What are the responsibilities and job description for the Events Manager position at Northeastern University?
About The Opportunity
The Event Manager's primary area of responsibility is to plan, promote, direct, and assess a diverse range of events across various sizes, modalities, complexities, and audiences, with a focus on advancing the mission of Education Innovation and the Office of the Chancellor. This role involves organizing and managing a variety of small and large-scale events (including meetings, workshops, conferences, fairs, ceremonies, and expos) while addressing all logistical aspects, such as facilities, technology, equipment, speakers, budgets, and other event-related needs. The Events Manager will assess the specific goals and objectives of each event to determine the necessary requirements for space, location, technology, equipment, accommodations, catering, and on-site management. They will also act as the primary liaison, ensuring seamless communication and coordination between vendors and the organization. They will work within budgetary and contractual constraints, create planning documents to track progress, prepare event materials, oversee on-site execution, and supervise both internal and external resources. Attendance at in-person events is required.
The Events Manager acts as the primary liaison with vendors and university partners and ensures compliance with university policies and strategic goals. This position oversees all aspects of event planning and execution, including budgeting, logistics, communications, and post-event evaluation. Success in this role requires the ability to manage multiple concurrent projects, foster collaborative relationships across diverse groups, and ensure events align with Northeastern’s commitment to excellence and innovation. Strong communication and project management skills are essential for effectively promoting events, engaging stakeholders, and ensuring seamless collaboration across teams and with external partners.
This role also supports project coordination and administrative operations to ensure smooth team workflow. Responsibilities include managing the intake process, prioritizing requests, and assigning tasks based on team capacity. The position also plays a key role in coordinating critical projects like Co-op and Global Experience Office initiatives, tracking deliverables, and maintaining stakeholder communication. Additionally, it provides administrative support through meeting documentation, inbox and calendar management, and updating key organizational resources.
Minimum Qualifications
Position Type
Marketing and Communications
Additional Information
Northeastern University considers factors such as candidate work experience, education and skills when extending an offer.
Northeastern has a comprehensive benefits package for benefit eligible employees. This includes medical, vision, dental, paid time off, tuition assistance, wellness & life, retirement- as well as commuting & transportation. Visit https://hr.northeastern.edu/benefits/ for more information.
All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.
Compensation Grade/Pay Type
108S
Expected Hiring Range
With the pay range(s) shown above, the starting salary will depend on several factors, which may include your education, experience, location, knowledge and expertise, and skills as well as a pay comparison to similarly-situated employees already in the role. Salary ranges are reviewed regularly and are subject to change.
The Event Manager's primary area of responsibility is to plan, promote, direct, and assess a diverse range of events across various sizes, modalities, complexities, and audiences, with a focus on advancing the mission of Education Innovation and the Office of the Chancellor. This role involves organizing and managing a variety of small and large-scale events (including meetings, workshops, conferences, fairs, ceremonies, and expos) while addressing all logistical aspects, such as facilities, technology, equipment, speakers, budgets, and other event-related needs. The Events Manager will assess the specific goals and objectives of each event to determine the necessary requirements for space, location, technology, equipment, accommodations, catering, and on-site management. They will also act as the primary liaison, ensuring seamless communication and coordination between vendors and the organization. They will work within budgetary and contractual constraints, create planning documents to track progress, prepare event materials, oversee on-site execution, and supervise both internal and external resources. Attendance at in-person events is required.
The Events Manager acts as the primary liaison with vendors and university partners and ensures compliance with university policies and strategic goals. This position oversees all aspects of event planning and execution, including budgeting, logistics, communications, and post-event evaluation. Success in this role requires the ability to manage multiple concurrent projects, foster collaborative relationships across diverse groups, and ensure events align with Northeastern’s commitment to excellence and innovation. Strong communication and project management skills are essential for effectively promoting events, engaging stakeholders, and ensuring seamless collaboration across teams and with external partners.
This role also supports project coordination and administrative operations to ensure smooth team workflow. Responsibilities include managing the intake process, prioritizing requests, and assigning tasks based on team capacity. The position also plays a key role in coordinating critical projects like Co-op and Global Experience Office initiatives, tracking deliverables, and maintaining stakeholder communication. Additionally, it provides administrative support through meeting documentation, inbox and calendar management, and updating key organizational resources.
