Sodexo Live! Appoints Michelle Vazquez as Assistant General Manager at The Miami Beach Convention Center

MIAMI BEACH, FL (August 23, 2022) – The Miami Beach Convention Center (MBCC) and Sodexo Live!, the official caterer of the Miami Beach venue, are excited to announce that Michelle Vazquez has been named Assistant General Manager of Sodexo Live! at the MBCC. A native of Puerto Rico, Vazquez has worked with Sodexo Live!—originally Centerplate—since 2016. 

Understanding all aspects of the business, Vazquez started at the company as a banquet server at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL. From there, she quickly worked her way up the ranks—becoming Hospitality Supervisor, taking a temporary HR role, and then earning another promotion to HR Assistant due to her dedication to that temporary position. Here, she handled all scheduling, hiring and employee management practices for Sodexo Live! clients, including some of the largest event venues and convention centers nationwide. 

Not long after, Vazquez was appointed Human Resources Manager of the MBCC, where she helped manage the venue’s 2018 $620 million renovation and expansion and led the MBCC’s operational response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On a day-to-day basis, Vazquez was responsible for implementing all employee processes and protocols at the South Florida venue, including training, payroll, problem-solving, hiring, performance management and, most importantly, building and maintaining a positive work environment. Through it all, she displayed her lifelong passion for hospitality and serving others, and solidified her skills as an effective leader in the workplace. 

Now Assistant General Manager, Vazquez oversees all department initiatives for Sodexo Live! at the MBCC, from banquets and culinary to sales, retail, employment matters, and more. She constantly looks for ways to ensure a positive visitor experience and is committed to rebuilding her high-quality team with full- and part-time staff in a post-pandemic world. 

“Michelle’s incredible skill set, passion and aptitude for learning new aspects of the business quickly has been evident from the beginning,” said Freddie Peterson, General Manager of the MBCC. “Having worked in everything from banquet service to HR, she has a unique perspective of how we can enhance both the customer and employee experience at Sodexo Live! and the MBCC. I look forward to seeing all that she will accomplish in her new role.” 

Most exciting for Vazquez is the platform she will have to do what she loves most: serve the heartstrings of her company—its people. 

“Everything starts with our employees. I show our employees that we care about them, and they, in turn, go on to care for our clients,” says Vazquez. “My employees give their all and we work together to make everything run smoothly. I love the team that I have had a large part in creating.”

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