Assistant Director, Event Management
University of Chicago
Summary
Reporting to the Associate Director of Event Management, the Assistant Director, Event Management, has primary responsibility for planning and executing events. This includes working with diverse student populations; supervising union and student staff; developing and monitoring event budgets and billing processes; contributing to and implementing unit policies and procedures; and maintaining relationships with vendors to successfully support a range of events across the portfolio.
Job description
Responsibilities
- Assists with planning, coordination, and event support to student, staff, faculty, alumni, and affiliate clients within the Reynolds Club, Bartlett Hall (1st floor), Mandel Hall, and other University of Chicago locations in the evening and on weekends.
- Staff events and programs, and helps coordinate client needs on-site.
- Works with University and Student Centers staff to encourage community involvement in providing services to a wide variety of facility users in the Student Centers.
- Participates in the regular planning cycle for Student Centers events.
- Coordinates and attends a wide range of events during the day and evenings in Reynolds Club, Mandel Hall, and other campus locations as required.
- Contributes to problem-solving related to unforeseen issues concerning events and guests within the facilities.
- Helps ensure all events conform to University of Chicago and special event policies as necessary, with a high level of sensitivity to customer service and enhancing public relationships with program organizers and participants.
- Utilizes industry standards and technological solutions when appropriate.
- Oversees scheduling and billing policies and implementation for the Student Centers’ portfolio, including Ida Noyes Hall, Reynolds Club, Bartlett Hall (1st floor), and Mandel Hall, including the quarterly room lottery system for student organizations in collaboration with the Scheduling Coordinator.
- Provides consistent and high-level logistical support to all clients and events in the Student Centers portfolio.
- Ensures all reservations and billing are processed in a timely manner.
- Audits, scheduling, and billing practices as needed.
- Develops and maintains additional policies regarding scheduling and billing in collaboration with the Associate Director for Event Management.
- Cultivates and maintains relationships with vendors and departments that support events across the portfolio.
- Hires, trains, supervises, and evaluates employees, including a full-time, non-exempt Scheduling Coordinator and student employees.
- Serves as a member of the Student Centers staff and assists with various office programs and projects.
- Executes day-to-day event logistics and other moderately complex assignments with some guidance from others.
- Works to implement ideas for improvement as they are identified, in addition to providing post-event feedback on turnout and vendor performance, with direction from others.
- Performs other related work as needed.
Minimum Qualifications
- Education: Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.
- Work Experience: Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 2-5 years of work experience in a related job discipline.
Preferred Qualifications
- Education: Bachelor's degree.
- Experience: At least two years of experience in a progressively responsible work environment, preferably in a student union or hotel setting.
- Events management experience.
- Prior experience with financial administration and billing.
- Technical Skills or Knowledge: Experience with Event Management Software (EMS) or similar software.
- Experience with Social Tables or similar software.
Preferred Competencies
- Excellent oral and written communication skills and an ability to cultivate and manage strong relationships are a must.
- Demonstrate the ability to understand the needs of the University of Chicago community and work with students, faculty, and staff in a wide array of situations.
- Demonstrated the ability to work independently.
- Demonstrated success in working with diverse student populations.
Working Conditions
- Regular schedule is 10am-6:30pm Tuesday through Saturday during the academic year, with greater schedule flexibility during academic breaks and building closures.
- Availability to work varying hours as needed, including evenings and weekends.
- Ability to move across campus to meet clients and support events in various buildings and outdoor spaces.
- The ability to work effectively with a diverse and demanding population in a fast-paced, high volume environment.
Requirements
- College or university degree in related field
- 2-5 years of work experience in a related job discipline
- Excellent oral and written communication skills
- Ability to cultivate and manage strong relationships
- Ability to work independently
- Experience working with diverse student populations
Benefits
- Health insurance
- Retirement plan
- Paid time off
Company overview
The University of Chicago is a world-renowned private research university founded in 1890 and located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. As a premier academic institution, it operates one of the most comprehensive biomedical research enterprises in the United States through its Biological Sciences Division, which includes over 1,100 faculty members across 10 basic science and 14 clinical departments. The university manages extensive research infrastructure including the University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center, multiple specialized research institutes, and maintains affiliations with Argonne National Laboratory and Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. With research funding exceeding $450 million annually and more than 3,300 patents filed since 1987, the institution is a global leader in scientific discovery and innovation. The Biological Sciences Division alone supports over 500 research-active faculty who secure an average of $588,000 in NIH funding per principal investigator, focusing on areas including cancer biology, immunology, microbiology, molecular metabolism, neuroscience, and evolutionary biology. The university's commitment to interdisciplinary research and its unique position as manager of national laboratories creates unparalleled opportunities for translational research and scientific advancement.