Minimum Qualifications
- Proven ability to manage multiple large-scale programs or projects simultaneously with ease and efficiency.
- Experience planning and executing complex events, including conferences or workshops.
- Familiarity with hybrid and virtual event platforms.
- Strong organizational skills, effective time management, and exceptional attention to detail.
- Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain collaborative, positive, and effective working relationships with diverse groups, including university administrators, faculty, staff, students, business partners, and service providers.
- Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to engage and inform stakeholders at all levels.
- Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to respond effectively to address the needs and concerns of constituents, guests, vendors, community representatives, and other clients.
- Ability to assess workload, assign tasks effectively, and balance team capacity.
- Experience using project management tools (e.g., Asana, Trello, Smartsheet) to streamline processes.
- Strong organizational skills to monitor task completion and ensure timely follow-ups.
- Clear, professional communication to align expectations and provide updates.
- Ability to address workflow bottlenecks and adjust plans as needed.
- Ability to take clear, actionable notes and track task assignments.
- Strong scheduling and organizational skills to coordinate meetings and manage communications.
- Proficiency in updating team resources (e.g., org charts, checklists, shared documents) for accuracy and accessibility.
- Proficiency in computer skills, particularly with MS Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint), and familiarity with event management tools such as Eventbrite, Mailchimp, or similar platforms is a plus.
- Ability to work evenings and weekends as needed and adapt to flexible schedules.
- Diligence, dependability, resourcefulness, and maturity in handling responsibilities.
- A valid driver’s license may be required for travel.
- Knowledge and skills are typically acquired through the completion of a Bachelor's degree, coupled with 3–5 years of experience in event management.
- Experience in higher education or planning large-scale events is preferred.
- Event Planning and Management
- Full responsibility to plan, manage and execute logistics for a broad range of events as assigned.
- Manage the College's graduation ceremonies and major academic meetings, receptions, and events.
- Prepare event timelines, event budgets and contingency plans.
- Manage event logistics and project details. Identify and secure event venue and vendors. If it's an on-campus event, work with University venue managers, building services, physical plant, catering, audiovisual, parking, public safety, business office, and other constituencies.
- If using non-University vendors, negotiate low prices on behalf of the College; negotiate terms of the agreement and facilitate University process for contractual agreements.
- Work with internal constituencies to prepare invitations and develop guest lists.
- Recruit, supervise and educate staff (volunteers) on relevant logistics of the events.
- Monitor progress of event preparations and expenditures.
- Adjust or make recommendations concerning master budget and timeline to ensure that events are successfully executed, event goals are achieved, and expenditures are within budget.
- On site presence required at events, including evening and weekends to respond to and resolve issues on event site.
- Event Assessment/Evaluation
- Review and report on event evaluations, as appropriate.
- Create statistical reports of event outcomes.
- Conduct post-event reviews to identify areas of improvement in future event planning and follow up with key partners to integrate improvement ideas.
- Establish Best Practices
- Identify appropriate resources, e.g., professional experience, assessment/evaluation data, literature, other event managers, to develop a set of documents of best practices for delivery of accurate event procedures at the College that strengthen and enhance the College and University image and support the University mission.
- Event Promotion & Communication
- Oversee event registration, communication, and attendee engagement strategies.
- Ensure event materials align with Northeastern’s brand and messaging guidelines.
- Partner with EI Operations Marketing and Communications team members to create effective promotional strategies for events.
- Project Management Support
- Oversee the intake process by reviewing incoming requests, assessing priorities, and assigning work to the appropriate team members.
- Ensure tasks are distributed efficiently based on workload and expertise, while maintaining clear communication on deadlines and expectations.
- Monitor progress and provide support to optimize workflow and team productivity.
Position Type
Marketing and Communications
Additional Information
Northeastern University considers factors such as candidate work experience, education and skills when extending an offer.
Northeastern has a comprehensive benefits package for benefit eligible employees. This includes medical, vision, dental, paid time off, tuition assistance, wellness & life, retirement- as well as commuting & transportation. Visit https://hr.northeastern.edu/benefits/ for more information.
All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.
Compensation Grade/Pay Type
108S
Expected Hiring Range
With the pay range(s) shown above, the starting salary will depend on several factors, which may include your education, experience, location, knowledge and expertise, and skills as well as a pay comparison to similarly-situated employees already in the role. Salary ranges are reviewed regularly and are subject to change.
