We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tionna Van Gundy a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Tionna, appreciate you joining us today. Your ability to build a team is often a key determinant of your success as a business owner and so we’d love to get a conversation going with successful entrepreneurs like yourself around what your recruiting process was like -especially early on. How did you build your team?
I always knew that I’d be an entrepreneur and that I’d manage a team. What that looked like exactly and how I was going to get there I was unsure of. When I originally took my leap into full-time entrepreneurship, I was a soloprenuer like most of us doing everything in the business and wearing way too many hats! However, I do believe there are lessons learned in those early stages that help lay the foundation for your processes and the leader you will become as you begin to scale, grow a team and hire to replace yourself.
When I first started out, I made mistakes, bought into platforms that weren’t helpful, courses that didn’t give me what I wanted/needed, and invested my time in organizations or people that just weren’t quite the right fit for what was wanted, needed or where I was going. But, it was in those mistakes that I was able to craft the businesses I have today and that I’m so proud to own. I think it is important for someone to really understand a role, what they want out of it and their own expectations before hiring to fill it!
I had a colleague from a past workplace help with on-site event assistance as I needed it in the early stages. It was a 1099 agreement and very loosely organized. Because her and I had worked together previously, had a background in events, she was an obvious and easy first contractor to bring onboard. It was seamless because we both had the same expectations of our own work having both been trained through the Marriott Hotels group and having a love and commitment to service and hospitality.
What I have learned as an entrepreneur, leader and manager is it is much more difficult to build a team when you are acting as HR, the boss, the trainer and the visionary – all while hiring people you haven’t previously worked with at length! However, as my small business begin to grow in clientele I took it step by small step before diving into fully building a team and hiring full-time employees.
It started with an internship program that I named, The Wedicity Internship Experience. I was committed to making it a hands on approach to learning events onsite backed by an educational curriculum and office work to fully understand the full picture of how to operate and the “why’s” behind it all. This internship program has done really well for the company and we typically have 1-2 interns through the program each summer. The program taught me early on how to lead, set expectations and how to train appropriately. As the sole employee of the business, I need to delegate but also train up so that my own expectations were met. This not only built a solid leadership foundation for myself, but created a program that has become an incubator for potential new hires!
Second to the internship program, I created an on-site assistant program for 1099 contractors to be on our on-call list to help support events that I was in need of. The requirement was to shadow an event first, then if you liked what we did and it seemed like a good fit on both sides, then you would be invited back to work a paid assistant position. These roles were firmly just support roles but gave me a front row seat to see how someone responds on-site at an event to realtime situations, how they treat guests, how they take direction and where they were able to be proactive or inquisitive about the process. This really allowed me to see who was capable to handling the level of service I wanted to provide and who continued to come back and want more information/work and was dedicated to the process. This became my second funnel for potential employees!
To me, building a team also means building ALL of those around you, even professional services that you pay for such as a virtual assistant, CPA, bookkeeper, social media manager, etc. I have tried several of these services and sometimes you just need to give it a try to see what works for you and your business. I’ve hired both a professional VA and also have worked with one of our assistants that just wanted a little more work to take on. I’ve taken recommendations on bookkeeping and CPA services that have worked out wonderfully and also tried social media management services that just did not stick. Your team is not always just the full time or 1099 contractors you work with – it truly is all of the professional services you surround and support your business with!
My last approach to hiring is the traditional method of having a job description, posting it and interviewing. Now, this works for hundreds of employers but I can say that my first two approaches to hiring, far out perform the traditional hiring method. Our internship program and on-site assistantships really help us get to know the individual and gives them a look into the business and how I operate to see if they believe its a good fit for them as well. What I love about these two ways of building a team is that it seems to be a more mutual understanding as they are on-boarded. We both have a good idea of the others output and expectations so its a much more seamless transition as they come on to the team full time.
At the teams largest I had four full time employees, one virtual assistant and a bookkeeper/CPA that I had on board. We were handling a level of volume that required everyone of those people on the team. What I have learned through that experience, is to truly listen to the team, find what each person is great at, and learn what they need from you as a leader. Every single person on the team needed something different from me as well as they all needed me to be a boss, decision maker and visionary. Something that boded well for our team was on on-boarding process and training. I include the team in the training to make sure everyone is getting to know each other and we are building that team culture and company culture I want us to embody. The training starts with the basics about the company, core values and they why behind how we approach each client, each day and our work overall. We cover all of our platforms and I ease them into their work before fully letting each person step into their role so that they know they are supported by both myself and their co-workers. There is a mix of on-site event assistant work that is completed as well to ensure they are seeing a variety of events before they are given that full responsibility on their own. I believe we have a solid on-boarding process that helps them feel welcomed, supported and confident as they move into any role on the team!
