best practices for a strategy workshop) and part two (outlining the resulting strategy brief) of this series. As discussed previously in this series...

The Changing World of Data Privacy is Impacting the Event Marketing Industry—What do I Need to Know?

The most important changes in data privacy regulation started a sea change for our businesses, marketing, and people everywhere.

How do Silent Disco Breakout Sessions Work?

Silent Sessions make more sense than traditional breakouts for many reasons. Find out why you’ll never go back after giving them a try. Silent Sessions are meeting spaces capable of simultaneously presenting multiple content tracks. Attendees in the session...

Webinar: Increasing Event Value: Maximize Your Attendee Journey

Opus Director of Event Strategy, Jessica Brown, teamed up with SiriusDecision Senior Research Analyst of Demand Marketing, Cheri Keith, to discuss event value and attendee journey. Want to know how to prioritize event strategy from the kickoff, mature your event strategy...

Event Marketer and Opus Agency Expand Multiyear Partnership

We’re thrilled to announce that our partnership with Event Marketer is expanding! The Opus team is looking forward to bringing more exciting content and impactful speakers to the stage at the EMS Executive Forum in May, as well as hosting a Strategy Lab...

Five Lessons Event Professionals Took Away from the Fyre Festival Nightmare

Fyre Festival, last year’s disastrous millennial music fest meltdown, resulted in attendees stranded on an island, millions of dollars in vendor invoices unpaid, an ever-mounting pile of lawsuits filed, and countless hilarious memes. The entire internet...

What it Takes to Produce Big-Name Talent

Event production involves many moving parts that can greatly affect an event; Opus producers are able to adjust to each facet to execute flawlessly. Sometimes, the most delicate aspect of production is the onstage talent. Opus producers are no stranger to producing celebrity talent...

The Strategy Brief: Your Event Campaign’s North Star

Brief document, big decisions. Note: If you haven’t already, I recommend reading part one of this series, discussing best practices for the strategy workshop which informs development of your strategy brief. Event initiatives which begin with a serious...

The Relationship Between Creativity and Technology: It’s Complicated

Creative professionals are tasked with balancing creativity with technology, this balancing act can be a difficult one. The speakers at this year’s Adobe MAX, a gathering of 14,000 multi-disciplinary designers, tackled this concept head on. The event...

Should You Host Your Next Incentive in a Previously Inaccessible Location?

I was fortunate enough to be approached by CSI International to attend a fam trip to Cuba with a group of meeting and events professionals last month. Cuba is a country that many have questions about; I’m excited to share my findings about this unique destination...

How Behavioral Science Can Benefit Your Marketing Strategy

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending my second Behavioral Science & Marketing Summit at the University Club in San Francisco with roughly 150 other marketing strategists, THE leading behavioral scientists, senior market researchers, and consumer...

Opus Celebrates Women in Technology: Meet Kristen

As an agency with an internal tech team that primarily serves technology clients, we are huge fans of women in tech. We understand the unique obstacles women in the tech industry face, and we’re proud to highlight our female tech team members who are thriving...

Opus Team Finds Inspiration at the Portland Creative Conference

The Portland Creative Conference, or Cre8Con, is an exploration and celebration of the creative process across various creative industries. This annual event features presentations from leading creatives who take you inside their creative process and talk about their projects...

Strategy Workshops 101

So, what is a strategy workshop? “Strategy workshop” can sound intimidating, but it’s really just a facilitated conversation amongst key decision makers and stakeholders, designed to help get everyone on the same page regarding the “why” behind the “what”...

Opus Celebrates Women in Technology: Meet Petra

As an agency with an internal tech team that primarily serves technology clients, we are huge fans of women in tech. We understand the unique obstacles women in the tech industry face, and we’re proud to highlight our female tech team members who are thriving...

The Secret Life of a Travel Director

A look at the event industry’s “on-demand” workforce Have you ever wished that you had a job that would pay you to travel around the world? There is a seemingly secret society of professionals who do just that. They’re called Travel Directors. If I had...

Rethink Vegas: Unique Offerings Off the Strip

Event professionals and meeting planners spend a lot of time in Vegas. Like, a lot of time. My team often refers to Vegas as their second home, as they spend weeks there every year. When meeting planners think of Vegas, a few clichés come to mind: heavily air-conditioned meeting spaces...

Make Your Next Event a Strawless One

The “strawless” movement is in full swing. Major cities such as Seattle and Malibu have banned or limited the use of plastic straws. Restaurants across the country are voluntarily removing plastic straws from their businesses as well. Why? In America...

11 Ways C2 Montreal is Unlike any B2B Conference You’ve Ever Attended

Last week, I attended C2 —the Commerce and Creativity Conference—in Montreal, Canada. It had Snoop Dog (talking about the legalization of cannabis) as the big draw, but that’s not why I wanted to go. I was primarily interested in seeing a new event experience...

