Our Team

Michele Gonzalez, CMP

Senior Meetings Manager

Michele Gonzalez, CMP, serves as a Senior Meetings Manager at SAM, where she supports partner organization volunteer leaders by providing end-to-end event management, including overseeing timelines, logistics, budgets, program development, and negotiations. She joined the SAM team in 2024 with more than two decades of experience in association and industry-related roles.

Previously, Michele served as deputy director of events at the Texas Tribune, where she worked with the editorial, revenue, and development departments to create topical and relevant events to support the news site's mission. Among other roles, she has also worked as senior event coordinator at the Austin Convention Center for eight years, and prior to that, held three concurrent positions with the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, including convention operations and special events director, professional development director, and associate director of the Parity Project. 

Michele earned her bachelor's degree in radio, television, and film from the University of Louisiana at Monroe. An active volunteer, Michele is a member of Meetings Professional International (MPI), International Association of Exhibits and Expositions (IAEE), and International Association of Venue Management (IAVM). She is a board member of the MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter (MPI THCC) and was awarded MPI THCC’s Planner of the Year in 2023 and Committee of the Year (Education) in 2023. She earned her Certified Meeting Planner (CMP) designation in 2021, and also is Cvent-certified in event diagramming and virtual events, MPI-certified in inclusive event strategies, and PCMA Leadership Institute-certified in pandemic meeting/event design and technical (AV) meeting and event design.

Michele grew up in Louisiana, has lived in Washington, DC, and Irving, Texas, and has called Austin home for more than 15 years.

Partners: Collaborative Divorce Texas (CDT), Fast-Growth School Coalition (FGSC), Texas Osteopathic Medical Association (TOMA), Texas Psychological Association (TPA)

Family: My husband, Dan, and our border terrier, Indy.

Outside of work, I love... movies and crafting, and I am a big museum nerd. 

My workplace superpower is... creating strong partnerships and relationships with vendors and support staff. These professionals are the backbone to any successful program. I aim to treat everyone with equal respect and humility.

Assessments: Artisan (Predictive Index)

What inspires me about working with associations: So much important work happens at associations, and I want to help them succeed in any way I can. I know that resources in nonprofits can be scarce, so I love the opportunity to be creative and resourceful. 

My passions and skills: I am focused, organized, decisive, and calm under pressure.

Favorite SAM core value: Stay curious. I am consistently trying to learn new applications or skills because it is a 100% return on my investment. It is all to the good. I don't ever want to stop learning new things.