Hannah Thorne

Marketing & Customer Experience Manager, SMC Events
Bachelor of Arts in Event Management with minors in International Business and Strategy & Marketing

Being able to travel all over New Zealand for a range of events is amazing, says event management alumna Hannah Thorne who now works for SMC Events.

“I’ve worked across major events, including the Fulton Hogan Mount Festival of Multisport, Tauranga Half Ironman, Aramex Kiwi Walk & Run Series, Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon and the Auckland Easter Show. I’ve been involved in refining the event branding, look and feel, and the customer experience, with a focus on improving and evolving events year on year. The most rewarding part of my role is delivering consistently high-quality, polished events and continually enhancing the participant experience.

“I’ve now been with SMC Events for nearly four years, since starting here for an internship. I’ve since moved into the role of marketing & customer experience manager, with expanded responsibilities. During this time I’ve grown significantly in my leadership, decision-making and confidence, with greater input into planning discussions and key decisions within my role. I’ve managed and mentored multiple interns, including students from the AUT event management degree, and have also begun sponsorship pitching and sales, including identifying opportunities, reaching out, pitching and signing sponsors.”

Finding her path
Hannah says she first became interested in events when she was in high school.

“I gained some event management experience through dance performance opportunities I had in Year 12 and 13, which stimulated my interest in the events sector and how I could take this further. When my high school ran a careers night, I saw a presentation about AUT, and it looked like a really cool place to further my education so I researched their events programme and attended their events-specific open night. All the paths events could take me down intrigued me, and the rest is history.”

She had plenty of highlights throughout her time studying at AUT.

“I really enjoyed how lively and interactive AUT was, and I made some great friendships with others in my degree. I developed a lot of confidence at AUT through working with a range of people, which has carried through to working in the events industry with a huge variety of people. I continue to value the skills I developed at AUT, particularly the presentation, communication and collaboration skills, which are used daily in my role for sponsorship, marketing and event delivery.

“The event production course and workplace experience in my third year were what really opened my eyes to the event world in a super practical way. I learned so much by experiencing firsthand what goes into preparing and putting on an event, and putting my knowledge into practice with a professional company during my placement was incredible.”

Advice for other students
Hannah’s advice for other students is simple: keep an open mind.

“When I first started studying events, I was under the impression that I wanted to do concerts, festivals and gigs, however after experiencing events in the sporting and triathlon industry, it completely changed my views. I love working on sporting events.”

Make the most of networking opportunities, she adds.

“Take advantage of every opportunity provided to you and get into some volunteer work experience as soon as you can – it’s a great way to network and prove your skills for future employment.”