Executive Profile

Name: Tonja Taylor

Title: Founder / CEO

Organization: Tonja Taylor Event Solutions

Birthplace: Kansas City, Missouri

Career History:

  • 26 years with PNC Bank
  • Six years with Tonja Taylor Event Solutions

 

Tonja Taylor spent 25 years climbing the ranks at one of the nation’s largest financial services companies. When the pandemic disrupted her career, she turned the setback into a springboard and launched TT Event Solutions. Today, her former employer is a valued client, and Taylor has expanded into other areas, including wine trips and destination weddings.

The Kansas City native studied marketing at the University of Missouri-Kansas City before joining PNC as an executive administrative assistant. She stepped into event planning almost by accident when tapped to organize the company’s delegation to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s annual conference, a citywide gathering that draws law firms, rating agencies and the country’s largest banks.

“I realized, yeah, I can do this,” said Taylor. “It sounds like fun. Let me pull this together.”

She did more than pull it together. The company built a position around her, folding conference planning into the marketing department and eventually promoting her to assistant vice president. At busiest in that position, Taylor managed more than 50 annual events ranging from ski trips and golf outings to C-suite receptions in markets nationwide.

“There are so many pieces of the puzzle,” she said. “We end up becoming air traffic controllers.”

But the pandemic temporarily ground air traffic — and in-person business events. In 2020, Taylor lost he job when the company eliminated its events department. She relocated to Maine to enjoy some quiet time and evaluate the future. That pause led her to an important decision.

“My passion is event planning,” Taylor said. “I love people. I love being with people. I love the immediate gratification of pulling an event together and seeing the fruits of the labor at the end of the day.”

Betting that in-person meetings would soon return, she launched TT Event Solutions. “I decided ‘this is not if events are coming back into place — it’s when,’” she said.

The bet paid off quickly. Former colleagues at her old company, still scrambling to staff their conferences and client events, hired her back as a contractor to run the same programs she had built. Taylor has since returned to Kansas City, where her children and two granddaughters live, and is happy to be home.

“I love my city,” she said. “When I go to conferences, whether it’s Small Market Meetings or any of the other conferences, I’m always telling people that Kansas City is great. You should visit!”

Tips from Tonja Taylor

  1. Don’t focus solely on the room rate or contract total. Experienced planners negotiate the details that can save you when plans change — attrition, cancellation, force majeure, concessions, F&B minimums, complimentary rooms, AV, and cutoff dates.
  2. When traveling for an event, don’t build your timeline around everything going perfectly. Allow buffer time for flight delays, transportation, weather, baggage, and vendor deliveries.
  3. A strong relationship can be just as valuable as a lower price. Vendors are often more willing to find solutions, accommodate changes, hold space, or go the extra mile for planners they trust.