Although our team is a bit smaller now, there are two full time employees and a part time event assistant as well as a CPA/Book-keeper. The process of promoting from within using our internship program and event assistant program has provided a truly dynamic team! Two of which have come through our internship program and one from our event assistant program so I can say with confidence that it works and we have a team that I’m sincerely proud of!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Tionna Van Gundy, CSEP is the Founder and CEO of 3 event-centric firms based out of Chicago, IL. Her first endeavor, Wedicity Wedding Planning & Design celebrated its 12 year of business in 2024 serving couples in the luxury wedding market all over the world. She produces events all over the country and abroad with 15+ years of experience and a team of three. Her two other event related brands include Fueled Events which is an event management and production company servicing corporate and non-profit clients. Her latest venture is an intimate event venue; The Fulton West based out of the West Town neighborhood of Chicago.
Tionna is known for her pandemic pivot in 2020 which launched the largest socially safe entertainment experience in the Midwest at the time, branded: Chi-Together! She was recognized locally and nationally through Event Marketer.
As a powerhouse of entrepreneurial information, Tionna prides herself on supporting small businesses, women-owned business growth and is dedicated to educating upcoming entrepreneurs.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
When I decided to finally go from side hustle to ALL IN – I fully immersed myself in the industry and that is what helped me get to where I am today backed by doing a few simple things…
1.) Stay Relevant / Stay Connected
2.) Always do what you say will do.
3.) Be open to feedback / change
4.) Set standards and follow them
5.) Be Kind
Let me elaborate, because I know these are sound simple. They are but few people are doing all of these things!
1.) Stay Relevant = Stay Connected
You have to stay connected to stay relevant and vice versa. I like to say “no one can recommend you if they don’t know you!” – which is why when I finally committed myself to this journey of entrepreneurship in the events industry, I went to every networking event I heard about. I met every person I could and tried to form relationships, even if simple, with everyone. Simple post-event emails saying hi, coffee conversations, and joining industry organizations helped me stay connected and stay relevant so that my name came top of mind, helping build my brand, my portfolio and my reputation as someone who was good to know. Staying connected in this way meant I was always one of the first to hear about changes in the industry, new opportunities and was always in know about what what happening which helped further build my reputation of being someone who was a true resource.
2.) Always do what you say will do.
This sounds simple until you’ve really worked for a bit and have seen first hand how many people over promise and under deliver. Now, I will always give leeway for honest mistakes – things do happen! We are all human. However, if you say you will send someone a piece of information by Friday, do it. If you say that you will get coffee with that vendor who has asked, set the date. If you make any promise or commitment – see it all the way through. And if you cannot for any reason, say it. It seems so simple – however the amount of times commitments/promises are not fully lived out – leads to a failing reputation. Be known for being the person who always comes through on what they said – it will take you far. And it’s also okay to turn down opportunities or tasks if know that you cannot fully commit to it. Setting that boundary for yourself will pay you dividends in the future!
3.) Be open to feedback / change
Change happens and so does both positive and negative feedback. It’s okay to not always be right, it’s okay to not have all of the answers. Be the person who is open to hearing things out and not getting defensive. It can be tough, especially as an entrepreneur, our work is so closely tied to our ego however once you can fully embrace change and allow yourself to grow from constructive feedback – your reputation will precede you as the one who is kind, flexible and a collaborator.
4.) Set standards and follow them
Early on, I knew there were certain core values that I had as a person that I also wanted to flow into my business and me team who represents both the brand and myself. It was important that I set those standards for myself and that same expectation of my team. If we ever slip away from a standard, it’s about recognizing it and course-correcting. As someone in the service and events industry – we set many of the same service standards of our vendor and creative partners – only aligning ourselves with those with similar or even higher standards than our own. This allowed other event professionals and clients to see us as a planning firm with ethics, values and a standard of greatness.
Still today, when we have an experience with a creative partner that didn’t live up to our internal standards, we discuss it as a team and then take it back to the vendor partner to give them the opportunity to grow from that experience as well. This sets the tone that we trust our partners to do their work well but we expect them to perform at a level of service that we want for our clients while also being a collaborative partner to them in allowing them to grow from a failed experience. Again, we are all human and it happens to all of us – we cannot be perfect all the time, even in the event industry when we are expected to be. However, we now have the reputation of being a team that cares not just about our clients expectations but about how we can help improve all of our partners by aligning to the same standards and moving upward together.
