This is a special interest episode of the 5at5 podcast, and it might just change how you think about the events you’re planning right now.
Giles Cattle talks to Dominic Mesch, Head of Live Marketing and Brand Excellence at DEHN SE, about the shift from intuition-led event planning to a data-driven approach that delivers measurable, scalable brand experiences.
Dominic is candid about where they started: siloed data, no unified picture, and a definition of success that amounted to counting business cards. What changed wasn’t just the technology. It was the thinking. Once DEHN began treating their events as part of an end-to-end customer journey rather than isolated moments, everything else followed.
He talks through how AI is now embedded across their processes, from lead scoring and real-time session analytics to creative development, and why the human element remains as critical as ever. AI enhances decision-making, he says. It doesn’t replace it.
What comes through most is the sense that DEHN is ahead of where most organisations are right now, and that the gap is only going to grow. If you’re still running events on instinct and hoping for the best, this conversation will give you plenty to think about.