GDPR for Event Planners – Proceed with Caution

As if your job as an event planner isn’t stressful enough, along comes the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in all its complicated glory. Over the last several months, you need to have been living on a desert island to not have noticed lots of...

What I Learned from Attending Mule Design’s “Presenting Work with Confidence” Workshop at Design Week Portland

Last week, I had the distinct pleasure (and luck) to be one of 20 wannabe extroverts in Mike Monteiro ’s Presenting Work with Confidence workshop during Portland Design Week. Yep, you read that right: 20 introverts arrived at Outlet PDX (a wonderful,...

Opus Celebrates Women in Technology: Meet Carleen

As an agency with an internal tech team that primarily serves technology clients, we value women in tech. We understand the unique obstacles women in the tech industry face, so we’re proud to highlight our female tech team members who are thriving. In the second installment of Opus Women in Tech...

Projection or LED Screens: Which is Best for Your Event?

Finding the best way to display content or visuals at your event can be a difficult process. There are a few different approaches, two of the most popular solutions being LED screens and traditional projection technology. What you might want to do as...

Pay Attention to What Inspires Your Designers

Designers don’t limit themselves to creating from nine to five. They draw inspiration from everywhere, all the time. As a creative director, it’s imperative that you know where their inspiration is coming from. In my team’s case, doing so has led to some incredible client work...

Glaciers, Shipwrecks, and Penguins: What an Incentive Trip to Patagonia Looks Like

Clients planning incentive trips are constantly looking for the next unique destination; I’m often asked for input on places such as Iceland, Croatia, and Cuba. So when I was asked to participate on an advisory council visit to Patagonia, I jumped at the opportunity...

Event Professionals: What Keeps You Up at Night?

In 2017, Forbes released their list of the 10 most stressful jobs in America. Event coordinators landed in the number five spot—just behind police officers. This is largely due to the amount of organizing, multi-tasking, and hurdle-jumping required to execute a flawless event...

Opus Celebrates Women in Technology: Meet Genevieve

As an agency with an internal tech team that primarily serves technology clients, we are huge fans of women in tech. We understand the unique obstacles women in the tech industry face, and we’re proud to highlight our female tech team members who are thriving...

So You Want to Hire an Intern?

Internship experience is extremely important for college students, but the benefits of internships are not one-sided. Interns can be a helpful and productive addition to your team. Follow these tips to make sure you’re getting the most out of hiring an intern...

Hologram Keynotes: Cool or Creepy?

Gone are the days of ninety-minute PowerPoint keynotes. Today’s audiences are in need of diverse and exciting displays of content. One way to do this is with the help of hologram keynote speakers. My team and I are fascinated by hologram presence at events...

When Event Professionals Take Over Music City

The Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA) hosted over 4,500 event profs at the Convening Leaders conference in Nashville last week. It’s no surprise that a meeting for meeting planners offered great attendee experience. From a registration desk at the Nashville airport...

Webinar: Data Privacy and Protection Law for Event Professionals

Opus General Counsel, Jennie Peters, shared her expertise on GDPR compliance in a webinar on Data Privacy. New data protection laws will affect event professionals. Make sure you’re prepared by listening to Jennie’s webinar below. Have questions about GDPR...

EventTech 2017 Takeaways

As VP of Technical Services for the Opus event technology team, Event Marketer’s EventTech conference is basically Christmas. Once a year, professionals passionate about all things event tech gather to learn about and celebrate trends and developments in the industry...

Tired Feet and a Full Heart After TedWomen 2017

Gloria Vanderbilt once said: “I always believed that one woman’s success can only help another woman’s success.” At TedWomen 2017, 1,500 attendees gathered in New Orleans for three days to celebrate the success of women and to discuss building a better future...

Taking the Role of Attendee at the Bend Design Conference

I recently attended a two-day design conference and workshop in Bend, OR. The overarching theme of the event was “ethics in design and content.” Sessions covered everything from ethical fashion design (Angela Luna shared the thinking behind her coat-to-tent...

Four Reasons Event Pros Love Film Festivals

Tickets to film festivals around the country are becoming more coveted and sought after every year. As event professionals, we asked ourselves, “What are these film festivals doing right?” Turns out it’s a lot! We sat down with the folks from the Napa Valley Film Festival...

e-book: Key Steps to Acquiring the Right Audience for Your Event

One major question that faces any event marketer at the outset of the planning process: how do I fill these seats? Event registrants and final attendees are probably one of the key performance indicators (KPIs) that you’re using to track the success of your event...

Event Manager: a great career if you love to travel!

Our resident Road Warriors can certainly tell you: they travel a lot, and have the airline miles and hotel loyalty points to prove it! Managing events around the globe takes a serious amount of jet-setting, so your average Event Manager is a seasoned veteran...

