SoHo, New York
Get paid for your thinking, not just your execution.
I work with experienced event professionals who have mastered execution and are stuck on the Planner Plateau™, whether you run your own company or lead events in-house. You've built real expertise. Now let's make it pay like it.
of independent planners earn under $100,000 a year.
Skill isn't the problem. You already deliver flawless events. The problem is that your work is priced, briefed, and compared like logistics, so the thinking that makes your events work never shows up in your pay.
Everyone in events can execute. Few can prove it worked.
- 172,100event planner jobs in the U.S. No license or prior work experience required to enter.
- $61,160median pay for employed planners. Only the top 10% earn more than $101,700.
- 86%of B2B teams can't accurately attribute ROI back to their events.
Execution-only roles get execution-only pay.
You make it look easy. That's the problem.
Your clients and leadership see the beautiful event. They don't see the decisions behind it. So they keep relying on you to execute, and you keep getting faster at it. Faster just means more events at the same pay.
- You're booked solid, but your income hasn't moved in years.
- You're handed a date, a budget, and a venue, then asked to make it happen.
- You're working from briefs and RFPs with no objective, and getting compared on price.
- You're brought in after the decisions are made.
- Every year you promise yourself next year will be less crazy.
Now it has a name.
the Planner Plateau™(noun)
The point in an event career where your market value is tied to execution, a skill the industry has in abundance. Whether you earn a salary or run your own business, the work gets bigger and busier, but the pay levels off, because you're competing with everyone who sells the same thing. The way past it isn't more execution or a fancier title. It's adding a scarce skill: strategy.
I know it's possible because I did it.
For 25 years I've been known for flawless execution. In 2017, I was hired for an event around a billion-dollar acquisition, and they wanted me to live in logistics. Source the venue. Source the hotels. Report back.
But I was listening to what their employees were going through. So I pushed back, and came back with a strategy built around what those people needed to feel and do. That one pushback changed how I've worked ever since.
I didn't burn my business down or start over. I added the one thing the industry never taught us: how to design for an outcome, and prove it.
You don't need to start over. You need to make your experience count.
Becoming an Experiential Strategist
An event professional who designs events and experiences that influence behavior, drive measurable business results, and prove the ROI.
Every. Single. Time.
You don't have to start over. You have to add the skill set.
Want the numbers behind the Planner Plateau™?
See the full researchWhat CPES graduates say
“The CPES certification gave me the structure and vocabulary to articulate what has always guided my approach to experiential strategy. I'm proud to now hold the CPES designation and grateful for the recognition of the work that brought me here.”
“The CPES certification fundamentally changed the way I think about experiences and their role in achieving business outcomes. The frameworks apply far beyond event planning to membership development, partner engagement, and business strategy. It's a practical roadmap for designing experiences that create measurable impact rather than simply delivering a moment in time.”
Five questions that change the client conversation.
My free guide, From Event Executor to Experiential Strategist, walks you through the framework I use before any venue, date, or budget is discussed. Bring it to your next discovery call or leadership meeting.
More revenue, less stress: it starts with proving event success.
- AudienceWho are we designing for?
- BehaviorWhat do we need them to do?
- ExperienceWhat should they feel, think, and remember?
- Business outcomeWhat result will their behavior drive?
- ProofHow will we measure that result?
The collection
Go deeper when you're ready. Start with the book, put the method to work, then make your expertise official.
Make Them Feel That Way On Purpose
The book on designing experiences that drive behavior and prove business results.
The Experiential Strategist's Workbook
Design experiences that activate emotion, drive behavior, and prove business impact, step by step.
The Event & Experiential ROI Pocketbook
Real-world case studies that prove the framework works for any type of event.
CPES Certification
Become a Certified Professional Experiential Strategist, with a board-reviewed case study from your own work, for clients or for your organization.
JHM Media
Listen, watch, or read. New ideas every week for event professionals ready to get paid for their thinking.
The Experiential Strategist podcast
Honest conversations about the topics the events industry avoids.
Listen to the podcast
The Experiential Strategist on YouTube
The framework in action, one video at a time.
Watch on YouTube
The Tuesday Edge
One strategic idea every Tuesday for event professionals ready to get paid for their thinking.
Subscribe freeYou've mastered the work. Now get paid for the thinking.
Start with the five questions. Bring them to your next discovery call or leadership meeting and watch how the conversation changes.
Get the free guide