-
Rob Elliott
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
Known as our left brain, Rob brings to Event Focus more than 25 years of domestic and international event management experience and has produced over 1,000 events in his career, spanning 100 U.S. cities and 14 countries. Rob oversees Event Focus’ logistical team and directs our venue and vendor management, unions, legal and finance initiatives.
Rob has produced events for a blue chip roster of clients including the NFL, NBA, NBC Sports, Facebook, Google and Netflix to name a few. Having honed his event management skills working in Seattle, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco and Geneva, Switzerland, Rob has an innate understanding of how to pull together the right team for every client.
Rob is a graduate of Washington State University and has been settled in the Bay Area for the past 12 years. When not producing amazing events, Rob is an avid cook and also enjoys travel, golf and college football.
FAVORITE FOOD:
FAVORITE TV SHOW:
FAVORITE VACATION SPOT:
LITTLE KNOWN FACT:
Fried chicken
Diners, Drive In and Dives
Seattle and St. Barts
Rob’s guilty pleasure is binging on Real Housewives of Orange County
-
Mary Carvotta-Trexler
CHIEF CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Our right brain, Mary is recognized as one of the nation’s top event designers and her background includes over 20 years of event design experience.
At Event Focus, Mary and her design team are intimately involved in every detail and her unique eye for design aesthetics, interactivity and entertainment allow her to build distinctive and customized experiences for our clients. Her vast network of cutting edge partners in the areas of food and beverage, lighting, décor, staging, A/V and props enable her to build the right team for each Event Focus event and has won her rave reviews from our clients.
Mary is a graduate of University of California Santa Barbara and got her Master's Degree from the Annenberg School at USC. When not designing spectacular events, she enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, and exploring the best of the Bay Area’s food and wine scene.
Boneless short ribs
San Francisco Giant baseball
Napa
Mary would like to own a professional sports team
FAVORITE FOOD:
FAVORITE TV SHOW:
FAVORITE VACATION SPOT:
LITTLE KNOWN FACT:
-
Lisa Anderson-Nelson
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE
A former CFO for a Fortune 100 company and Bank Auditor, Lisa knows how to account for every penny. In fact, she probably even knows where the penny was minted. As our Director of Finance, Lisa is responsible for handling all client-related finances and internal Event Focus accounting and compliance.
A Washington native, Lisa graduated from Pacific Lutheran University in Seattle. When not counting pennies, Lisa loves the outdoors and is an avid volleyball and soccer player.
FAVORITE FOOD:
FAVORITE TV SHOW:
FAVORITE VACATION SPOT:
Pizza
Food Network
Backpacking in the wilds of Montana
LITTLE KNOWN FACT:
Lisa still holds a Washington State high school swimming record
-
Tia Dieckmann
DIRECTOR OF EVENT PRODUCTION
One of the top event producers in the land, Tia has traveled to more than 11 countries to produce events for a wide variety of clients. Her vast experience includes coordinating production for some of the top musical acts in the business including Train, Metallica, Pitbull, Robin Thicke, Lenny Kravitz and the B52’s to name a few.
Tia serves as the quarterback of our production team and works closely with our vendors and venues to make sure every detail is perfect. Her depth of experience, along with her calm demeanor, have disarmed many a nervous client on show night.
Tia was born on Englewood, Colorado and graduated from the University of Colorado. In her spare time, Tia enjoys food and wine, more travel and is a loving mom to her stepson and two Golden Retrievers, Palmer and Nikki B.
FAVORITE FOOD:
FAVORITE TV SHOW:
FAVORITE VACATION SPOT:
LITTLE KNOW FACT:
Sushi
Orange is the New Black
Anywhere there is beach & sun
Tia aspires to be a college or professional mascot for a day
-
Melanie Goodwin
DIRECTOR OF CREATIVE SERVICES
A true creative at heart, Melanie possesses more than a decade of event, marketing and design experience. She has applied her creative flair and attention to detail to hundreds of events for Fortune 50 companies including AT&T, HP and Google.
Melanie oversees visual design, presentations, marketing and vendor relationships for Event Focus as well as program operations, where her broad range of skills enables her to tackle any challenge.
A Texas transplant, Melanie studied theatrical design at the University of North Texas and in the U.K. Her theatrical background enables her to envision an event as an artful story in which guests play a leading role.
When not creating exceptional experiences for clients, Melanie enjoys exploring the West Coast, volunteering, hiking and practicing hot yoga.
FAVORITE FOOD:
FAVORITE TV SHOW:
FAVORITE VACATION SPOT:
LITTLE KNOW FACT:
Chocolate
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
A new foreign locale
Melanie occasionally dangles from the ceiling as an aerial gymnast