Road Warriors: Staying Connected as a Working Parent

Opus employees are experts at traveling for business. However, there is one aspect of traveling that never gets easier: being away from family. In honor of National Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, we asked the resident Road Warrior moms and...

e-Book: 12 Rules for Safe and Productive Work Travel

Putting on hundreds of events around the globe each year requires a serious amount of work travel. Rather than get chewed up in the grind, the event wizards at Opus have figured out the secret code to acing work on the go. Our work has taken us all over—whether you’re in San Francisco...

Five Ways to Be a Green Attendee

There’s never a bad time to work on reducing your carbon footprint. Why not start at an event? In honor of Earth Day, we put together a list of ways to get you started. Recycle Hotel Toiletries If you’re staying in a hotel while attending an event, save...

How to Host a Green Event

Event professionals know how many resources are used in events. In honor of Earth Day, make an effort to reduce your events’ carbon footprints. Here’s how: Know Your Certifications When planning a green event, source a venue that is LEED Certified. LEED...

Tech in Opus HQ’s back yard

Since 2012, thought leaders and tech enthusiasts have congregated in the heart of Portland, Oregon to attend TechFestNW. This three-day event brings together innovators to discuss trends, breakthroughs and opportunity in tech in the Pacific Northwest...

Events industry networking at Opus Peer Connect

We recently hosted a networking breakfast for event marketers in the Bay Area to meet up, get to know one another, and get the low-down on the industry’s latest developments. Event professionals representing a wide array of companies, industries, and...

e-book: Event Pricing to Drive Attendance and Maximize Revenue

There’s both an art and a science to effectively pricing an event. Any strategy for maximizing your event’s attendance and revenue is built on a business school staple: the price-demand curve. In this e-book, we explore multiple tactics employed by the...

Snapshot: a look at the latest trends in tech events

Are you charging too much for your event–or worse yet, not enough? What about location: will you lose attendees if you move your event to the East Coast? And, are you offering your sponsors what they need to stay loyal? To answer these critical questions, you need data...

Seven reminders when adding video to your content strategy

Opus recently released an e-book detailing the reasons you need a content marketing strategy for your event. Developing your own content marketing strategy is good—but it’s just a start! Factoring video into your content plan is a step in the right direction:...

Road Warriors: Acing Air Travel

Anyone in the events industry knows that travel is an inevitable part of the job. We’ve got dozens of event veterans on staff who hit the road all the time, so they know what it takes to make the most out of work travel. We picked their brains, gathered the best tips and tricks...

e-book: Six Reasons You Need Event Content Strategy

In an increasingly competitive environment, brand marketers are investing more in their event content with the aim of attracting attendees and creating powerful engagement around their key messages. To help you understand just that, we’ve put together...

Road Warriors: At Home in Hotels

Anyone in the events industry knows that travel is an inevitable part of the job. We’ve got dozens of event veterans on staff who hit the road all the time, so they know what it takes to make the most out of work travel. We picked their brains, gathered the best tips and tricks...

eBook: 10 Keys to the Perfect Site Visit

Your venue may be the most important factor in the success of your event. Getting the full picture on your venue is integral to the strategic and logistical planning requirements of your program. How do you assess the feasibility of a site on a short timeline...

A Day in the Life of an Event Manager

Opus Agency’s team of event managers operates on the ground and in the moment, creating amazing experiences for our customers’ attendees. We recently managed to get one of them, Event Coordinator Madeline Golden, back in the office long enough to describe the joys...

Road Warriors: Staying Healthy Through Work Travel

As a brand events and marketing agency with a hand in hundreds of experiences around the world every year, our work tends to involve quite a bit of travel. Anyone with experience traveling for work knows it can be taxing on the mind and body. Luckily...

Opus Tech Time: the Internet of Things

In the spirit of our weekly grammar notes, the resident tech experts on our Event Technology team send out periodic updates on current trends in the tech world and their impact on the industry. This week, we unpack a hot industry topic: the Internet of Things...

Pokémon Go: Top Tips for Becoming the Best There Ever Was!

The entire nation is in the grip of a Pokémon craze! We too have felt the draw to far corners of the city (or the office) to catch those little critters. To help you on your path to building a formidable Pokémon army, we’ve put together a few pro tips for the other trainers out there...

Opus COO Dena Lowery presents at CEMA Summit

Opus Agency COO Dena Lowery presented not once but twice at this year’s Corporate Events Marketing Association ( CEMA ) Summit, an annual gathering of the leading voices and thinkers in events marketing. Fresh on the heels of a Monday breakout session—co-presenting...

Interactive: Shifting Perspectives on Experience Design

What is experience design? What does it have the power to do when you get it right? What can go wrong when you don’t? Earlier this year, Opus assembled a who’s who of industry experts to help define this esoteric yet essential topic. Moderated by Opus EVP of Creative Services David Lemke...

Opus Tech Time: RFID versus NFC

In the spirit of our weekly grammar notes, the resident tech experts on our Event Technology team send out periodic updates on current trends in the tech world and their impact on the industry. This week, we look at the difference between RFID and NFC protocols...

