Assistant Director, Strategic Meetings (51638)

AMERICAN GEOPHYSICAL UNION•Washington, DC

2d•$89,959 - $149,931•Remote

About The Position

The Assistant Director, Strategic Meetings is responsible for the planning, coordination, and delivery of the organization’s strategic and specialty meetings portfolio. This role provides day-to-day leadership for a diverse set of meetings that vary in size, format, and audience, ensuring consistent quality, operational excellence, and alignment with organizational goals. The position operates as a peer leader to the Assistant Director, Annual Meeting, providing cross-coverage and shared operational support across the meetings portfolio while maintaining primary accountability for strategic and specialty meetings.

Requirements

5+ years of experience in event design and development.
Management experience in a membership organization, with responsibility for strategy and innovation.
Experience in implementing new strategies and programs.
Experience developing and managing budgets.
Strategic thinking and ability to independently translate vision and aspirations into executable plans.
Strategic planning and business development knowledge
Experience in partnership development and management.
Effective written, verbal, and oral communication skills.
Demonstrated application of creative approaches to strategic enhancements, innovation and continuous improvement.
Professional interpersonal and relationship-building skills.
Attention to detail with an ability to multitask under pressing deadlines.
Computer skills: Microsoft Office, specifically Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams
Ability to exercise discretion on both internal and external confidential matters, and maintain confidentiality, including but not limited to strategic planning initiatives, contracts, budgeting, and personnel matters.
Ability to identify emerging trends in scientific conferences and events.
Background in creating strategic partnerships and collaborations.
The ability to travel 20% of the time, with some trips spanning up to 12 consecutive days.

Responsibilities

Lead the end-to-end planning and execution of strategic and specialty meetings, including timelines, logistics, staffing, vendor coordination, and onsite delivery.
Coordinate across the AGU enterprise for assigned meetings, ensuring each event is appropriately scoped, resourced, and delivered to standard.
Working with volunteer leaders, partners and AGU departments, guide meeting format, delivery model, and operational approach decisions based on goals, audience, and resources.
Provide data and documentation of meeting strategies and key data points for internal and external audiences.
Collaborate with Meetings Department leadership, other Departments, and the volunteer leadership, including the Meetings Committee, to co-design strategic and specialty convenings that advance the AGU mission.
Operate as a peer partner to the Assistant Director, Annual Meeting, providing cross-coverage, shared planning support, and continuity across the meetings portfolio.
Contribute to shared tools, templates, timelines, and best practices used across all meetings.
Support Annual Meeting planning and onsite execution as needed to ensure coverage and continuity.
Create and manage budgets for strategic and specialty meetings in coordination with meetings leadership, ensuring fiscal discipline and transparency.
Monitor expenses, forecasts, and resource allocation across the portfolio.
Identify opportunities to improve efficiency and scalability across meetings of varying size and complexity.
Lead relationships with venues, production partners, and service providers supporting strategic and specialty meetings.
Negotiate and manage contracts in alignment with organizational policies and risk tolerance.
Ensure vendor performance meets agreed-upon standards and timelines.
Develop and maintain operational plans appropriate to each meeting’s scope, including staffing models, safety and security considerations, accessibility, and contingency planning.
Ensure on-site staff and remote support staff are trained and informed about strategic and specialty meetings.
Ensure compliance with organizational policies, contractual obligations, and governance requirements.
Serve as a point of escalation during onsite operations for assigned meetings.
Provide visible leadership during strategic and specialty meetings, supporting staff, vendors, speakers, and attendees.
Resolve issues efficiently while maintaining focus on attendee experience and meeting objectives.
Lead post-event debriefs and documentation of lessons learned.
Partner with the Director of Meeting Experience, AGU departments and volunteer leaders to incorporate attendee insights, data, and feedback into meeting planning.
Apply lessons learned across meetings to improve consistency and quality.
Support innovation in meeting formats and delivery models that can scale across the portfolio.
Performs other duties as required or assigned, which are reasonably within the scope of the duties in this job classification.