5.) Be Kind.
I love this one because it is the most obvious and simple of them all. Being kind is also part of our teams standards noted above however is one of those things that sometimes get lost in the hustle and bustle of moving along in our current fast-paced world. It can be a tiny gesture of holding open a door, a proper email intro before asking for something, allowing someone to fully finish their statement before chiming in, inviting a new-comer to a conversation or telling someone they look nice. A true believer in small things make a difference, giving someone a moment to say or do something kind can change how you are perceived. It shows that you care and are a good person. People want to work with people the like, being kind is a simple way to be in the good graces of everyone you encounter!
I could carry on and say several other ways I have built my reputation and ways to maintain it but it boils down to the most obvious idea of being reliable, kind, dependable, consistent and providing a quality product/service by doing exactly what you said you would!
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
COVID was a story of resilience for so many of us – especially those in the hospitality and event industry when we were literally told no one could gather…. The Art of Gathering being the exact thing that all of us did for living!
When COVID hit, I stayed positive, I told myself this wouldn’t last long. Then when my clients began to cancel and postpone their events to 2021, I stayed positive again and let them all move their events with no charge and took the financial hit as a courtesy to our clients who I knew where so upset and confused by it all. It was the right thing to do. I was confident that we’d be fine – I stayed positive.
I looked at what was supposed to be our best year yet…and saw an empty events calendar and little to no income coming in….I stayed positive. I told myself I’d figure it out. I always have and this was nothing new. I was rejected from unemployment as a small business owner and then was given minuscule PPP assistance, but I told myself, stay positive, you’ll make things happen.
As things got worse, I knew I needed to get creative. Not just for my business, but for my team. The people that I employ and have a responsibility to.
So, after a long drive thru the city and late night talks with my partner at the time. I decided to go ALL in on a project that felt so perfect, so personally and professionally aligned that it just made sense but was also deeply terrifying. I took a hard pivot from the beautiful world of weddings and created a drive-in event series of music and movie entertainment that was socially-safe and in complete alignment with the city of Chicago and exceeding CDC recommendations – all in the heart of Chicago at Soldier Field. Early on, I knew I had to think big, I knew I had to be creative but I wasn’t sure where that would lead me. It was incredibly important to me to ensure that whatever I did was aligned with who I’am as an individual but also the small business reputation that I’d built.
The event series: CHI-Together: Socially-Safe Entertainment was so perfectly those elements. Coming from a world of hospitality and live events, it was important to bring people together in a COVID world where we were told to stay apart. The feeling of togetherness and community yet safety was paramount. As I continued to build out this concept it just felt so right. We partnered with the Greater Chicago Food Depository to give back both cash and canned donations as their need has gone up 120% through the pandemic! In addition, I was able to avoid layoffs of my team and actually bring on a few more employees! We also positively impacted 10 Chicago-based businesses and over 75 individuals were put back to work when the rest of the industry was merely silenced by the pandemic.. To say I felt resilient at that time is an understatement. I was proud of our mission, I was proud of my team and I could not believe that I had just created an entirely new concept from the ground up within a few short months and became the largest operating socially safe event in the midwest at the time!
I had invested every single penny I had into this concept. Literally everything. I maxed out credit cards, emptied my IRA and every cent of cash that I had went into this concept – hoping that this creativity and resilence would pay off!. Going into it I felt scared. I’d always been a little conservative when it comes to money; a bit of a scarcity mindset as I never really came from much and kept my pennies close. I had always been on the hustle and grind and have worked hard for every opportunity every open door and everything that I’ve ever had. I’ve been proud of that and I was hoping that this concept was bringing something amazing to the city that I love that I could also be proud of!
To look back now, four years ago seems like a lifetime. I am still proud that I was even able to get the city to approve an event of that stature, I’m proud that I was able to keep my team working, I’m proud of the creative elements that we brought to the event experience, I’m proud of my team, I’m proud of myself for keeping things moving when the world wasn’t.
I’ve never done something so big, especially with my own personal investment, however I’m glad that I did. That experience taught me so much! Even now I look back and see the opportunity that has come from that resilience in the moment and I’m proud of the brand that I have built off of it: Fueled Events.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.wed-icity.com // www.fuledevents.com // www.thefultonwest.com // www.thetionnamarie.com
- Instagram: @wedicity_ // @fueledevents // @thefultonwest // @thetionnamarie
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wedicity/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tionna/
Image Credits
Colin Lyons Photography
City Savvy Imaging
Niki Marie Photo
Aspen Avenue
Alex Ferreri Photo
Jay Minichole Visuals