Manufacturing Institute
 

Job Description 

Job Title:                                Associate, Events and Special Projects

Department:                          Operations

Division:                                 Manufacturing Institute 

Reports To:                            Operations Team Lead

FLSA Status/Level:                Exempt, Professional 

Location:                                DC Headquarters

Position Summary

The Associate, Events and Special Projects is a key role with the MI’s Operations Team that supports a wide range of events, convenings and initiatives that comprise the MI’s programs and are a core part of achieving the MI’s mission. This position requires high levels of project management skills as it is responsible for working with internal stakeholders to plan, promote and execute specific high impact events in Washington, D.C. and across the country, in addition to an array of smaller scale convenings and virtual events. As part of the overall operations team, this position is expected to also help improve the development of such events, establishing templates and recommendations to support continual process improvement. This position would be responsible for maintaining and updating the organization’s calendar of events and programmatic activities to ensure necessary coordination across various teams. 

The MI is a (c)3 non-profit that makes an outsized impact because we have an agile team that has a shared passion for our mission. We’re looking for a team player to join our highly collaborative workplace and support several program teams. As part of the Operations Team, the ideal candidate is a creative and resourceful self-starter who can anticipate and propose innovative solutions to potential challenges that may arise and work as part of a team to craft new ways to achieve our objectives. 

Join the MI Team and Make an Impact in the Following Ways: 

• Works at the direction of the Operations Team Lead to support the over 200 unique convenings the MI hosts on an annual basis by serving as the primary event point of contact for small and mid-sized in-person and virtual convenings and provide strong support for a small number of large, in-person flagship events.
• Help manage and update budgets, financial information and registration lists for specific events.
• Works closely with the Partnerships and Philanthropy team to help track and execute sponsor deliverables at events.
• Manage tech platforms and recommend best practice improvements for virtual events including briefings, meetings, career fairs and webinars.
• Participate in most virtual convenings to ensure tech platforms are running smoothly and address challenges or new functionality as they may arise.
• Provide onsite support for MI’s program teams at in-person events and convenings, working closely with a savvy Conference and Operations Team that supports venue and hospitality needs for events. Such functions include welcoming guests, managing registration/check-in functions, capturing details on attendance and registration reports, managing speakers and related needs. Event support may require travel and working off hours/weekends with advance notice.
• Helps identify and plan marketing and promotional needs to reach key audiences for each event convening, including drafting, scheduling and sending communications to prospective registrants and attendees.
• Organizes a cadence of regular communications and planning sessions for specific events with internal stakeholders and maintain documents and files related to each event. Responsibilities include leveraging task management tools to update deadlines and share information with respective internal program leads and all staff associated with each event.
• Works closely with the Operations Team Lead to update database information of specific audiences for event promotion needs and capture information needed to support sponsor and funder deliverables.
• Focus on continual process improvement to create efficiency in event development and identify and implement innovative approaches to strengthen the outcomes associated with each convening.
• Support the creation of post-event impact reports and conduct after-action review process with internal stakeholders.
• Work to highlight and feature upcoming convenings and program activities through internal communication tools, including staff meetings, weekly reports, etc.
• Improve program efficiencies, maximize technology solutions and assist in building standard processes to support the organization overall as part of the Operations Team, as needed at the direction of the Operations Team Lead

The above list of responsibilities represents the position and is not intended to limit or preclude other duties and tasks that may be associated with or added to the position.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• None

We are looking for Ambitious team players who meet the Following Criteria:

• A minimum of 2 years related experience working in project management or event management. Non-profit roles preferred.
• A successful candidate will be team oriented, have a positive attitude and a passion for delivering best-in-class service and events for internal and external customers. In addition, this role must have the ability to interact regularly with staff, executives, and other stakeholders.
• Familiarity with HubSpot, Asana and Salesforce preferred.
• Proficiency in MS Office programs and SharePoint required.
• Must be well organized and self-motivated, with the ability to work well under pressure and able to manage workload to meet deadlines.
• Ability to work in a dynamic, fast-paced environment, perform multiple tasks using various software applications.
• Strong editing and proofreading skills; excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Exercise professionalism when communicating and coordinating both internally and externally.
• This role requires occasional travel, with approximately 4-5 overnight weekday trips annually. Travel will be scheduled with advance notice and is typically related to supporting in-person events.