Venue & Special Events Manager – Corporate Hospitality & Special Public Events

The Special Events delivered by this team are ‘must attend’ hospitality events on the hi-end corporate and public festival calendar - generating £millions for this iconic Body (charitable status). This exciting multi-faceted role leading a team of 4 will be charged with ensuring both the commercial success and the exceptional customer experience of both their unique and large hospitality events and their venue hire offering.

Organisation
This world renowned body is a thriving charity, whose mission is to inspire and promote gardens,  gardening and it’s transformational benefits to as wide and diverse an audience as possible. Central to this is it’s annual programme of public Events, and alongside this a range of hi-end corporate hospitality and fundraising special events that are overlayed onto the public ones.

Role
This role works across two core elements of the organisation, both carrying hugely significant commercial and reputational importance. You will be taking the lead across their high profile fundraising ticketed Special Events, as well as overseeing venue hire on two impressive venue spaces aligned to the organisation. You’ll be managing the Special Events team of Deputy Special Events Manager, Co-ordinator and Assistant, and also the Venue Sales Executive.  Their main flagship event is a massively important date on the hi-end corporate hospitality calendar hosting over 5,000 attendees – other events have a more public orientated festival feel. You’ll be the lead for overseeing the curation, sales and delivery of the events. Keeping the offering refreshed and exceptional, alongside account managing large corporate accounts are core aspects of the role. Specifically working across two important departments this role is responsible for:

• Delivering a strategy that manages the sales process for all reactive and proactive leads for two large capacity venues (suited for fashion/automotive/special event clients) - work with the Venue Sales Exec to proactively gain sales leads through core marketing activities and participation at exhibitions and networking events - achieve the highest possible occupancy and yields for the venue opportunities offered from their properties
• Overseeing the ticket sales, corporate accounts, and the delivery of large gala flagship fundraising hospitality event and a number of other special events through the year. Ensure all Special Events are managed to the required exacting standard and ensure successful delivery. Work with the Special Event team to create and deliver unique and compelling events that offer an amazing experience and value for money for attendees.
• Account manage major corporate clients, from sales/onboarding and ensuring their experience and that of their guests throughout is of the highest level of service and expectations are met/surpassed
• Operations – you’ll work closely with relevant expert internal operations teams to ensure all customer journeys offer an experience of the right level and exceptional quality, and be responsible for the appointment and management of supplementary event service providers eg catering (including tastings) as and when required
• Achieve revenue targets, budget, forecast and report sales revenue on a regular basis
• Work closely with the marketing team to formulate a strategy that drives sales and increases venue and event profile, and deliver on it
• Devise and present new special event opportunities when applicable
• Manage team members to develop their skills.
   

You:
You’ll be an experienced events professional, with experience across venue sales and high end hospitality delivery, and working on special hospitality and public events, and experience of the corporate hospitality market, specifically working closely with large corporates and account managing. You might for example be working at a multi-use venue that provides ticketed corporate hospitality as part of the venue sales mix.  You’ll be strong team manager and leader, with exceptional interpersonal and account management skills.  Specifically the ideal candidate would bring:

• Thorough understand of the corporate and private event industry
• Experience of delivery an event/venue sales strategy to achieve budgets
• Experience of effectively managing and leading a high performing team with experience of developing individual and team competence
• Experience of managing event agencies and corporate and private clients through a sales process – ideally across both corporate hospitality and public event activities
• Knowledge of event operations such as catering, AV/Production & Security – and of quality delivery of all aspects to high expectations
• Ability to establish effective working relationships and partnerships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders
• Excellent account management skills, and experience of working to the high expectations and needs of top end corporate hospitality for major corporates
• Experienced dealing with the challenges and demands of live events – cool, calm and a true leader in a crisis

This is a unique and really brilliant role – if you tick the boxes above and would like to see 2022 bringing you the opportunity to work on some of our most iconic and well known hospitality and public events with the most amazing team alongside you – do APPPLY now!