Associate Director, Trade Show & Event Management

Wolters Kluwer; London; Remote; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

An international service provider is seeking an Associate Director for Trade Show & Event Management. This remote role involves leading a portfolio of international events, overseeing a growing team, and managing vendor relationships. Ideal candidates will have over 10 years of event management experience and strong interpersonal skills. The role requires travel to EMEA trade shows and offers an opportunity to shape an exceptional attendee experience.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in event management, logistics, and project management.
• 5+ years of leadership experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage international trade shows from strategy to execution.
• Oversee and mentor team members.
• Collaborate with stakeholders for brand visibility and ROI.
• Manage vendors and agency partners, negotiating contracts.

Skills

Interpersonal skills

Communication skills

Team player

Project management

Budgeting skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience

Tools

MS Office suite

Cvent Event Management platforms

Job description

Associate Director, Trade Show & Event Management

As part of the Wolters Kluwer Global Business Services division, the Associate Director, Trade Show & Event Management reports to the Director, Global Event Management and supports the Vice President in realizing a best-in-class event management function operating as a shared service across the company.

This role is responsible for leading the strategic planning and flawless execution of the international trade show portfolio (primarily in EMEA and APAC) and will support internal and external proprietary conferences and events as needed. The Associate Director will play a key leadership role in developing and growing the international events function, including expanding the talent bench, onboarding new employees, and integrating new business units.

As a part of the global event management (GEM) team, the Associate Director will not only manage a portfolio of events, but also produce events from beginning to end. This involves project management, including timelines and critical path management and top notch execution. The position plays a key role on a team of multi-disciplined professionals (senior executives, marketing managers, project managers, strategists, and sales reps) who together create, produce and executes events for our internal and external clients. The role also manages and resources vendors, partners and other third parties, and heavily interacts with the client, including scheduling and leading status calls and meetings. The position requires extreme attention to detail and high level of customer focus.

The ideal candidate brings both strategic vision and tactical expertise, delivering exceptional attendee experiences while ensuring operational efficiency, cost management, and strong cross-functional collaboration.

This is a remote-based position with travel to EMEA trade shows several times per year.

Essential Duties and responsibilities

Responsibilities Include:

• Lead and manage a portfolio of international trade shows from strategy through execution, including pre-planning, logistics, on-site management, and post-event reconciliation.
• Oversee and mentor one direct report
• Manage and develop a growing international events team, starting with one direct report, ensuring excellence in execution, professional development, and alignment with overall team goals.
• Support the growth and development of the international events function, including building scalable processes, onboarding new hires and business units, and identifying skills and resourcing gaps.
• Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to maximize brand visibility, engagement, and ROI at events through strategic sponsorships, booth activations, and lead generation tactics.
• Serve as project lead for select proprietary conferences, supporting planning, logistics, and on-site coordination as needed.
• Manage vendors and agency partners, including booth builders, show service providers, venues, caterers, and A/V partners; negotiate and manage contracts to drive cost savings and mitigate risk.
• Maintain end-to-end project plans including timelines, budgets, staffing plans, run-of-show documentation, and internal communications.
• Monitor industry trends and best practices to continuously improve event strategy, attendee experience, and team capabilities.
• Ensure consistent application of brand and messaging guidelines across all international event touchpoints.
• Act as a trusted partner to senior leaders, communicating progress, risks, and insights effectively.

Job Qualifications

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree or experience equivalent required.

Experience:

• 10+ years of experience with responsibility for developing and executing events: overall event management, logistics, souring, project management.
• 5+ years of leadership experience

Other Knowledge, Skills, Abilities or Certifications: (First list requirements, followed by preferences.)

• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to mentor, train, manage and motivate.
• Proven success in working in matrixed organizations and influencing internal clients and interdepartmental teams.
• Maintain and promote a successful and positive work environment.
• Must have strong communication, presentation and interpersonal skills.
• An exceptional thinker and collaborator, with an appreciation of the need to make data-driven decisions and a proven ability to solve problems and drive change.
• Strong financial management skills; reporting, budgeting and forecasting.
• Proven ability to manage multiple tasks/projects simultaneously meet deadlines and communicate effectively across teams.
• Comfortable and confident interacting with and presenting to senior levels of management.
• Demonstrated customer service, ability to act diplomatically, and collaborate across teams.
• Time and project management skills, superior organization skills and attention to detail.
• Team player, flexible, “can-do” attitude
• Ability to work well under pressure.
• CMP (Certified Meeting Professional)
• Cvent Event Management and SMM platform experience.
• Experience in supplier strategy and management.
• Computer proficiency in MS Office suite required.

For more details please contact Carl Rigby at [e-mail]

Applicants may be required to appear onsite at a Wolters Kluwer office as part of the recruitment process.