THE POWER IS IN THE PLANNING
THE SES TEAM
Our mission is to develop, plan and execute your meeting/event with exceptional expert services and technology that meets your goals and objectives and exceeds your expectations. We have proudly provided our services locally, nationally and internationally for more than 19 years.
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Twyler L. Jenkins, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Strategist
Strategic Events Solutions’ Chief Executive Officer and Chief Strategist, Twyler L. Jenkins is one of the most sought after event planners in the City of Chicago. With more than 27 years of experience in conference management, special event planning and registration facilitation services, Ms. Jenkins is considered an expert in optimizing event profitability for her clients because of her cost management strategies. Her skills in contract negotiations, budget oversight, event logistics coordination and execution, as well as program operations flow and efficiency has helped her clients manage their event cost.
By providing core competencies to nonprofit organizations and corporate clients in multiple capacities, Ms. Jenkins has enhanced their meetings, conferences and special events by providing effective and efficient planning services, organized registration processes, and executed sponsorship sales support and marketing initiatives.
In 1998, Ms. Jenkins moved to Chicago to work for Ebony Magazine as a marketing manager. While there, she increased advertising volume and revenue by creating, developing and implementing merchandising events and programs for current and potential clients. She augmented advertisers’ print campaigns with added-value opportunities directly impacting the African American consumer.
She integrated Ebony merchandise into national events to provide branding exposure. She was also responsible for creating custom programs to aid the advertising sales staff in enhancing and increasing their advertising sales.
Since she founded SES in 2001 she has managed to provide services for some of the most notable nonprofits and corporations in the Chicagoland area such as The University of Chicago, The University of Chicago Medicine,The University of Chicago Lab School, McDonald’s, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Rainbow PUSH Coalition, Chicago Urban League, ComEd/Exelon, National Black MBA Association, The American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML), National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women(NOBEL), The Chicago Guardsmen and the Emmett Till Foundation to name a few.
Ms. Jenkins is committed to helping improve the quality of life for others through her involvement in the community. She is the Co-President of the South Side Community Art Center. She is the founder & CEO of the I Am That Woman Movement & Retreat. She is also a member of several professional organizations such as, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Meeting Professionals International (MPI), Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA), and the Alliance of Independent Meeting Managers.
Kathleen Blade Owens, HR Resources
Kat Blade is excited to join Strategic Event Solutions as Hiring Manager. As Hiring Manager for SES, Kat’s goal is to bring excellent customer service that promotes the outstanding mission of SES.
Kat brings to this position a well-established background in indie film casting and producing. She has served as casting director/producer for indies: Division, Meet Karma, and 2 A.M, just to name a few. In 2011, she was awarded Best Actress for The Created in Hollywood. CA at the Life Fest Film Festival. In 2013, she spent 12 weeks in Lagos, Nigeria producing her internet radio show called the P.H.A.T.
Girls Show.
Prior to joining Strategic Events Solutions, Kat worked in Education as Dean of Students and Social Work. In 2011, Neil Steinberg of the Chicago Sun-Times, highlighted her work with Mayor Rahm Emmanuel and their work with a middle school student.
Kat was born and raised in Terre Haute, Indiana. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and Master of Science in Family and Consumer Sciences from Indiana State University and her Master of Arts in Social Services Administration from the University of Chicago where she was a Brinks Fellow.
Sheriffa Byles, Project Manager
Every successful business needs a talented project manager. Upon joining the SES team, Sheriffa has had a background in event management. Because of the potential Chief Executive Officer and Chief Strategist, Twyler L. Jenkins saw in Sheriffa, she molded her to become just that. Sheriffa has been a part of the SES team since 2019, as a Project Manager, where she continues to deliver high level
performance and value to SES's clients.
Craig Barnes, Graphic Designer
Since 1993, Craig D. Barnes has taken pride in providing quality, affordable designs to businesses ranging from corporate and start-up companies, to faith-based and political organizations.
With over 25 years of design experience, Mr. Barnes has the uncanny ability to pull together disparate elements of a client’s existing design, to create cohesive branding and marketing materials on tight budgets.
Mr. Barnes has provided branding, design, and art direction for a broad list of clients, both local and national, including: Safeway/Dominick’s, University of Chicago, Rainbow PUSH Coalition/PUSH Excel, Mount Sinai Hospitals, Illinois Lottery, CASA Cook County, Chosen Few DJs, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, and Chicago Black Expo.
Mr. Barnes has recently provided newsletter branding production for the Counting on Chicago Coalition, which received the largest grant ever awarded by the state of Illinois to raise awareness of the Census.
Mr. Barnes has previously served as the Senior Graphic Design consultant for Environmental Design International, inc. where he coordinated all graphical and marketing content for its Chicago headquarters and its three national branch offices.
He also previously worked in the Architectural Marketing area for Epstein International, preparing brochures, proposals and presentation materials for the headquarters office in Chicago and the seven international branch offices. Mr. Barnes has a background in Architecture from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.