Top 3 Tips: Rock-Solid Registration

An event, no matter the size, will never get off the ground without an effective registration process. Getting people interested is one thing—getting them signed up and squared away for attendance is the real trick. Read on for our top tips to turn your...

eBook: 12 Tips to Recharge Your Incentive Trips

Incentive programs aren’t easy! Every organization has their own set of values, culture, and system of accountability. Once they’ve been established, and you’ve built an incentive program to reflect them, the big question remains: How do you create an incredible incentive trip...

Happenings

Now & Next: Attendee Trends and the Future of Events

Join the teams from Opus Agency, MPAV, and EventMB for this virtual session.

The 2022 Event Strategy Report — Live Presentation

Join the teams from Event Marketer and Opus Agency for this virtual session.

Welcome Lauren Smith, our new Head of Talent and Development

Joining us from 72andSunny, Lauren is leading and transforming how we continue to elevate our global network of talent.

Top Five Holiday Gifts for Event Professionals

As we gear up for 2022, these are a few of our favorite things.

To Measure or Not to Measure – That is NEVER the Question

Measuring the effectiveness of events and their impact on an audience is crucial in determining ROI.

Opus Agency has a New Chief Creative Officer, Caryn Mambro, and She’s Rockin’ it

Opus Agency is excited to announce the promotion of a key member of our executive team.

Opus, a Global Experience Agency, Announces Mitch Barns as CEO

Mitch joins to lead our agency during the rapid return of in-person events and experiences.

The Opus Group Adds Oni Chukwu to its Board of Directors

The Opus Group has announced the addition of Oni Chukwu to its board of directors.

Opus Agency Celebrates Six Straight Years on the Inc. 5000

Inc. Magazine lists Opus as #1,671 in their annual ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in the United States.

Opus Announces Kim Kopetz As President

The Opus Group's Board of Directors has unanimously approved Kim Kopetz, as the new President of Opus.

Black Lives Matter

And we will do better.

Bon Voyage: Happy Retirement to Two Opus Mainstays

This month we’re saying farewell to two long-time Opus teammates who are embarking on their next adventure.

Raise a Glass to This Year’s Integrity Award Winners!

It’s award season here at Opus! Please join us in congratulating the Maestros who took home our top honor, an Integrity Award. Every year, Opus Agency gathers for Team Connect, a celebration of our past year’s success and a look forward at what the coming year holds...

Thanks for an Award-Winning Year!

Opus Agency has had a busy year! Check out a recap of the 2019 awards and honors we’re celebrating. We believe the best measure of our success is the success of our clients. But it’s always nice when others agree about the quality of our work and our company...

Opus Teammates Share Their Highlights from re:Invent 2019

Have you ever wondered what a day in the life of an event manager is like?

Opus Agency Is on Chief Marketer’s 200 List

Opus Agency earned a spot on Chief Marketer’s 200 Top Marketing Agencies of 2020 list! We’re thrilled and honored to be listed among so many of the top engagement and experiential agencies. According to Chief Marketer, the agencies selected for this list...

Why I’m Thankful for Our Team Members

As the holidays approach, I like to reflect on the endless reasons I feel grateful.

Zerto + Opus Win an Event Marketer Hidden Gems Award

Another day, another achievement to celebrate here at Opus Agency! Please join us in congratulating our client Zerto’s Z Club campaign for winning an Event Marketer Hidden Gems award. The brand-new Hidden Gems award program is designed to recognize B2B...

Opus Makes the Top Workplaces 2019 List

Opus Agency is ranked on The Oregonian’s Top Workplaces list for the eighth consecutive year! This year we’re at spot #32 in the midsize company category (100-499 regional employees in Oregon and SW Washington). Conducted by an independent research firm...

Opus Expands Internationally with Acquisition of Number 20, London Event Agency

Opus Agency, a global leader in event marketing, announced the acquisition of London-based event and travel management agency Number 20, Ltd. Number 20 is an established and respected event marketing agency providing total event management, venue selection...

Opus Adds Two Leadership Roles to Support Growth

PORTLAND, Ore. – September 11, 2019 / After a year of impressive organic and acquisition growth, Opus Agency has added two new leadership roles to support the evolving organization. Kim Kopetz has been promoted to Chief Growth Officer, and Kristen Clark...

Opus Alters Event Industry Landscape with Acquisition of Tencue Productions

Opus Agency, a leader of global event experiences, today announced its acquisition of Tencue Productions, Inc., an award-winning creative and communications agency. Tencue specializes in bringing artistry and social science to in-person and online events...

Opus Agency Bolsters Creative Capabilities with Acquisition of Clarity Creative

BEAVERTON, Ore. (PRNewswire—August 12, 2019) Opus Agency, a leader in global event experiences, today announced the acquisition of Clarity Creative, a content design and dynamic visual communication agency. Clarity is a boutique design studio known for...

