Director, Special Event Planning

Department: Campus Services and Business Operations

Location: Jerry Sue Thornton Center

Reports To: Assistant Vice President, Campus Services & Business Operations

Recruitment Type: External/Internal

Requisition ID: req7511

Employment Type: Administration and Professionals

Union Position: Non-Union

Work Schedule: Standard College Hours: M-F, 8:30am-5pm with flexible hours for evening and weekend events across the College.

Number of Openings: 1

Job Description:

SUMMARY

The Director, Event Planning advocates for clients while providing event planning, guidance, support, and problem-solving options for all aspects of the College’s and Campus events. Working and managing relationships with all main client contacts or client liaisons when conducting business, the Director, Event Planning provides the leadership, direction, and hands-on oversight of day-to-day operations within the Special Events department of Campus Services and Business Operations. This position requires a focus on facility set-up and execution of special events, coordination of event planning, and enthusiasm for client/customer satisfaction and loyalty. The Director monitors and supports individual clients’ events, College dining services catering program, and designated College events from start to finish and acts on performance issues to ensure consistent service delivery, customer satisfaction, attainment of revenue goals, and compliance with established contractual standards and performance targets. Directs and manages special projects on behalf of the department and College and has direct responsibility for several sites throughout the Cuyahoga Community College District.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Provides overall direction/management, coordination, and ongoing evaluation of event operations at the Jerry Sue Thornton Center.

Plans for and leads preparation of the facility operations, hospitality, janitorial, catering and IT staff for upcoming event schedules on a weekly basis. Plans room layouts as needed for room set up.

Develops relationships with clients by maintaining and following established procedures, answering client inquiries and meeting client expectations.

Manages client relationships from start to finish including development, production, and delivery of events.

Oversees events and motivates a cross functional team including student employees, staff, and vendors to successfully carry out events.

Coordinates with clients and College contacts to ensure all event requirements from start to finish are documented and produces a BEO (banquet event order) for client review and approval.

Consults with clients for special service/program/meeting needs and makes necessary arrangements to accommodate.

Manages and facilitates weekly BEO meetings with appropriate staff members and vendors, ensuring they are knowledgeable and ready for the event.

Enforces required deadlines to obtain payment in accordance with the college’s policies and procedures. Including setting up vendors on ACH payments, and prompt billing and collection of facility rental revenue.

Finalizes information required for event delivery costs, billing and collects balances of event charges as agreed upon in client’s contracts.

For College events, maximizes revenues and controls expenses within budgeted guidelines.

Directly supervisors the Concierge Service at the Jerry Sue Thornton Center (JSTC) working with the Concierge on special events in the JSTC Ford Room and the Building.

Manages the College’s Special Event budget and provides detailed budget information for Collegewide events to the Vice President of Campus Services and Business Operations.

Manages and coordinates all aspects of client event while on-site using the event scheduling sheet provided and coordinating with staff as needed.

Manages and maintains relationships with catering contractors to ensure the College’s and client’s satisfaction and fiscal goals are met.

Provides oversight of catering operations, including menu offerings, pricing, product availability, service packages, and event execution, to ensure alignment with College expectations, contractual requirements, and evolving customer needs.

Establishes and evaluates catering service and performance standards, including food quality, presentation, timeliness, staff professionalism, customer experience, and operational compliance; utilizes event observations, performance metrics, and customer feedback to identify trends and opportunities for improvement.

Partners with dining service leadership to drive operational excellence, addressing service concerns, developing corrective action plans, implementing best practices, and advancing catering guidelines, training initiatives, service standards, and customer communication strategies.

Provides College leadership with analysis and recommendations regarding catering performance, customer satisfaction, service recovery, and overall program effectiveness to support strategic decision-making and continuous improvement.

Ensures all insurance, legal, health, and safety obligations are adhered to in accordance with College policy and procedures.

Organizes facilities for car parking, traffic control, and security, as needed.

