What One Thing?—Tough as a Mother: Redefining Ambition in Events

In this episode of What One Thing?, Smart Meetings’ VP, JT Long, sits down with Justine Sterling Converse and April Zorsky, co-founders of Brigade Events, a woman-led agency redefining what it means to thrive in the events industry. From producing gatherings for presidents, first ladies and world leaders to orchestrating ultra-exclusive experiences for Fortune 500 executives, celebrities and athletes, Brigade has built its reputation on creativity, precision, and white-glove service.

But beyond the glamour, Justine and April share how they’ve built a culture that puts people first—introducing flexible schedules, maternity leave policies and a supportive environment where women don’t have to choose between ambition and family. Their story covers resilience during the pandemic, the power of teamwork, and the lessons they’ve carried from their White House and Bush Center years into building their own firm.

Their one thing: Motherhood is a strength, not a limitation. They prove you can run extraordinary events on the world stage and be fully present as parents.

JT Long
Welcome to the What One Thing? podcast, where we ask successful people what made a difference in their lives and careers. I’m so excited to welcome a pair of meeting professionals who are redefining event prof life as we know it. From producing events for presidents and first ladies to reimagining what it means to work in events as a woman and a mother—Justine Sterling Converse and April Zorsky built Brigade Events to do things differently. Known for high-profile, high-impact gatherings around the world, Brigade pairs creative excellence with a people-first ethos—offering flexibility, maternity leave, and a culture where women don’t have to choose between ambition and family.

Welcome!

Justine Sterling Converse
Thanks, JT. We’re going to have so much fun. This is such an important conversation.

JL
First, I want to figure out how you got here. Justine, tell me how you ended up in this career. You served as assistant to the Chief of Staff of a president—why events? Why entrepreneurship?

JSC
It’s been a journey. I never knew I’d go into events. I started interning at the White House right out of college. At the end of that internship, there was an opening in the Social Office, and I was hired on. That was my first job out of college—handling all of the events at the White House during the Bush administration. I fell in love with events at a very high level, and from then I worked with the Bushes for 12 years in varying capacities: in Dallas, on their post-presidency transition team, and then at the George W. Bush Presidential Center.

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That’s where I met April—we were doing events for President and Mrs. Bush. It was high-pressure work with a tiny team, and I saw how challenging the industry is for parents. Eventually I topped out my career there and had the idea to launch Brigade. April had her own business, and in 2019 we came together to build something different: a place where you can do big, ambitious events and be a parent.

And yes, I have four kids—two older (17 and 13) and two younger (4 and 1).

JL
April, you started at Neiman Marcus. How did you find your way into events and then to Brigade?

April Zorsky
Like Justine said, events sort of find you. I started in Neiman Marcus’s retail program wanting to be a buyer. But after the financial crash of 2009, that program shut down, and the only job left was a PR coordinator role. I applied with a full mock event proposal and was hired. From there, I discovered I loved events.

Later, I moved to the Bush Center in Dallas and joined the events team. That’s where I met Justine. It was incredible—a tiny but mighty team, handling events for world leaders with very few resources. We learned so much there about hospitality, detail, and pushing the status quo.

JL
And Brigade—what’s behind the name?

JSC
We wanted something team-oriented, not about one person. The name came to me in the middle of the night. It was influenced by the military (we worked a lot of military events early on) and by Beyoncé’s “Formation”—a group of women, strong together. “Brigade” means a small army that can do great things. That’s exactly what we are.

JL
Give us an example of an over-the-top event.

AZ
One stands out: a gathering of world leaders, CEOs, artists and athletes. Each attendee arrived by private plane, each with unique needs—one required eight specific candles and a yoga mat in their room. We flipped the ballroom multiple times a day to create new experiences, retrained the venue’s catering staff to meet higher expectations, and worked with extreme security measures. Someone told us it had higher security than the UN General Assembly.

JL
What’s a typical day for you?

AZ
I have three kids, so mornings are chaos before work. Once in the office, Justine and I are in strategy meetings, client calls and reviews with our team. We manage a lot of logistics—like sending part of the team to Italy while covering an event in Dallas the next day. Our team is nine full-time staff in Dallas plus a contractor base of about 20 senior planners.

JSC
And yes, we learned to pivot to virtual events during Covid. That was a huge challenge—especially since five of our six full-time staff became pregnant in 2020–21. We had to design a maternity leave policy during the pandemic. We chose to give 16 weeks paid leave plus a transition month, because we believe strongly in supporting women in our industry.

JL
Why is flexibility so key in this business?

JSC
Because without it, you lose people. Our culture is built on flexibility—picking up kids, shifting meetings, taking mental health days. We provide strong support so no single planner is left carrying an impossible load. We also structure around peak seasons and offer “work from anywhere” July to recharge.

AZ
We also try to hold each other accountable for boundaries. For example, if one of us wants to attend every event for a client, the other steps in and says, “Do you really have to?” Sometimes you have to miss Lake Como for your child’s birthday. And another Lake Como opportunity will come again.

JL
Beautifully said. So, what’s your “one thing”?

JSC
Ambition with parenthood. You can do big, exciting events and be a present parent. Our maternity leave policy and flexible culture prove it’s possible. And we’ve been profitable every year except 2020.

AZ
For me, it’s seeing motherhood as a strength, not a limitation. We have a flag in the office that says, “Tough as a mother.” That’s how we show up every day.

JL
Thank you both for being examples of leadership, ambition, and family balance for our community.