Opus Expands Agency Leadership with Hire of SVP, Business Solutions

PORTLAND, Ore. – June 6, 2019 –We are delighted to announce the addition of Brent Turner to the Opus Agency team. In this newly created Senior Vice President of Business Solutions role, Turner joins the Opus leadership team with a charter of pushing innovation...

Opus Adds Seasoned Events Industry Executive as Agency President

We’re excited to welcome Jeff Stelmach to the Opus family; we can’t wait to see where this new leadership takes the agency! PORTLAND, Ore. – March 12, 2019 – Following three major acquisitions in 2018, Opus continued their growth trend with the hire of industry veteran...

Recognizing Employees Who Embody Company Values

The Opus team spends one day every year to go all out honoring, appreciating, and celebrating the success and accomplishments of our team members—we call this crazy all-staff, all-day celebration Team Connect. While the day is aimed at celebrating the entire agency’s success...

Why We’re Thankful

I make it a point to constantly focus on being grateful, but often even more so during the holidays. A loving family, good health, and fantastic teammates are at the top of my list. Yes, you, Opus/MAS team! I’m thankful for all the diverse, spirited, and brilliant people across our agency...

Opus Agency Lands Spot on Oregonian’s Top Workplaces List for 7th Consecutive Year

The team is proud to see Opus Agency on the prestigious list once again! Opus sits at the 17th spot in the top 40 midsize companies (100 to 499 employees) in Oregon and SW Washington. This year, the Oregonian wrote a full company profile celebrating our team-focused culture...

Opus Celebrates Summer with Team Offsites

Each summer, our teams spend some quality time together. We’re saying farewell to summer and reflecting on our team offsites. [rev_slider alias=”summer-offsites-2018″] Interested in playing Top Golf, boating, and doing other fun things with a great team? You’re in luc...

Opus Hires Experienced VP to Global Accounts Team

PORTLAND, Ore. – September 11, 2018 – Opus Agency is excited to announce the addition of Kate Clarvoe as Vice President on the Global Accounts team. Clarvoe, who joined Opus September 4, will provide key guidance and leadership as the agency continues...

Maestro Labors of Love: Noah Dunham

Opus values work-life balance, and celebrates the amazing and creative passion projects that our employees maintain outside of work. In this series, we’ll be highlighting Maestro side hustles. Name: Noah Dunham Title: Associate Producer Side Hustle: Tour Punisher Podcast What is Tour Punisher...

Opus says “Farewell” to the Summer Interns!

Opus was excited to welcome a crew of interns this summer! Sadly, their internships are ending. We’re reflecting on their time with us and getting excited for the next steps in their professional journeys! Here’s what our interns had to say about their Opus experiences: Bodie Crist...

Opus Celebrates Four Consecutive Years on the Inc. 5000 List!

For the fourth year in a row, Opus has been named one of the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the country. The list is published yearly by Inc. Magazine. The private, independent (non-subsidiary) companies on the Inc. 5000 are chosen based on revenue growth...

Maestro Labors of Love: Valerie White

Opus values work-life balance, and celebrates the amazing and creative passion projects that our employees maintain outside of work. In this series, we’ll be highlighting Maestro side hustles. Name: Valerie White Title: Event Manager, Operations Side Hustle: Public Relations Liaison...

Opus Agency Lands Spot on the It List for Ninth Consecutive Year!

We are thrilled to announce that Opus has made Event Marketer’s It List for the ninth time in a row. The It List is a yearly editorial feature compiling the event industry’s top agencies. This honor recognizes the innovation and impeccable execution we’ve...

Opus Acquires Level 2 Design—Our Third Strategic Acquisition this Year

(PORTLAND, OR—JULY 10, 2018) Opus Agency, a leading provider of global event experiences, today announced it is acquiring Level 2 Design, an industry leader in technical design and production. Level 2 Founder and President, Tommy Melancon will join the Opus leadership team...

Opus Team Donates Blood to American Red Cross

The team took some time out of their busy day to help save lives! American Red Cross stopped by the Portland office for a blood drive; Maestros were able to fill the entire donation schedule for their visit. Of the 30 employees who donated blood, 28 of them were first-time donors...

AWS re:Invent Receives Ex Award for Second Consecutive Year!

Event Marketer announced the winners of the Ex Awards at the 2018 Event Marketing Summit in San Francisco. Amazon Web Services and Opus were awarded the Ex Award for Best B2B Event! The award recognizes Amazon Web Services for their amazing work on re:Invent...

We Asked Our Team for Their Best De-Stressing Tips

In 2017, CNBC released a list of the most stressful jobs in America; event planner landed at #5. Additionally, May is one of the busiest times of the year for our team. How do you keep feelings of pressure at bay during this time as an event professional...

Opus Agency Makes a Big Move with the Acquisition of MAS Event + Design

BEAVERTON, Ore. — (May 10, 2018) Opus Agency, a leading provider of global event experiences, today announced it has joined with MAS Event + Design, an innovator in the area of experiential event design and implementation. The founders of MAS, Mia Choi and Sneha Bhatia...

