Convention Data Services

Bourne, Massachusetts, USA

215 Total Employees

Year Founded: 1986

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REINVENTING EVENTS

Convention Data Services has one goal: Revolutionize event registration. “From registering to attend, to going on-site, to connecting with other attendees and organizers before, during and after the event, we’re making conference-going an on-going relationship rather than a disconnected set of events,” said President Darren Phalen. The company is scaling rapidly with a plan to double their size in the next five years — and using experience-based roadmaps as a guide for upcoming product innovation. All of this comes amid an atmosphere of strong relationships, with customers and employees experiencing plenty of growth opportunities.

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At a glance

FLEXIBLE WORK

In person, hybrid or virtual — whatever works for you.

PAID PARENTAL LEAVE

4 weeks parental leave and 6 weeks of disability for a combined 12 weeks.

VOLUNTEER ENCOURAGEMENT

Support for local volunteerism days and corporate sponsored opportunities.

TAKING TIME

Flexible PTO policy so employees can live their best lives.

Featured employees

PROMOTING FROM WITHIN

Training and career advancement is the norm

Sue Partridge is usually the first person prospective employees talk to, and she’s deeply invested in their growth at CDS. Thankfully, the company has extensive training and promotion opportunities within and between teams. These include everything from job shadowing to certification support to instructor-led training. Most recently, the company offered a two-day React development workshop, but other trainings covered soft skills like communication and time management. “When a team member demonstrates the initiative to learn and grow, there are even more opportunities at CDS,” said Partridge.

Sue Partridge

Vice President of Human Resources

Our COO started working at CDS straight out of college and has worked his way through and up to his current role. It’s a great story!

RELATIONSHIPS MATTER

A family atmosphere inside the company and out

Darren Phalen

President

For CDS President Darren Phalen, relationships are everything — between CDS and parent company Freeman, between team members and between the company and its clients. “CDS will always be a family,” said Phalen, “and those genuine bonds are important because our client partners are a part of them too.” As a registration services company, CDS begins work with clients months in advance of events, so building strong rapport is essential. And with such strong relationships on the team, it’s just a matter of expanding that feeling of family — which has stayed strong even as CDS scales.

Registration is the very first thing any event attendee experiences, so it’s our responsibility to set the tone for each unique event experience.

DRIVING INFLUENCE

Making an impact fuels personal growth

Imagine you’re planning a friend’s birthday party, but instead of inviting 10 people, the guest list includes over 10,000 individuals. That’s an average day for employees at CDS, and according to COO Dave Wuethrich, it’s hard not to feel passionate about bringing such large-scale moments to life. “Being a part of that is a special feeling,” he said. Given the work that goes into making this impact possible, it’s important for Wuethrich to build a culture of respect, trust and growth. He considers it his duty to maintain transparency and help team members reach their career goals.

Dave Wuethrich

COO

CDS provides a good space for individualism by allowing you to put your own stamp on the company while receiving a high level of support.

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