Senior Director of Conferences, Meetings & Events

Purpose of the Position

The Senior Director of Conferences, Meetings, and Events leads the development and execution of the “gold standard” events for the senior housing and care industry. Responsible for strategically positioning and the financial and operational success of conferences and professional events, the Senior Director is also creative and inspires timely, relevant programming attractive to C-suite officers of capital providers, operators and industry professionals that serve the sector.

The Senior Director will be a strategic thinker performing competitive analysis of other conferences and differentiating NIC events. The Senior Director will have a keen understanding of the audience, the value proposition driving conference attendance, and effective marketing campaigns for the target audience. The successful candidate will have a track record for driving conference growth, attracting new audiences to conferences, and creating sponsorship opportunities and growing sponsorship revenues.

The Senior Director works with NIC’s network of C-Suite volunteer leaders to develop and refine their programming ideas and insights, promote networking and connections, and effectively use their time and talent. The successful candidate will have demonstrated success in presenting to and facilitating discussion among senior executives.

The Senior Director reports to the President and CEO and is a member of the Senior Leadership Team. The Senior Director leads and manages the teams for planning, budgeting, programming, registration, logistics, vendor contracts, partnerships, and sponsorships for each conference or event.

Key Responsibilities

• Prepare and maintain a comprehensive competitive assessment of other industry conferences and develop strategies to differentiate the value proposition for NIC conferences.
• Develop a vision and strategic plan to competitively position NIC conferences for the future by staying abreast of industry trends, technologies, incorporating innovative ideas to continuously improve event quality and relevance.
• Develop an annual plan for conference and program planning and execution with performance metrics and goals.
• Lead presentations to volunteer leaders to guide conference programming and facilitate effective and timely conference programs.
• Serve as project manager for conferences, meetings, and events including creating and managing timelines for conducting planning meetings with Conference Program Committees to facilitate timely development of marketing and promotion materials to maximize attendance.
• Working with the program curator and head of communications and marketing, organize and attend meetings of Conference Program Committees to develop engaging programming for conference themes and sessions that attract industry leaders as presenters and drive attendance.
• Collaborate with head of communications and marketing, marketing copywriter, and other marketing personnel to develop compelling marketing and promotions materials for conferences and review the marketing and promotions plan.
• Manage programming, logistics, and development staff.
• Oversee development staff in developing new sponsorship opportunities and growing sponsorship revenue.
• Lead multiple conference planning and execution simultaneously for Fall, Spring, and Data & Analytics Conferences and other professional events.
• Accountable for budget and finances for conferences and meetings.
• Oversee selection of meeting venues including RFP process.
• Thoroughly review and approve event and function orders with venues and vendors.
• Conduct in-person and virtual site visits/inspections as needed.
• Oversee and approve RFPs, selection, and contract negotiations for major vendors including destination management contractors, audio visual, catering, mobile apps, printers, shipping, and other vendors as required.
• Create and administer attendee surveys for conferences and sessions with statistically significant response rates.
• Create post-event meeting reports to include details regarding registration, financials, attendee surveys, sales, and mobile app statistics.
• Review and update standard operating procedures as needed.
• Ensure timely, outstanding customer service including responding in a timely manner to inquiries by sponsors, volunteers, and attendees.
• Demonstrate NIC Enterprise Values including:
• Invest in Ourselves
• Partner with Others
• Take Pride in Our Work
• Other duties may be assigned.

Management/Supervisory Responsibilities

• Establish clear performance expectations, metrics, and goals for employees. Empower staff with resources and authority and mentor employees to achieve success and demonstrate how their success connects to NIC's mission.
• Consistently exhibit and uphold NIC values.
• Recognize performance in an open, constructive, and professional manner.
• Contribute to the recruiting and onboarding processes that result in a new hire who is successfully integrated into their role and the NIC culture.
• Ensure compliance with NIC policies.

First-Year Priorities

The Senior Director role will have tremendous opportunity to integrate thought leadership and bring a critical strategic eye to further refine the value proposition of conferences, expand the sponsorship opportunities and evaluate the team to maximize efficiency and effectiveness with the goal of expanding audiences, overall reach and impact.

There is significant support and structure around onboarding and training for this role. Chief among the first-year priorities and goals for the Senior Director:

• Participation and completion of NIC Academy – 50 hours of online curriculum
• Benchmarking market competition– Employing a systematic assessment of the competitive landscape including education formats, pricing, delivery methodologies
• Assuming all responsibilities for the 2026 conference planning – Getting to know all processes, workflows, budgeting, logistics, vendor relationships, attendance, meeting targets, program committee members
• Expanding audiences and sponsorship – Identifying and establishing growth and dollar targets within sponsorship, partnerships, as well as the attendee profile
• Engaging with leadership team members – Exposure to different committees, volunteer groups, Board meetings, meeting with C-suite members of the community

Travel Requirements

• As needed but approximately 45 days per year.

Competencies

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including ability to present to groups.
• Outstanding interpersonal skills and the ability to work well with teams and independently.
• Desire and ability to work in a fast-paced environment and prioritize multiple tasks simultaneously.

Required Qualifications

• Commitment to NIC’s mission, values, and vision.
• Five years of profit and loss accountability for conferences and events.
• Demonstrated planning and project management skills, including the use of project management software.
• Demonstrated group facilitation skills.
• Demonstrated managerial effectiveness working with employees including hiring, onboarding, and performance management.
• Demonstrated success collaborating with teams of coworkers.
• Track record of developing strong relationships with C-suite.
• Superb listening skills and ability to translate C-suite volunteer ideas into conference session design and content.
• Demonstrated capability in raising funds for sponsorships.
• Demonstrated strength in decision-making and problem solving.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office particularly Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Experience with Salesforce or other CRM applications.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent professional experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• At least 2 years’ experience working with C-suite volunteers.
• Experience using event management software.
• Demonstrated commitment to serving older adults and communities.
• Experience in the senior housing and care industry.
• Experience in creating and administering electronic surveys.
• Demonstrated experience networking with LinkedIn.

Location

Annapolis, MD (Candidates may work remotely if residing within a 2-hour commute)

Work Environment/Physical Demands

Work is generally remote but when working in the NIC office environment there may be exposure to moderate noise levels. Work involves operation of personal computer equipment for six to eight hours daily or prolonged periods of time and includes physical demands associated with a traditional office setting, e.g., walking, standing, communicating, and other physical functions as necessary. Physical requirements of this position include the following:

• Lifting up to 25 lbs.
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate

Compensation

• The salary range for this position is $200,000 - 215,000 with bonus potential.

SE# 510668495