Senior Manager, Venue Sourcing
Wayne, PA, United States
The Senior Manager, Venue Sourcing, is responsible for initiating and overseeing the sourcing and contracting of all meetings and events with AD's portfolio. Working collaboratively with divisional and business unit presidents, the senior analyst, and the meeting lead, this person will identify and recommend appropriate venues based on predetermined criteria. This role combines a mix of operational efficiencies, strategic planning, contracting and analysis to thoughtfully procure hotels and venues that meet AD's world-class standards and provide an optimal guest experience.
Primary Responsibilities:
Strategically source and contract venues on behalf of AD, considering AD's calendar of events, brand image, corporate functions, and external and industry conferences.
Advocate on behalf of AD's Meetings & Events team to identify, source, and recommend venues for all meetings and events.
Drive the end-to-end sourcing process, negotiating contracts and pricing, considering, and communicating standardizations, concessions, and best practices.
Utilize data and analysis to evaluate and manage program and sourcing costs, identifying opportunities for scale and repeat bookings while also evaluating and implementing service agreements, addendums, and concessions to drive commercial value on behalf of AD.
Partner with stakeholders to develop strategic sourcing plans/pipelines looking ahead 1 - 4 years, gathering all requirements and other information to source a meeting or event accurately.
Initiate the RFP process to secure appropriate room blocks, logistical, production, and other event needs, as well as pricing from hotels, event agencies, technology, and other suppliers.
Qualify proposals to determine if they are appropriate and competitive.
Review contracts prior to finalization and conduct final negotiations with selected venues to obtain the best possible pricing and concessions to meet savings and spending expectations.
Ensure consistency in participants' experience while considering the need for regional differences in processes, business needs, and travel preferences.
Analyze and make recommendation for meeting and event locations based on travel trends, ease of travel, modernization, AD brand and appropriateness of venues.
Work in partnership with the Sr. Analyst, develop and manage travel reporting, reviewing, and analyzing cost savings and efficiencies, travel policy exceptions, and service goals.
Manage housing reports, keeping attrition deadlines and registration patterns in mind, and ensuring meeting lead achieves key targets.
Attend all site inspections, determine suitability of venues according to program scope, objectives, and AD's standards.
Participate onsite at all Spring Network Meetings, North America Meetings and Summits to ensure event is conducted according to contractual requirements, liaising with hotel team, and participating at pre-conference discussions.
Special projects and other duties as they arise and are assigned. May include managing room blocks and arranging flights for select participant travel.
Requirements
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
Excellent project management skills, professionalism, extremely organized, and outstanding communication skills are a must to be successful in this position.
Exceptional leadership, team building, collaborative skills while working with high performing teams who understand business and audience needs. Proven ability to contribute to cross-functional teams.
Desire to thrive in rapid growth, fast-paced environment and can adapt well to change.
A self-driven work ethic and model.
Strong negotiation skills.
Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
Builds and maintains strong vendor relationships.
Qualifications:
Bachelors Degree in Business, Hospitality or a related field and 4 years relevant experience required
3+ years' experience sourcing, negotiating, and contracting hotels and venues
Understanding of conference logistics, and space mapping highly desirable
Understanding of event budgeting, forecasting, and reporting
Data collection and data management skills
Additional Comments:
Position is based in Wayne, PA where we have a hybrid work schedule with 3 days in the office (Tuesdays-Thursdays & Mondays and Fridays remote)
Business Hours: 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Travel: approximately 30% with occasional evening and weekend hours
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