Maintains a presence at the event to field requests and ensure the function runs smoothly and efficiently.

Cultivates and develops relationships for community outreach through various programs that promote the College and the use of College facilities and programs.

Assists with the organization and implementation of College-wide events, including special projects on internal seminars, Convocation, Commencement, Campus Day, securing accommodations with offsite venues as needed for external events.

Works closely with students in the planning and participation in College-wide events and presents experience opportunities College-wide to Hospitality Management Students, Interns, and Event Planning program students for them to enhance their work portfolio within the field.

Collaborates with Marketing and Communications to identify marketing opportunities for special events through the college website, electronic marquee, internal plasma televisions, and other forms of communication.

Conducts post-event evaluations (i.e., thank you letters, follow-up conversations, surveys, etc.) with clients and staff to continuously improve services and offerings.
Performs other related duties as assigned.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE/TRAINING

Bachelor’s degree in related field

Significant related experience may substitute for education.

Six (6) years of related experience in hospitality management industry focusing on event/project planning management.

Conference center management or event planning experience in a $2 million plus venue.

Certified Meeting Planner (CMP) designation or equivalent
Certificate in event planning for meetings and conferences or equivalent

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, and ABILITIES

Ability to ascertain a client’s strategic business plan, organizational management practices, information systems, operations, culture, and other critical factors and offer creative solutions to address their needs.

Possess attention to detail and customer needs.

Possess time management skills, service orientation, and drive to follow through on responsibilities.

Ability to independently prioritize responsibilities and identify staffing requirements.

Possess excellent communication and organizational skills.

Demonstrated proficiency with computer systems and the Microsoft Office Suite of products.

Ability to perform all positions in banquet operations to supervise, direct, and train all banquet personnel.

Possess knowledge of food production and service.

Ability to develop and maintain relationships with key contacts to enhance workflow and quality of services.

Demonstrated presentation skills that are persuasive, influential, and accurate.

Ability to work effectively and efficiently in a highly dynamic and changing work environment requiring flexibility, discretionary effort, and teamwork.

Ability to network in the community and build business relationships.

Knowledge of sales techniques including strong negotiation and closing skills.
Sensitivity to appropriately respond to the needs of students and the community.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

(Or equivalent job-related experience providing the necessary knowledge, skill, and abilities to perform the functions of this position proficiently)

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE/TRAINING

Master’s degree in related field
Conference center management or event planning experience in a $5 million plus venue.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS/WORKING CONDITIONS

(The demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.)

The work is performed in a normal, professional office environment during standard business hours. Occasional morning, evening, and weekend hours are required based on client and business demands.

The work area is adequately lit, heated, and ventilated.

Typically, the employee may sit comfortably to perform the duties of the job and will perform repetitive motions with hands/fingers using a computer mouse and keyboard to type. However, there will be some walking; standing; bending; carrying of light items such as papers, files, pamphlets, books, event decorations, etc.
Work may also require walking and standing in conjunction with travel to and attendance at meetings and conferences away from the worksite.

Target Starting Salary Range: $75,000 to $85,000

The final offer for the successful candidate is targeted to fall within this range but will be based upon an assessment of internal equity, the unit’s available budget, and the candidate’s qualifications in relation to the minimum and/or preferred job requirement(s).

Special Note: If hired, you must reside in the state of Ohio and be within commuting distance of this work location/campus to respond to onsite work demands upon the employment start date and throughout the duration of your employment with the College, as outlined in 3354:1-40-01.1 Recruitment and Selection Procedure.

Special Instructions to Applicants: During the application process, you may be required to attach a cover letter and/or resume. It is recommended that you have these documents ready to be attached electronically to the online application. This system accepts only MS Word or PDF attachments. Any employment with the College is contingent upon satisfactory completion of a background check and drug screen.

Equal Opportunity Statement: Cuyahoga Community College is committed to attaining excellence through the recruitment and retention of a qualified workforce. Cuyahoga Community College is an equal employment/educational opportunity institution.