Start Date: July 2024

Salary: $23-$26/hour

Status: This is a temporary nonexempt position ending December 2026

Hours: 10-20 hrs/week in 2024, increasing to 30-40 hrs/wk for 2025 and 2026

Reports to: VP of Engagement

Position Overview:

A successful candidate will be a self-starter with exceptional project management and problem-solving skills and the ability to effectively coordinate multiple stakeholders towards a common vision. The Special Events Manager is responsible for planning and facilitating the organization’s 50th anniversary celebration and fundraising events. This event will focus on raising funds for year-round programming, building and maintaining relationships with donors and strategic partnerships, and recognition of longtime community members and supporters.

About Adventure Cycling:

As the largest nonprofit cycling organization in the country, Adventure Cycling has an impactful voice in policies and programs that advance the safety and accessibility of cycling. Adventure Cycling serves through its members and the bike travel community. Our cycling community encourages and supports countless cyclists each year as they explore the beauty and history of America while tending to their mental and physical well-being. For nearly half a century, Adventure Cycling has created life-changing experiences that deepen appreciation for our country’s diverse cultures, communities, landscapes, and people. Adventure Cycling headquarters are based in Missoula, MT, and we acknowledge and honor the Indigenous peoples who consider this land their home. The area’s natural abundance was stewarded by many peoples including the Blackfeet, Crow, Shoshone, Cheyenne, Kootenai, Pend d’Oreilles and Salish for millennia before colonization, and continues to be to this day.

Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion:

The Staff and Board of Directors of Adventure Cycling Association believes in the power of bicycle travel to open minds and change the way the world explores. We envision a future where this organization draws staff, tour leaders, members, board members, and riders from the whole of our society. For this to occur, bicycle travel has to be available for everyone.

We are committed to listening to BIPOC, LGBTQ, and other marginalized peoples and understanding the systems contributing to oppression while also working to provide more resources and support for these communities.

The Adventure Cycling Association acknowledges its place in this power dynamic. As an organization we have benefitted from white privilege omnipresent in the United States and must use our power to hire, support, empower, and create safe spaces for Black, Indigenous and People of Color, LGBTQIA , and Femme/Trans/Women communities.

Responsibilities Include:

• Event concepting & planning: Generate and manage a wholistic 50th anniversary idea that allows for a calendar of community building events around the country
• Oversight and management of all event activities including: Secure and manage all event contractors, vendors, permitting and contracts for all events. Responsible for solicitation, negotiating, contracting, and stewardship of all event hospitality in-kind accounts
• Project and budget management: Create and manage timelines, budgets, and decision points with multiple stakeholders for all event-related activities. Prepare regular executive reports to keep leadership and board informed of upcoming milestones or activities.
• Community engagement: Incorporate opportunities to engage the existing community in the planning and execution of activities around the 50th anniversary, such as providing input via surveys, participating in a planning committee, and joining or leading rides and activities during the event.
• Fundraising: Work collaboratively with VP of Engagement to identify potential sponsors within the food/beverage industry, develop event exposure opportunities, and assess in-kind needs from new and existing corporate accounts.
• Volunteer coordination: Recruit and manage volunteers to execute event activities. Schedule, train, and supervise event volunteers.
• Communications: Understands and can define the needs for marketing and communications support to ensure events are successful. Collaborate with Marketing and Communications to create collateral materials and promotional plans to meet event needs and sponsor requirements.

Required qualifications:

• 3-5 years experience in event planning and management. Preference for large scale or festival event planning, or multiple event locations and formats. Direct experience with venue management, logistics, permitting, food, entertainment, sponsorships, in-kind solicitations, communications, audio/visual, volunteer coordination, incentives and onsite activities, etc.
• Self-motivated and able to work effectively both independently and with a team.
• Possess superior organizational and project management skills with the ability to prioritize, problem solve, and multitask. Demonstrates a keen attention to detail, including follow-through and follow-up.
• A demonstrated ability to work well in high stress situations
• Strong interpersonal and relationship building skills with a variety of internal and external stakeholders
• Committee organizing and leading: able to organize and direct volunteers in accordance with our values
• Understanding and willingness to engage with issues of institutional and structural racism or bias and their impacts on our organization and community.
• Commitment to equity and inclusion and to learn and respect differences of race, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, ability, religion and socio-economic circumstances and class.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working with people very different from yourself.

Physical Requirements:

Elements of job duties may require occasional moving of up to 15 pounds and the ability to occasionally stoop, kneel or crouch; candidates not able to meet such demands can possibly work with staff or others to accommodate.

Compensation, Schedule and Benefits:

This is a part-time, nonexempt position that will be 10-20 hours per week in 2024, and increase to 30-40 in 2025 and 2006. Benefits such as PTO accrual and paid holidays will start in 2024. Medical, dental, vision, retirement and an additional one-week bike vacation will begin in 2026. Schedule varies by supervisor, but is generally M-F, 8am-5pm MST. We are located at Adventure Cycling’s headquarters in beautiful and bike-friendly Missoula, Montana, but welcome remote applicants. We have a wonderful office in downtown Missoula, with plenty of bike racks! Adventure Cycling Association is an equal opportunity employer.

How to apply:

Apply via Submittable. Please answer the following question in the last paragraph of your cover letter: “Describe why inclusive and accessible opportunities in the outdoors are important to you?”