Elisabeth Eaton – Director and Conference Manager
BA (Hons) (Sheffield, UK), AMM

Elisabeth and her business partner Jenny set up Festival City Conventions in 1985 to meet a perceived need in the local market and have nurtured its expansion to its current involvement in conferences all over Australia.

Prior to her involvement in conference management, Elisabeth was involved in research and publishing, having worked in Adelaide for several years as journal manager and executive assistant for the Australian and New Zealand Society for Epidemiology and Research in Community Health. She has also edited conference Proceedings and reports for government departments.
Before her arrival in Australia in 1976, Elisabeth worked for several years as an editor and financial translator in the stock broking industry in Paris and London. She speaks fluent French and has a working knowledge of German and Italian. These languages are particularly useful when dealing with international delegates with a limited knowledge of English. Her time spent living and travelling in non-English speaking European countries has given Elisabeth valuable insights that enable her to deal sympathetically with non-English speaking delegates.

Elisabeth has twice served as a member of the board of the Meetings Industry Association of Australia (SA Branch) Inc and chaired its Professional Development Committee. In 1997 she obtained MIAA accreditation as a Meetings Manager and is one of only three PCOs in South Australia to hold this.

A keen film-goer and voracious reader, Elisabeth is also a certified ‘foodie’ and enjoys most of the fine things in life, but rates French cheeses and patisserie at the top of her list. She has been fortunate enough to travel widely with her husband and daughter and collects artefacts from the countries that they visit.

Jenny Davies – Director
Dip Tech Soc Wk (SAIT) MURP (Adel)
Foundation member and past President of the Council of Australian Universities Tourism and Hospitality Education (CAUTHE)

Jenny's background covers a wide variety of professional areas - tourism and hospitality education and research, market research, social work, health education, and communication teaching and consulting. She has extensive experience, both locally and offshore, as a Lecturer and Program Director in tourism within the Division of Business at the University of South Australia. She has been involved in numerous research projects - National Business Events Study, 'Good Living' Project (An Analysis of the Opportunities to Develop Food and Wine Tourism in Australia), and Wine Tourism Experience and Future Behaviour.

She enjoys traveling, food and wine (for research purposes only!), her cats, kids and garden and if un/lucky you can find her on the weekends swinging in the trees in the hills with Tarzan! Her other passions involve her unsustainable rose garden, reading and the odd movie!

Helen Smith - NSA Membership Officer
BSc Psychology

Helen began working for FCC in 1989, with the "Women, Alcohol and Other Drugs" Conference.   Since then, she has maintained a regular working relationship with FCC, currently on a weekly basis. She also works in the Aged Care industry in the Food Services area.

Helen is responsible for maintaining the membership databases of the Nutrition Society of Australia (NSA) and The Australian & New Zealand Society of Respiratory Science (ANZSRS), and processing membership payments. She also assists with administrative tasks, brochure mail outs and summarising Conference evaluation forms.

Helen's spare time is spent in the cinema and in the gym. Much of the conversation at FCC focuses on what films we have seen and liked.

Emma Wundersitz– Conference Coordinator

B International Studies / Diploma of Languages

Emma began working for FCC in February 2007, after returning to Australia from extensive travelling abroad. She worked in a major hotel in London for 18 months, handling their Conferences and events.

She is currently planning her wedding for later this year.

Anita Smith - Accounts and Conference Assistant

Photos and profiles of our newest team members will appear soon

Additional Staffing

Additional part time and casual staff, all with experience in the industry, are brought in during periods of heavy workload.

Festival City Conventions is the South Australian office of AAMM (the Australasian Alliance of Meetings Managers), an alliance of meetings managers across Australia and New Zealand. AAMM works cooperatively in sharing intelligence and systems. AAMM also provides a network for support and has over 30 highly qualified staff to call on in busy times.