Opus adds experienced producer in leadership role

PORTLAND, Ore. – May 3, 2018 – Opus Agency is excited to announce the addition of Wendy Rusk as Vice President of Production Operations. Rusk, who joined the team May 1, will fill an important leadership role in the agency, primarily responsible for guiding...

CRG Events (now Opus) Wins Big at the ILEA Seattle Awards

The Seattle Team was honored at the International Live Events Association Seattle Chapter’s Emerald City Applause Awards ceremony. The award recognizes the Seattle team’s (formerly CRG Events) work on the Diner en Blanc in Seattle. Diner en Blanc is a...

Opus Expands Agency with the Acquisition of CRG Events

Portland, OR — March 6, 2018 — Opus Agency, a leading provider of global event experiences, today announced it has acquired CRG Events, a highly respected Seattle-based event management agency. CRG’s long-time CEO, Leasa Mayer, will serve as Executive Vice President at Opus...

Event Marketer, Opus Forge Multi-Year Partnership to Elevate Strategy Across Industry

This first-of-its-kind initiative includes live education and exclusive research to inform and elevate the events industry’s use of strategy. NORWALK, CT, FEBRUARY 27, 2018 —Event Marketer and leading experiential marketing agency Opus announced today...

Give it Up for the 2017 TeamCS Award Winners!

Every year, the Opus team takes a day to celebrate everything we’ve accomplished in the last year. We call this all-day agency offsite Team Connect. During the celebration, we present awards to employees that have embodied TeamCS in the last year. Check...

Maestros Toast to a Successful 2017 at Team Connect!

Last week, the maestros celebrated the best work day of the year, Team Connect! Team Connect is a yearly all-day agency offsite where we celebrate everything we accomplished in the previous year. The team also looks to the future and discusses next year’s goals...

Maestros Wrap Up the Year with White Elephant Gift Exchange

‘Tis the season for unlimited baked goods in the Opus kitchen, Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You,” and a Maestro White Elephant gift exchange! Plenty of stealing led to a heated game, but everyone in the group ended up with some awesome (and weird) gifts...

We Asked Our Team to Sum Up Onsite Experiences in Six Words

The best stories come from working onsite at an event. We challenged our Maestros to sum up some of their stories in just six words. Read on to see what they said (we promise you won’t regret it). More Band-Aids please and thank you! Oh, I forgot about the sun...

Opus Proudly Announces Partnership with Cvent

The Opus team is thrilled to announce our partnership with Cvent, a leader in meeting and event technology. The integration of Cvent’s technology with our agency’s strategic and executional offerings promises to create new value for existing and future customers...

Event Marketer Awards Opus Experience Design & Technology Award

Event Marketer has released the winners of the Experience Design & Technology Awards, and Opus is on the list! We are honored to be named the Silver Winner in the “Best Combination of Event Technologies, B-to-B” category. The award recognizes our work with our innovative client...

Monster Mash & Taco Bar on Halloween at Opus HQ

Things got spooky at the Opus HQ for Halloween. Our Halloween party consisted of a taco bar and a very competitive costume contest. See who won! Funniest Costume: CEO, Monte Wood as a Hammerhead Scariest Costume: Director of Creative Services Operations...

Opus is One of the Best Places to Work in Oregon—Again!

For the 6th year in a row, the Oregonian has placed Opus on their Top Workplaces list. Opus has made the list every year since the Oregonian started publishing it. Opus sits at number 33 in the top 40 midsize companies (100 to 499 employees) to work at in Oregon and SW Washington...

Doing Good for the Summer

Barbeques, afternoons at the pool, and giving back to the community. That’s what summer is all about, right? At Opus, it definitely is. Focusing on philanthropic efforts is a year-round affair for the agency, but during summer 2017, we worked on taking it up a notch...

“Run of Show” Bruised, Bonded During Hood to Coast

Event professionals are used to covering lots of miles by foot on show day, but Hood to Coast is on another level. Last week, 12 Maestros packed their running shoes and some Icy-Hot in preparation for the annual Hood to Coast Relay. The relay covers...

One of Portland’s Top Creative Agencies!

The Portland Business Journal has released their annual list of the Portland area’s largest creative agencies, and Opus is near the top! Each year, the PBJ tallies local creative shops, based on revenue. Opus often ranks high on the list, and this year is no exception...

Three consecutive years on the Inc. 5000!

Opus remains one of the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the United States for the third straight year. This list, an annual compendium put together by Inc. Magazine, is based purely on revenue growth among private, independent (non-subsidiary) companies located within the United States...

Opus Named Top Agency for Eight Straight Years!

Event Marketer recently released the 2017 It List, an annual editorial feature identifying their picks for the top agencies in the industry. Opus was honored to be named to the list for the eighth consecutive year. It’s an honor to be recognized as one of the most innovative...

