For PwC’s annual Tax Leadership Conference, I designed the immersive environment that welcomed over 4,000 tax professionals to the Orlando World Marriott. Working with the theme “See tax through a new lens,” my goal was to move the idea beyond words on a slide and create a physical space that let people literally experience a shift in perspective.
The Challenge
A bright, massive hotel ballroom could easily have become just another polished corporate backdrop. I needed the space to feel different from the moment people stepped in: open enough for networking and sessions, deliberate enough to slow people down, and smart enough to make a room full of tax leaders actually shift how they were seeing—light, ideas, each other—without ever feeling gimmicky.
The Shift
I treated the venue’s natural light like raw material, filtering it through translucent layers, floating planes, and quiet plays of shadow. The result was a space that felt airy and intentional, almost weightless. Attendees told me they paused more, talked differently, and left sessions carrying the theme with them in a way words alone never could have done. The design later won an Eventex Award, but the real win was watching 4,000 people experience their own work through a genuinely new lens.
Led the creative brief through concept, storyboarding, and execution — aligning spatial strategy with business goals and stakeholder vision. This work exemplifies how thoughtful design can elevate complex professional narratives into memorable experiences.
Material choices and nuanced layering supported both daylight modulation and wayfinding — reinforcing a shift in perception without overpowering the user experience. By filtering natural light through translucent surfaces and floating planes, the space felt intentional, atmospheric, and conceptually tied to the theme, rather than decorative.
Beyond static visuals, the environment shaped how attendees moved, interacted, and absorbed content, reinforcing the theme in real time.
This leadership conference advanced brand engagement and attendee impact — aligning with broader strategic goals of connection, learning, and participant empowerment.
Honored with an Eventex Award for experiential excellence, this project successfully displayed strategic creative impact in a live, immersive environment that resonated with thousands of professionals.