Manager, Event Content (Contract to Hire)

Educause

8h•$75,000 - $85,000

About The Position

This position manages all session content for all EDUCAUSE conferences or events, both face-to-face and online. The role manages the complete session lifecycle—design, solicitation, selection, scheduling, and programming—derived from internal and external program content. The Manager leads and manages the Annual Conference Advisory Committee and leads or supports Advisory or Program Committees for other conferences. This position serves as a subject matter expert on the unique needs and challenges higher ed IT professionals face, adult learning principles, and also acts as a project manager to drive the timing of all the above to ensure that conference programs are relevant, informative, easily navigable, and accurate. The Manager, Event Content works closely with internal staff and external stakeholders who oversee the execution of EDUCAUSE conferences or events. This position will primarily focus on the session-related aspects of events and secondarily focus on event programming innovations such as peer to peer learning or other methods of creative learning.

Requirements

Subject matter expert on the unique needs and challenges higher ed IT professionals face along with various technology solutions required.
At least eight years’ experience in project management, adult learning, and/or conference or event planning required.
A bachelor’s degree in a related field required.
Requires the commitment and ability to deliver excellence in member/customer services and high quality professional development programs.
A deep understanding of member/customer service and support, gained from work experience within higher education or nonprofit organization(s).
The ability to work professionally, collaboratively, and actively in a team environment, interfacing directly with stakeholders to achieve organizational goals and objectives while exhibiting the ability to think creatively to foster innovation across the association.
Demonstrated AI literacy, including the ability to responsibly use, evaluate, and adapt emerging AI tools to enhance program design, operational efficiency, decision‑making, and attendee experience in a rapidly evolving higher education technology landscape.
Requires good oral and written communication skills
Requires attention to detail and good organizational skills
The ability to manage multiple tasks and prioritize
Innovative and resourceful; actively seeks opportunities to improve processes
Requires sound judgment, and good intuition
The ability to be a self- starter, to be motivated
Requires good interpersonal skills.
Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
Physical demands of travel such as sitting for long periods, handling luggage, time zone changes, and adjusting to new environments.
Scheduled working hours either in the contractor’s time zone or EDUCAUSE core working hours or core working hours to be determined with the supervisor.
Be available and responsive during scheduled work hours.
Any time off or change in working hours must be pre-arranged according to department guidelines and consistent with the rules applicable to employment (e.g., vacation, sick, personal, leave of absence).
Must be able to work overtime, including weekends as needed.
Ability and enthusiastic willingness to travel up to 10-15% of the time nationally to all onsite conferences and events as assigned.

Nice To Haves

Experience with digital event platforms is preferred.
CMP or PMP certification preferred.

Responsibilities

Leads and manages conference Advisory/Program Committee or Program Team composed of internal and external stakeholders and those responsible for a segment or function of the program planning of the event. Includes responsibility for the recruitment and ownership of the logistics related to the agenda development, scheduling meetings, and prepping appropriate stakeholders.
Oversee and drive all aspects of conference programming, including Call for Proposal design, session/speaker selection, and curated content.
Coordinate fulfillment of all partner sessions in consultation with the partnership/corporate team.
Coordinate internal/staff programming needs, including staff sessions at EDUCAUSE events and inclusion of staff subject matter efforts to assure alignment of event programming with broader EDUCAUSE goals for content alignment and target audience focus.
Negotiate contracted/paid speakers.
Manage event program development, including integration of programming into internal and external platforms; conduct quality control to ensure data is in correct format and appearance.
Partner with the Meeting Planner to design and manage the entire program architecture, ensuring a seamless/accurate and engaging experience for all members
Working with the Meeting Planner, develop program space design, room sets, poster space needs, and session assignments in both physical and online conferences/events.
Coordinate cross-association efforts to build programming for specific audiences and personas.
In partnership with the President’s Office, manage the logistics (promo codes for registration, housing needs, rehearsals) for the Awards presented at EDUCAUSE events
Contract and manage logistics for featured and general session speakers, other invited speakers, and all other VIP attendees.
Work with Speaker Manager on speaker development and management.
Champions creative solutions to deliver attendee social engagement, peer-to-peer learning, and experiential learning.
Develop and integrate learning experiences that align with EDUCAUSE broader direction into the conference/event.
Lead and coordinate conference/event experiences in non-break out rooms to assure we supplement/enhance attendee experiences
Contribute to and support OpsTeam efforts to design innovative spaces, immersive learning opportunities, and unique event experiences.
Actively monitor program success and presenter success metrics, using data from room counts, sessions added to mobile app itineraries, event evaluations, session evaluations, CFP submissions, etc. and make recommendations for changes based on data
Ensures that we are gathering the programmatic data we need in evaluations.
Research industry standards, new, different, and experimental practices and recommend adult learning and experience innovations, as well as operational efficiencies.
Develops reports on event metrics for pre-event planning and post-event summaries; track event metrics over time to capture trends.
Leverage AI‑powered tools to streamline session solicitation, proposal categorization, and reviewer matching to improve accuracy and reduce manual workload.
Use generative AI to draft, refine, and standardize session descriptions, communications, and program materials while maintaining EDUCAUSE quality and tone.
Apply AI‑driven analytics to identify emerging higher ed IT trends, attendee interests, and content gaps to inform session selection and program design.
Integrate AI‑supported personalization (e.g., recommendation engines) to improve attendee navigation of conference programming and support more intuitive session discovery.
Partner with internal teams to explore AI‑enabled enhancements to peer‑to-peer learning models, such as intelligent matchmaking, conversation prompts, or dynamically generated discussion guides.
Collaborate with presenters to encourage responsible use of AI in session design, accessibility improvements (e.g., AI‑assisted captioning), and content delivery innovations.
Monitor AI‑related attendee feedback and engagement patterns, especially given the high interest and mixed perceptions around AI‑heavy programming, to help balance trending topics with broader educational needs.
Represents EDUCAUSE in a professional manner at all times; engages with co-workers, volunteers, and members in a civil, caring, respectful way.
Supports the professional development of others in their work to advance the mission and vision of EDUCAUSE.
Participate in EDUCAUSE events and activities as needed. Travel may be required to support EDUCAUSE conferences/events, research team operations, and external events relevant to the position.
Acts as a departmental liaison with employees, members, volunteers, volunteer groups, and clients.
Supports members in a manner that facilitates their growth, engagement, and enhances their EDUCAUSE experience.
As a frontline user of EDUCAUSE systems and data services, complies with data quality standards; adheres to data governance policies, procedures, and processes for ensuring data integrity. May act as the application or data collection lead for the department.
Duties, responsibilities and activities may change or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice.