Lead, Events

• Own Pearson's global events strategy, prioritisation and performance across a large events portfolio
• Translate enterprise, marketing, commercial and customer priorities into an annual events roadmap
• Define event objectives, audience strategies, investment levels and success measures
• Lead portfolio tiering, investment decisions, consolidation and efficiency improvements across regions and business units
• Lead, coach and develop a geographically dispersed team of event professionals
• Allocate resources and establish priorities, performance standards, operating rhythms and continuous improvement practices
• Provide strategic oversight across event planning and execution, including production, attendee experience, executive engagement and operational delivery
• Develop playbooks, governance models, templates and quality standards
• Lead readiness reviews and manage risks, dependencies, decision points and contingency plans
• Act as senior escalation point for high-profile or high-risk events
• Ensure compliance with legal, procurement, privacy, accessibility, health and safety, financial and brand requirements
• Manage contractual, financial and operational risks
• Build relationships with senior leaders across Marketing, Sales, Product, Communications, Finance, Procurement, Legal and Regional Business teams
• Lead strategic relationships with agencies, organisers, suppliers, venues and technology vendors
• Oversee supplier selection, commercial negotiations and performance management
• Provide executive recommendations, investment cases and portfolio reporting
• Define and measure event success across pipeline creation, customer engagement, partnerships, brand awareness and business growth
• Improve lead capture, attribution, reporting, efficiency, attendee experience, supplier performance and event ROI
• Maintain executive dashboards for portfolio performance, investment effectiveness, capacity planning and risk management
• Champion event technology, automation and data-driven decision making

Requirements

• Significant senior leadership experience managing complex corporate, B2B or enterprise events portfolios across multiple regions
• Proven experience leading and developing event teams
• Strong track record of translating business strategy into prioritised event programmes and measurable outcomes
• Extensive experience managing conferences, exhibitions, sponsorships, executive programmes, customer events and partner activations
• Experience operating within global, matrixed organisations
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing capability at senior levels
• Demonstrated success managing budgets, resources, suppliers and commercial investment decisions
• Deep understanding of live, virtual and hybrid event delivery
• Strong commercial and financial acumen
• Expertise in portfolio governance, event operations and risk management
• Strong understanding of event measurement, attribution and performance reporting
• Excellent executive communication and presentation skills
• Ability to make informed decisions in complex and high-pressure situations
• Highly organised with excellent planning and prioritisation capability
• Strong supplier negotiation and relationship management skills
• Experience using enterprise event management, project management, CRM and reporting platforms
• Direct experience delivering event programmes across both US and UK markets
• Experience within Higher Education, Education Technology, SaaS or global corporate environments
• Familiarity with event technology platforms, automation tools and audience engagement solutions
• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Communications, Event Management or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience

Core Competencies

Demonstrates expertise in managing complex corporate events portfolios, translating business strategies into measurable event outcomes, and leading geographically dispersed teams. Proficient in event operations, risk management, and stakeholder engagement within global organizations.

Highest-signal resume keywords

• Senior Leadership Experience
• Event Portfolio Management
• Stakeholder Management
• Event Measurement and Reporting
• Supplier Negotiation

Hard Skills

• Event Strategy Development
• Budget Management
• Event Operations
• Risk Management
• Event Measurement
• Commercial Investment Decisions
• Audience Engagement
• Performance Reporting
• Event Programme Delivery
• Event Technology Expertise

Soft Skills

• Excellent Communication Skills
• Strong Influencing Capability
• Highly Organised
• Planning and Prioritisation
• Decision-Making in High-Pressure Situations

Certifications & Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Marketing
• Bachelor's Degree in Business
• Bachelor's Degree in Communications
• Bachelor's Degree in Event Management

Industry Keywords

• B2B Events
• Corporate Events
• Higher Education
• Education Technology
• SaaS
• Global Corporate Environments
• Live Events
• Virtual Events
• Hybrid Events
• Executive Engagement

Tools & Technologies

• Enterprise Event Management Platforms
• Project Management Tools
• CRM Systems
• Reporting Platforms
• Event Technology Platforms
• Automation Tools