Life at Bigeye: Riley Gercak, Event Marketing Manager

Meet Riley Gercak, who spends her days planning everything from our private customer dinners to Bigeye conference booths, and her evenings binge-watching Real Housewives.

From Client Services to Event Excellence

Riley's journey to Bigeye started with a realization. At her previous job, she was juggling multiple clients daily- great for building multitasking and customer relations skills, but something was missing. "I knew long term that I wanted to work on an in-house marketing team," she explains. When she started updating her resume and looking around, she discovered something important: her real passion was event planning. And Bigeye just happened to have an open position.

Now, as Bigeye's Event Marketing Manager for a little over two years, Riley handles all the logistics that make events happen: tradeshows, conferences, executive dinners, happy hours, and everything in between. Her days vary wildly, but typically start with checking emails and Slacks, then diving into exhibitor resource kits for upcoming conferences to see what needs tackling first.

Every Event Matters

Ask Riley what she's most proud of accomplishing at Bigeye, and she gives what she calls a "cheap answer", but it's anything but. "I am proud of every event I have planned and completed," she says. "A lot of effort goes into each event by a lot of people at the company. And when each event comes to a close, I am happy to have been a part of it."

It's this attention to detail and appreciation for teamwork that makes Riley's approach to event marketing so effective. She understands that behind every successful conference booth or executive dinner is a team effort, and she takes pride in being the orchestrator who brings it all together.

The Bigeye culture, Riley notes, is "all centered around growth." Whether that’s developing professional skills,  growing pipeline, or supporting team relationships. For her personally, that growth has meant learning to trust herself professionally in ways she never had before. "Bigeye has taught me to back my opinion and voice it when asked. With such a small company, every opinion matters. Leadership also empowers us by trusting us."

Growing Into Her Voice

This confidence shows up in how she approaches new opportunities. Take her mother's advice, which has become Riley's professional mantra: "The worst thing a person can say is no." When she wants to try a new event, she gets the pricing, audience specs, and all the important information, then presents it to leadership. "They can say no, but I know that I did everything in my power to try and convince them."

Life Beyond the Events

Riley's mornings start with the essentials: coffee and about 15 minutes of playing with her cat Bernie "until she gets annoyed." Her lunch order is classic and delicious: turkey and cheese sandwich with chips and cucumber on the side.

But it's her weekly ritual that really lights her up. Every week, she heads to trivia night. "Overall my team isn't great, but that isn't what puts me in a good mood," she laughs. "It's a fun way to see my friends every week, and try our best. The categories are always fun and so is the company."

Her favorite Slack emoji? The party blob, naturally. Perfect for someone who spends her days making sure everyone has a good time at company events.

Downtime

When it comes to unwinding after work, she keeps it real: "I guess cooking is nice but honestly I just like to lay down." Her current obsession is all shows on Bravo (with a special love for Real Housewives), and she has a fun fact that's oddly specific: she can recite all 50 states alphabetically in song. Riley has also never mowed a lawn.

If Riley could give her younger self one piece of advice? It would be that same wisdom from her mom about asking for what you want. It's shaped how she approaches both work and life: with confidence, preparation, and the understanding that the worst outcome is usually just a simple "no."

Ready to join Riley and bring your own unique skills to the Bigeye team? Check out our current openings and see what growth looks like here.