Events Manager

Children's Hospital Association•Lenexa, KS

31d•Hybrid

About The Position

This role is responsible for the strategic, financial, and operational success of an assigned conference and portfolio of complex meetings and events. The position provides leadership to the Event Services team while overseeing event strategy, budgeting, contracting, resource allocation, and execution. It independently manages portfolio assignments and balances organizational priorities, financial stewardship, stakeholder expectations, and attendee experience.

Requirements

Minimum of 3 years of progressive experience managing complex meetings, conferences, or event portfolios
Minimum of 2 years of direct experience negotiating and managing hotel contracts, including contractual terms, concessions, attrition, and cancellation provisions.
Proven ability to lead teams, manage resources and budgets, balance competing priorities, and mitigate organizational risk across multiple projects.
Ability to exercise independent judgment and make decisions that balance organizational priorities, financial stewardship, and attendee experience
Strong strategic planning, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
Exceptional communication and relationship management skills, with the ability to influence and collaborate across all organizational levels

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's degree in Hospitality, Event Management, Business, Project Management or related field (preferred)

Responsibilities

Own budget planning, forecasting, expense management, and financial performance for assigned meetings and conference-related programming, representing more than $1.5 million in annual event expenditures.
Provide cost projections, monitor performance, identify financial risks, and recommend strategies to align spending with event priorities and organizational goals.
Evaluate financial results, event data, stakeholder feedback, and operational outcomes to drive continuous improvement and future planning.
Lead the Request for Proposal (RFP) process for assigned events, including destination and venue sourcing, site visits, venue evaluations, bid analysis, site recommendations, and leadership-ready decision support.
Manage contract negotiations exceeding $1 million in commitments, ensuring accountability for business terms, financial risk, vendor performance, and organizational liability.
Oversee event contract compliance and vendor performance, proactively managing contractual obligations and mitigating organizational risk.
Directly supervise assigned Event Services team members, providing coaching, performance management, workload prioritization, and professional development.
Assign and balance meeting and event portfolios across Event Services team members based on complexity, capacity, skill set, and organizational priorities.
Monitor team performance and resource utilization while fostering collaboration, accountability, knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement across the Event Services team.
Lead the planning and execution of assigned conferences, meetings, and events, ensuring alignment with stakeholder objectives, operational requirements, and attendee experience goals.
Partner with Brand & Communications and internal stakeholders to ensure events consistently reflect CHA's brand standards, messaging, and desired attendee experience.
Oversee on-site event operations, providing direction to staff and vendors while ensuring seamless execution, issue resolution, and an exceptional attendee experience.