John Christison

John is the Principal and Managing Member of BCI+network.
John was also the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Washington State Convention & Trade Center, Seattle, Washington until his retirement in 2011.
John is a graduate of the University of Arizona with a Bachelors Degree in Public Administration. John began his career in the public assembly industry in 1971. John served as the Assistant Director of the Tucson, Arizona Convention Center from 1971 – 1979.
In 1980, the Portland Oregon Exposition Recreation Commission hired John, where he served as the Chief Executive of the Commission’s facilities, which included the Portland Convention Complex, Portland Coliseum, Portland Performing Arts Center, Portland International Raceway and the Civic Stadium.
In 1986, John was hired as the Director of the Orlando, Florida Centroplex. The Centroplex is an operating agency responsible for the operation of: the Orlando Expo Center, Orlando Arena, Citrus Bowl Stadium, Tinker Field Baseball Stadium, Ben White Raceway, Bob Carr Performing Arts Center, and several commercial properties, including two restaurants and the administration of a hotel lease for the City of Orlando.
In 1990, John assumed the position of President and Chief Executive Officer for the Washington State Convention & Trade Center. During his tenure, the convention center was expanded three times to respond to market demand.
John is acknowledged in the hospitality industry as a preeminent operator with a focus on marketing, superior service delivery, and a strong emphasis on maximizing revenue and providing quality food service. John is also widely recognized for his work with Destination Management Organizations.
John has considerable experience in the planning, programming, design and construction of public assembly facilities. During his career, John has overseen the construction of numerous projects with a construction value of one billion dollars.
John is recognized as a leader in his field. He has served as President of the International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM), he is Past Chairman of the Asia Pacific Exhibition and Convention Council (APECC), and is the past and founding Chairman of the World Council for Venue Management (WVCM), an umbrella organization representing nine, worldwide, professional associations in the Public Assembly Facility Management Industry.
John has served as an Adjunct Lecturer for the Washington State University’s Hotel and Restaurant Program and served as an Adjunct Lecturer for the University of Central Florida. John has served as the Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Cornell University Public Assembly Management Symposium, where he was honored with an annual award named after him, for service to the industry. John has also received the Charles E. McElravy award for his service to the industry as well as the International Convention Center Congress’s Life Time Achievement award. John has also served as a commission member for the Convention Industry Council’s (CIC); Accepted Practices Exchange Commission (APEX) John is a frequent lecturer and trainer throughout the world in the field of facility management, marketing and service delivery. John is a Certified Facility Executive (CFE) and a Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) and has chaired the IAVM’s Certification Board, and the IAVM’s Consulting Board.
John has, as an independent consultant, provided consulting services to numerous clients worldwide in the hospitality and events industry. As an expert witness John has dealt with several cases related to negligent facility operations.

As an expert John works in the area of Public Assembly facility operations, negligent operations,crowd management and proper event planning to reduce liability.

John has served as an expert witness in five cases.