For 10 years, EM has been championing b-to-b all-stars, delving into their career journeys, portfolios, best practices and industry forecasts. Meet this year’s crew: The 2026 B-to-B Dream Team.
Danielle Damiano Medeiros, Global Head of Industry Tentpole Experiences, Events & Executive Engagement COE, LinkedIn
Danielle Damiano Medeiros is no stranger to a pivot. Before she landed her role as global head of industry tentpole experiences, events and executive engagement COE at LinkedIn, she worked across a wide range of industries, including advertising, media, television, hospitality, finance and tech.
After a couple of career transitions managing accounts, bartending, running operations for a VC and almost taking the Series 7 exam, she settled on finding a path to event marketing and made purposeful moves to get there.
“You can’t just go into event marketing having no background. Since high school and college, I’ve been planning events. I was a social chair, so it was just in my bones,” Medeiros says. “Then in New York City, I planned everyone’s birthday parties and the holiday party at the office, and at one point, friends were like, ‘Why aren’t you doing this as a living?’ And so I figured out the best way to get there was as an EA because EAs plan everybody’s lives and plan events.”
A few years into working as an executive assistant, Medeiros took an opportunity with Google as an event marketing lead, where she built her experience in brand ads marketing. When that contract ended, she kept networking within the industry and met a hiring manager for Adara, a data exchange platform that was a startup at the time, which was looking for a director-global events, and Medeiros fit the bill.
Over almost three years, she helped build the team and its event strategy, and then transitioned to JW Player, a video technology company. During her time as director-event marketing and then senior director-brand and field marketing, Medeiros grew the team from one to 10, managed and launched event series and programs, and led a rebrand. Then, a layoff hit, and she was back on the job hunt, which led her to LinkedIn’s global events team.
“I’ve been here six and a half years now, and I lead all tentpole experiences for the LinkedIn brand,” she says. “I work across the World Economic Forum, Cannes Lions, IAB NewFronts and Dreamforce, as well as our biggest O&O moments. I’ve worked across the ads business and events like POSSIBLE, Advertising Week, Sundance Film Festival and Super Bowl, so I’ve done a lot since I’ve been here. It’s been an amazing journey. I love what I do.”
Medeiros’ favorite parts of the job are poring over event details and working with her full-time team members, contractors and agency partners to bring her vision to life. She’s constantly thinking about how an event can be elevated, whether it’s thoughtful gifting or linen napkins, to make sure customers are wowed when they walk in, so much so that they “go post on LinkedIn about that experience.”
Recently, Medeiros has been dabbling in experiential partnerships, bringing in partners for LinkedIn’s largest events to expand its audience reach and engagement, along with incorporating AI into experiences. At Cannes Lions 2025, where LinkedIn was the presenting b-to-b sponsor, the brand included a space within its footprint for attendees to create video content using an AI-integrated app on a tablet that prompted them to answer questions on camera—a touchpoint that garnered a lot of positive feedback.
“We have become synonymous with creating spaces that are oases for b-to-b marketers, but we are also thinking about LinkedIn’s business and its users, like how they can up-level their profiles or become more active on the platform as a top voice or creator,” she says. “How are we sharing our products in a way that doesn’t feel salesy, but is digestible and leading to aha moments? How do we build this event so that it makes them feel like they’re at home? We’re a community on the platform; we’re a community in real life.”
The community approach also extends to Medeiros’ own team. She is very passionate about mentoring the next generation of event marketers, passing down her knowledge, sharing her roster of connections and exposing them to high-level opportunities.
“I go to schools and talk to the younger generation, and we bring on contractors who are right out of college. I’m constantly asking about their career goals to try and help them because I wouldn’t be where I am if I didn’t have mentors. They deserve as much experience as possible,” she says. “I get to have a career that makes me really happy, and when I made all those pivots years ago, there were years that were hard, but it was to be able to wake up every day and like what I’m doing. I love creating experiences.”
Photos: Courtesy of LinkedIn
