Cognagora - Company

Company

Major events have changed dramatically in recent years—they are larger, more complex, draw more media attention and have far greater security concerns.

The task of providing a safe, efficient and effective credentialing solution has become more difficult. The risks if not successful have risen exponentially. Cognagora understands the challenges and will tailor a solution to meet the unique requirements of your event.

Cognagora was created by event professionals who understand the issues and who have delivered best-in-class credentialing solutions for the world’s biggest events.

Tom Cisewski is the President of Cognagora. He served as Director of Credentialing for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City and the 2004 G8 Summit. He was also the Manager of Olympic Family Accreditation for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. He has consulted for six other editions of the Olympic Games: 1998 (Nagano), 2000 (Sydney), 2004 (Athens), 2006 (Torino), 2008 (Beijing) and for 2010 (Vancouver), for the International Olympic Committee and on other international sporting events. Mr. Cisewski has also worked for UPS Worldwide Logistics, CAPS Logistics and his own firm as a supply chain engineer and consultant.

He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Georgia and Bachelor of Industrial Engineering and Master of Science in Industrial Engineering degrees from the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech).

Jon Stein is the Director of Operations for Cognagora. He served as the Deputy Director of Credentialing for the 2004 G8 Summit and Manager of Olympic Family Accreditation for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. He has also managed credentialing operations for dozens of major sporting and entertainment industry events. Mr. Stein supervised media accreditation for the 1996 Olympic Games and served on the media operations staff for the 1994 FIFA (Soccer) World Cup.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in Sport Management from Ithaca College.

Claire Potvin is the Director of Consulting for Cognagora. She served as Director of Accreditation for the 1996 Olympic Games, the 1992 Olympic Winter Games in Albertville and the 1988 Olympic Winter Games in Calgary. Her unparalleled Olympic experience includes management of international relations and access control. Ms. Potvin wrote the original Accreditation Guide for the International Olympic Committee and has served as a consultant for Olympic organizers in 1994, 2000, 2002 and 2006, and for organizers of Pan American, Commonwealth and Goodwill Games.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics from the University of Montreal.

Ina Grennes is the Director of Administration and Alliance Programs for Cognagora. She has spent 11 years in managerial roles for Olympic organizing committees: Director of National Olympic Committee Services for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, Manager of International Ticket Sales for the 1996 Olympic Games and Manager of Ticket Sales for the 1994 Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer.

Ms. Grennes holds a Bachelor of Management degree from the Norwegian School of Management, BI.

Cognagora has an extensive network of seasoned event professionals, project managers and software developers who provide specialized services as needed.