An Events Agency’s Favorite Events

Not only do we love being event professionals, we love being attendees as well! Enjoying an event as an attendee allows us to learn about the industry and have fun at the same time. Here are a few of our personal favorite events: TechFestNW TechFestNW...

Five straight years of extraordinary growth!

We were honored last week to make the Portland Business Journal’s list of the 100 fastest-growing private companies in Oregon and Southwest Washington! This year included a special recognition for Opus. Businesses that make the list for five consecutive years are given the coveted Lighthouse Award...

A Healthy Team is a Happy Team!

Opus values the importance of mental and physical health, which is why Opus employees are provided with various opportunities to work toward being their best selves. Read about our health initiatives: Every Opus employee has a membership to Fit Academy...

Opus adds accomplished events leader to head Strategy team

Beaverton, OR – May 1, 2017 – Opus Agency has added another seasoned event marketing industry leader to its executive team, welcoming Kim Kopetz as EVP of Strategy. In this new role, Kopetz will lead the continued development of strategy offerings for the agency’s clients...

Opus Agency: One of the Best Places to Work in Events

Event Marketer recently announced their biennial list of the best places to pursue a career in the event marketing industry, naming Opus as a top events agency. The collection of the nation’s best work environments was determined with an anonymous survey...

Celebrating our 2017 TeamCS™ Award Winners!

Here at Opus, we take teamwork very seriously. Our philosophy when it comes to our team can be summed up simply: We hire amazing people, guide them with strong values, and empower them to do great work with industry-best methodology. This formula drives success for our customers—we call it TeamCS...

Opus celebrates Team Connect 2017!

At every year’s conclusion, Opus Agency holds its annual Team Connect event, a high-energy, all-staff offsite where we review the prior year’s results, celebrate our shared successes, acknowledge everyone’s contributions (aided by some next-level swag), and look ahead to the coming year...

Opus Agency bolsters strategy capabilities with two VP-level hires

Beaverton, OR – January 5, 2017 – Opus Agency has added two senior-level members to its steadily growing Strategy team, further enhancing the agency’s ability to provide clients with dedicated strategic consultation in the continually evolving events marketing arena...

Opus Takes Home Three Experience Design and Technology Awards

We were honored today, along with our clients, with awards in three categories at the Experience Design and Technology Awards, held as part of Event Marketer’s EVENTtech Conference in Las Vegas. Opus Agency, in partnership with our always-innovative clients...

Congrats to the Third-Quarter SUPOs!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: it’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” The SUPOs for the third quarter are… We honored three different SUPOs through the summer months...

Opus: the Intern Experience

Looking at an internship in the events industry? Or maybe you’re interested in learning more about working in a fully integrated agency environment while still earning class credit. Opus is proud to offer multiple academic placements every year to help students get a taste of the working world...

Opus Named One of Oregon’s Top Workplaces

Last night, the Oregonian held a gala to honor the best places to work in Oregon and southwest Washington. Opus Agency made the list for the fifth year in a row. Coming in at number 22, Opus is one of only 14 companies to have made the list for each of...

Opus Agency Makes the Inc. 5000

Opus Agency was once again honored among the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the United States. The list is based purely on revenue growth among private, independent (non-subsidiary) companies located within the United States. This is not...

Opus Supports 8th Annual Children’s Cancer Association Children’s Pro-Am

For the eighth year in a row since the event’s inception in 2009, Opus was proud to be involved with supporting The Children’s Pro-Am benefitting the Children’s Cancer Association (CCA). Opus Vice Chairman and CCA board member Grant Hammersley founded the tournament eight years ago...

EMC Recognized for Consistently Incredible B-to-B Events

EMC was recently featured in Event Marketer for their impressive work in the B-to-B event space. It was a pleasure to partner with EMC on this amazing project—their continual drive to push the envelope of what is possible in B-to-B events is a challenge we love taking on, again and again...

Glory to the June SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: it’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” This month’s SUPO is… The SUPO for the month of June acts as an ambassador for the Opus brand, and for TeamCS™...

Opus Named to the PBJ’s Top 100 Private Companies

Last night, Opus was honored for the fourth year in a row as one of the 100 fastest-growing private companies in Oregon and Southwest Washington. The list, put together by the Portland Business Journal, recognizes privately owned companies who display...

All hail the May SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: it’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” This month’s SUPO is… Our SUPO for the month of May is recognized primarily for...

A tip o’ the helmet to our two-wheeled Maestros!

Congrats to the many Maestros who participated in this year’s Bike More Challenge. The Bicycle Transportation Alliance issued a challenge to all the cyclists in Oregon: get out and ride during the month of May! Check out those sick stats! And ride we did...

Mini-Maestros Invade Opus HQ

We had a ton of fun today celebrating Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day today in Opus headquarters. For half a day, we had Maestros bring their kids in to get a close look at what it is their parents do all day while they’re in school. This year’s theme is “Sparking AHA...

