Stacie Bellemare

Welcome to our EP corner! In this section we will feature profiles and inside stories from the Event Planners that help organize your CME courses. So read on and learn a little bit about our Event Planners and what they do.

EP Profile: Stacie Bellemare

Stacie started event planning eleven years ago when she decided she wanted a challenge. When the event planner at her old job left she stepped in, leaving her Communications Coordinator position at the Guelph Chamber of Commerce behind. From Guelph she moved to the University of Toronto, where she’s been working hard for the past eight years.

The work of an event planner is a complex one.

“The most difficult thing is being able to be everything to everyone,” says Stacie.

She stresses that the difficulty is not in scheduling, it’s not in priorities, “it’s about making sure everyone is getting the attention they deserve.”

“The best thing about the job is the people you get to work with, whether it be course directors or registrants, you learn something from everyone,” she says.

And learn she has! Over the years Stacie has had her share of ups and downs. She says her worst experience happened when she planned an anniversary luncheon.

“We had sat down and gone through, with the client, exactly what they wanted,” Stacie says, remembering that day. But on the day of the event the client wanted everything changed at the last minute. From the agenda and the presentations to what time the dessert was to be served; everything had to be changed. How did Stacie deal with it?

“We went with the flow,” she says. “Catering was able to accommodate and we delayed for 15 minutes while we did a massive reset of the room.”

Going with the flow, according to Stacie, is what makes a good event planner.

“You need to be able to go with the flow and adapt to the situation, so you have the best outcome for everyone,” she says. “You need to have attention to detail, be calm, be flexible and be patient.”

“The best thing is when you’ve had a successful event,” says Stacie about the high points of her position. “The registrants are happy, the client is happy and everything has gone smoothly.”

That sense of gratification is what she loves.