Knoxville Civic Auditorium and Coliseum announces hires, promotions

The Knoxville Civic Auditorium and Coliseum (KCAC) has hired Brent Lackey as event manager, promoted Phillip Crawford to stage manager and promoted Jamie Cunningham to office manager.

“We are excited to promote excellent employees and recruit the best talent to our management team,” General Manager Mary Bogert said. “Brent’s background in event management and customer service will be a big asset for event planners and promoters at our facility. As a six-year employee, Jamie’s elevation to office manager is well-earned through her dedication and attention to detail, and Phillip knowledge of the venue and its technical capacities helps artists who perform at our facilities shine.”

Lackey is an event planning professional with more than 13 years of senior level experience in all aspects of large annual conference, event and expo planning. He orchestrates all details for events from planning through execution at KCAC.

He previously had a long career with the University of Tennessee. At UT Conferences, he worked his way through the ranks to senior conference specialist and was lead coordinator for Destination Imagination, an annual event drawing more than 15,000 participants. Most recently, Lackey served as training coordinator for UT Institute for Public Service Law Enforcement Innovation Center.

Lackey is a native of Parsons, Tennessee, and a UT graduate with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He is a member of First Baptist Concord and serves in the church’s worship and media ministries. He also volunteers with Adopt a Golden Knoxville, a volunteer, nonprofit organization dedicated to finding permanent homes for Golden Retrievers.

As stage manager, Crawford maintains the technical aspects of the theater and works with clients to create first-class, memorable events.

Crawford joined the Knoxville Civic Auditorium and Coliseum in 2014 as building superintendent, bringing with him an eclectic background that includes serving as studio manager one of the country’s largest studio complexes, owning his own recording company, serving on the management team of the largest musical instrument retailer in the country and working as a sound engineer for a coast-to-coast production company producing more than 150 concerts each year. Crawford earned his degree in sound engineering from The Institute of Audio Research in New York City, where he was class valedictorian.

Cunningham, a six-year veteran at KCAC, manages the front office, where she handles a multitude of administrative tasks and much more. Cunningham previously served as executive assistant to the general manager.

Praised as a person who arrives to work with a smile and positive attitude every day and takes the initiative to step in and handle tasks that fall outside her job description, Cunningham earned the Greater Knoxville Hospitality Association Pauly Award for Service/Supplier Employee of the Year in 2016.

Cunningham is a Knoxville native currently residing in Fountain City. In 2016, she earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration from Tusculum College.

About the Knoxville Civic Auditorium and Coliseum

The Knoxville Civic Auditorium and Coliseum is conveniently located near the junction of Interstates 75 and 40 and sits downtown near the University of Tennessee campus. The facility attracts more than 250,000 people per year through a wide array of events, including Knoxville Ice Bears hockey games and the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra Pops Series. The facility includes a 6,500-capacity coliseum with 22,000-square-feet of exhibit space; 2,500-capacity auditorium; 10,000-square-foot exhibit hall; 4,800-square-foot ballroom; and a natural lawn amphitheater with a capacity of 10,000.

About SMG

Founded in 1977, SMG provides management services to more than 230 public assembly facilities including convention and exhibition centers, arenas, stadiums, theatres, performing arts centers, equestrian facilities, science centers, and a variety of other venues. With facilities across the globe, SMG manages more than 15 million square feet of exhibition space and more than 1.5 million sports and entertainment seats. As the recognized global industry leader, SMG provides venue management, sales, marketing, event booking and programming, construction and design consulting, and pre-opening services for such landmark facilities as McCormick Place & Soldier Field in Chicago, Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, Houston’s NRG Park and the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. SMG also offers food and beverage operations through its concessions, catering and special events division, SAVOR, currently servicing 130 accounts worldwide. For more information visit www.smgworld.com.