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New appointments

Miami Beach Convention Center announces new appointments

Thuy “Twee” Vuong (left) and Patricia M. Rios.

Having completed a three-year, $620-million-dollar reimagination in late 2018, today, the MBCC stands as one of the most advanced venues of its kind in North America, with 1.4 million square feet of flexible event space.

OVG360, a leading full-service venue management, and hospitality company, is growing – and today, announce the addition of industry veteran Thuy “Twee” Vuong to its South Florida management team. Joining OVG360 as Assistant General Manager of the Miami Beach Convention Center (MBCC) and its associated campus, Vuong will initially oversee Event & Guest Services, Venue Operations, Sales, Public Safety, and Transportation while being intricately involved in contractor and client relationships coupled with a variety of strategic initiatives.

Throughout her career, Vuong has amassed more than 27 years of event management, and operations experience at some of the largest arenas, entertainment venues, and convention centers in Florida – a top-tier international market for hospitality and events. As Director of
Operations for Informa Markets, Vuong managed everything from event logistics and signage to transportation, sustainability, and security for Florida Boat Shows. She spent more than 20 years working for ASM at the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center,
starting as Event Manager and eventually working her way up to Director of Sales, Event Services, and Marketing. Other major Florida venues she has worked at include The Bayfront Center: Times Arena and Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg and the Orange County Convention Center and Addition Financial Arena (at the University of Central Florida) in Orlando. Before that, Vuong worked at the Georgia World Congress Center, where she was appointed Sector Coordinator for the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games.

In her new role, Vuong will assist Freddie Peterson, General Manager of MBCC, in managing the day-to-day planning, maintaining, managing and event operations across the entire MBCC Campus – which includes the convention center, Pride Park, Collins Canal Park, and the new
Venu and The Rum Room. Outside of her supervisory roles, Vuong will observe MBCC’s administrative organization, procedures, policies, and programs, and make recommendations where necessary. Drawing on her decades of expertise, a large part of Vuong’s job will be to ensure every event is exceptional to create memorable experiences for all MBCC visitors.

Having completed a three-year, $620-million-dollar reimagination in late 2018, today, the MBCC stands as one of the most advanced venues of its kind in North America, with 1.4 million square feet of flexible event space (including the largest ballroom in South Florida), approximately 10 acres of open green space, a 10,000 square food production kitchen, a curated art collection worth over $7.1 million and over 1,600 miles of technical cabling to support unparalleled IT.

“Our world-class convention center and campus is thrilled to have someone with Twee’s experience, caliber, knowledge, and professionalism join the team,” said Peterson. “We all look forward to working very closely with her to continue bringing all we do to the next level while driving economic impact and excellence in customer service.”

Vuong earned a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the University of Central Florida and later studied Facility Management at the School of Public Assembly in West Virginia. Her success in the industry is credited to her hard work, determination, and attention to detail. Managing many different departments, Vuong takes a team-oriented approach to her work and handles her daily responsibilities with enthusiasm and a calm, friendly demeanor.

“I’ve been in the event industry for almost 30 years,” says Vuong. “I enjoy meeting people, learning about different events, and seeing the evolution of those events as they come to life. I started my venue management career in arenas before transitioning to convention centers. I’m so excited to work with the team at OVG360 to see what we can accomplish together in Miami Beach.”

Also MBCC announced that Patricia M. Rios, MSHRM – who has been Human Resources Business Partner at OVG360 at MBCC since 2019 – will now oversee all human resources and IT operations at the MBCC as Human Resources Business Partner | IT Operations. A veteran industry professional, Rios brings over 20 years of experience in hospitality and human resources management at reputable brands like OVG360, Centerplate, Interstate Hotels & Resorts, Starwood Hotels, and KSL Resorts. Working through a human resources lens, she has overseen property openings, transitions, and renovations at major venues all over the country and implemented lasting policies and procedures designed to build department infrastructure and increase efficiency in HR. Through it all, she has led employees with positivity, inclusion, excellent communication, and an emphasis on teamwork – focusing on talent development and retention to foster a constantly growing, evolving, and improving the environment.

“In her three years with us, we have been able to witness and benefit from the profound impact Patricia’s excellent leadership, customer service, professionalism, management, and hospitality expertise has had on our venue but most importantly, our MBCC family,” said Freddie Peterson. “No matter what is asked of Patricia, her innate ability to step up, pivot, problem solve and get the job done is truly unique. As we look at how HR and IT continue to integrate, we are perfectly positioned with even more success in having Patricia in this additional role.”

In her last role, Rios was responsible for aligning business objectives with employee protocols, consulting with management about human resource issues, and being a champion for company employees. Under her new title, she looks forward to further enhancing the work experience by incorporating innovative technology that makes the day-to-day employee and data experience safer, easier, and more effective.

“I have already begun making changes department-wide by standardizing certain IT processes and finding ways to be more efficient and productive,” says Rios. “It is also critically important for our teams to have the ability to collaborate and share information safely and efficiently, which is one of many exciting projects I want to accomplish in my new venture with OVG360.”

Both personally and professionally, Rios is passionate about community involvement. She is currently a member of the South Florida Hospitality HR Association, Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, and Miami-Dade County Summer Youth Internship Program. At OVG, she is co-champion of the Hispanic Latin Alliance Employee Resource Group, which promotes company-wide Hispanic and Latin cultural awareness, creates safe spaces for Hispanic and Latin employees, and develops more opportunities for those employees to obtain leadership
positions at OVG360. Driven by her love and appreciation for her cultural heritage, Rios sees this next move not just as an exciting step in her career but as a Hispanic woman. She looks forward to getting to further advocate for diversity in the workforce with her team at OVG360.

OVG360 understands that, to continue positively disrupting the industry, we need a diverse team to help us do it. We also believe that inclusivity drives innovation, strengthens our people, improves our service, and raises our excellence,” Rios says. “When I started my career over 20 years ago, it wasn’t easy to position myself in a leadership role as a woman with a Spanish accent. I have worked hard and am happy to have found individuals who believe in me as much as I believe in myself.”

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She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.

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