Prestigious industry award for leading AEG Ogden Venue Manager
08 Dec 2011

Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre General Manger, Bob O’Keeffe has been presented with a prestigious industry award in recognition of excellence and service over a 20 year career.

Mr O’Keeffe was presented with the Trevor Riddell President’s Award by the Exhibition and Events Association of Australasia at an Award for Excellence dinner in Sydney. This is a discretionary award which has only been presented seven times in its 11 year history.

In presenting the award, EEAA President, Matt Pearce said Mr. O’Keeffe was a most deserving winner, not only for his generous contribution to the industry but for his strong advocacy for the sector both nationally and internationally.

“Bob has long championed the use of research for our industry as a base for future direction development and his centred, strong and dignified style of leadership has been widely acclaimed,” Mr Pearce said.

Mr O’Keeffe has been at the helm of the AEG Ogden managed Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre since pre opening days.

AEG Ogden Chairman and CEO, Harvey Lister today praised the recognition of Mr O’Keefe’s long-term commitment to the exhibition and events industry.

“Bob has provided outstanding support and strategic advice and guidance over a number of years and has overseen the BCEC becoming one of the premier industry venues in Australia,” Mr Lister said.

Mr O’Keeffe was humbled and proud to receive the prestigious award for contribution to an industry about which he is passionate.

“I believe this industry has a great future and through innovation, vision and hard work, I have every confidence that we can take further strides and accomplish much more,” he said.

Mr O’Keeffe has held a number of positions on national and local industry boards and committees including EEAA and the Business Events Council of Australia (BECA) and is currently overseeing the $150 million expansion of the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre, scheduled to open early in the New Year.

About AEG Ogden

AEG Ogden is a joint venture between Australian interests and AEG Facilities of the United States.
AEG Ogden manages venues throughout the Asia Pacific region, including the Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Kuala Lumpur and Qatar convention centres and the Oman Convention & Exhibition Centre (under construction), Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, live theatres including Perth’s His Majesty’s Theatre, the Perth Concert Hall, the State Theatre Centre of Western Australia, the Albany Entertainment Centre and the Subiaco Arts Centre, and a network of arenas including Sydney’s Allphones Arena, the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, the Newcastle Entertainment Centre, and the Perth Arena (under construction).

AEG, a subsidiary of the Anschutz Company, is the leading sports, entertainment and venue operator in the world.  AEG Facilities, a stand-alone affiliate of AEG, owns, operates or consults with 100 of the industry’s pre-eminent venues worldwide, across five continents, and works in concert with affiliated AEG entities, including live event producer, AEG Live, AEG Global Partnerships and AEG Development to support the success of AEG venues across the globe.  AEG owns, operates or provides services to venues including STAPLES Center (Los Angeles, Calif.), The Home Depot Center (Carson, Calif.), Nokia Theatre L.A. Live (Los Angeles, Calif.), Citizens Business Bank Arena (Ontario, Calif.), Valley View Casino Center, (San Diego, Calif); Sprint Center (Kansas City, Mo.), XL Center and Rentschler Field (Hartford, Conn) The Rose Garden (Portland, Ore.), KeyArena (Seattle, Wash.), KFC YUM! Center (Louisville, Ky.), American Airlines Arena (Miami, Fla.), AT&T Center (San Antonio, Tx.), Time Warner Cable Arena (Charlotte, N.C.), Prudential Center (Newark, N.J.), Target Center (Minneapolis, Minn.), Mercedes-Benz Arena (Shanghai, China), Mastercard Center (Beijing, China), The O2 Arena (London, England), O2 World (Berlin, Germany), O2 World Hamburg (Hamburg, Germany), Ahoy Arena (Rotterdam, Netherlands), Pernambuco Stadium (Recife, Brazil), Allphones Arena, (Sydney Aust), Globe Arenas (Stockholm, Sweden), Turk Telekom Arena (Istanbul, Turkey) and the Qatar National Convention Centre (Doha, Qatar). For more information, visit www.aegworldwide.com. 

Media Contact:
Greg Adermann
Group Communications Manager
AEG Ogden
Ph:  +61 7 3331 5162
Fax:  +61 7 3331 5001
Mobile:  +61 419 729972
Email:  gadermann@aegogden.com
Web:  www.aegogden.com