A high five for our April SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” This month’s SUPO is… April’s SUPO stands out for her high level of efficiency...

Design Week Portland @ Opus HQ

Back in April, the Portland design community came together for a week of engaging events, open houses, and fireside chats exploring the many facets of the design world. Opus joined the fray, hosting an event focused on experience design. We targeted all sorts of sensory experience...

Opus Among Top 100 Event Agencies Four Years Running

Today, Event Marketer Magazine released their 14th annual It List, a yearly roundup of the top agencies in the experiential marketing space. For the fourth year in a row, Opus claimed a spot among the top 100 agencies in the game. The It List honor is...

Walking to Cure Arthritis

Cathy Burgess, an industry vet who’s been with Opus for over ten years, faces more than the typical challenges that face hard-working event planners. A few years ago, she was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), an autoimmune disorder that involves...

The 2016 Walk for Wishes

Erin Johansen, a long-time Business Financial Analyst on the Opus team, put her 20 years of industry experience to work for the Make-A-Wish “Walk for Wishes” over the weekend, raising over $120,000 for the organization. While it’s certainly a worthy cause...

Hooray for our March SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” This month’s SUPO is… Our March SUPO has quickly adapted the “Opus Way,” embodying the key values of hard work...

Three cheers for our February SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” This month’s SUPO is… February’s SUPO is incredibly passionate about the quality of work that Opus produces...

Opus Once Again Featured in Event Marketer Magazine

Opus Agency and 21st Century Fox’s recent Experience Design Awards silver award in the Best Single Technology Interactive category was highlighted in the February/March edition of Event Marketer magazine. The 2015 Experience Design Awards special section...

Announcing our January 2016 SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” This month’s SUPO is… January’s SUPO takes immense pride in the work he delivers, and relishes working with his team...

Announcing our December 2015 SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” This month’s SUPO is… Our December SUPO is a consistently positive teammate who is always willing to cooperate...

Opus Featured in Event Marketer Magazine

Highlighting Opus Agency and EMC’s recent Event Technology Awards win in the Best Combination of Event Technologies (B2B) category, the most recent edition of Event Marketer magazine features a full-page overview of the experience EMC and Opus partnered...

Announcing our November 2015 SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” This month’s SUPO is… Our November SUPO is known for being willing to take on grueling tasks with professionalism and a smile...

Opus Takes Silver in the 2015 Experience Design Awards

Event Marketer today named the winners of the 2015 Experience Design Awards. Opus Agency and 21st Century Fox received a Silver Award in the Best Single Technology Interactive category for their partnership at the 21st Century Fox Senior Leadership Summit...

Congratulations to our 2015 TeamCS Award Winners!

Here at Opus, we take teamwork very seriously. Our overarching philosophy when it comes to our team can be summed up simply: We hire amazing people, guide them with strong values, and empower them to do great work with industry-best methodology. This formula drives success for our customers...

2015 Team Connect / Holiday Party Event

At the end of every year, Opus Agency has its annual Team Connect event, a high-energy, all-staff offsite where we review the prior year’s results, celebrate our successes, acknowledge everyone’s contributions — epic swag! — and look ahead to the coming year...

Announcing our October 2015 SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” And this month’s SUPO is… October’s SUPO always has a “happy to help” attitude, and is a force to reckon with...

Opus Wins 2015 Event Technology Awards Gold

Earlier today, at an EventTech (eventtech.eventmarketer.com) awards ceremony at Las Vegas’ Bellagio Hotel, Opus Agency and EMC took home 2015 Event Technology Awards gold, for partnering on this year’s EMC World event (www.emcworld.com). Specifically...

Announcing our September 2015 SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” And this month’s SUPO is… Our September SUPO is an excellent team player, and...

Fan Creek Capital invests with Opus Agency

Investment provides significant growth capital, opportunity to expand capabilities and service offerings Opus Agency, a global corporate events and experiential marketing agency, announced today that Fan Creek Capital, a mid-market private equity firm...

Opus Agency Named to Oregonian’s 2015 “Top Workplaces” List

For the fourth consecutive year, Opus Agency has been named a Top Workplace in Oregon and SW Washington by The Oregonian. Recipients of this recognition are determined solely based on employee feedback, solicited via an anonymous survey conducted by WorkplaceDynamics...

Announcing our August 2015 SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” And this month’s SUPO is… Our August SUPO manages to push her ten-key machine...

Announcing our July 2015 SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” And this month’s SUPO is… Our July SUPO often works “behind the scenes,” helping...

Announcing our June 2015 SUPO!

At Opus, we call our employee of the month award the “SUPO.” It’s kind of a long story, but essentially: It’s “OPUS” spelled backwards, and it sounds a little like “super.” And this month’s SUPO is… June’s SUPO has managed to shine in the short five months she’s been at Opus...

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