Event Production Lead - Maternity cover

Chatham House; London; Hybrid; GBP 50,000; Full time

Job summary

Chatham House is seeking an experienced Event Production Lead to manage the production team during a maternity leave period. This senior role is crucial for delivering a diverse range of high-profile events, from commercial conferences to member engagements. The successful candidate will enhance the quality and innovation of event execution, while supporting the professional development of team members in a hybrid working environment.

Benefits

37 days annual leave

Pension salary exchange

Employee assistance programme

Parental leave

Flexible working

Qualifications

• Significant experience in live event production and operations.
• Ability to lead and motivate a team with line management experience.
• Skilled in multi-format event delivery (in-person, online, hybrid).

Responsibilities

• Lead design, operational planning and execution of external events.
• Oversee delivery of key events including commercial conferences.
• Manage supplier relationships and ensure high-quality event delivery.

Skills

Live event production

Budget management

Supplier coordination

Logistics skills

Communication

Job description

The Royal Institute of International Affairs is an independent policy institute based in London. Our mission is to help build a sustainably secure, prosperous, and just world through improvement in international relations.

We are seeking an experienced Event Production professional to lead our production team to cover a maternity leave. This is a busy and central role to the work we do at Chatham House. After all, convening is at the heart of what we do! This role sits in a team responsible for both creating the content for events (what questions are we asking and who are with speaking to and with) to putting on our spectacular events, roundtables and conferences. The Event Production Lead is central to the successful delivery of the latter with a wide range of high-profile events, including commercial conferences, other sponsored events, research-led events and member, donor and broader stakeholder convening. Our events can be hybrid, online only or in-person at Chatham House or offsite, including a number hosted internationally. We do it all.

This is a hands-on senior role, reporting to the Head of Events, with multiple direct line management responsibilities and third-party stakeholder management. The successful candidate will play a pivotal part in sustaining the quality, consistency and innovation of our events programme delivery while supporting the continued development of events production staff. You will also support the implementation of a centralised event function (at present, not all events are managed centrally).

We are an equal opportunity employer; we value diversity and do not discriminate on the basis of protected characteristics. We encourage applications from all backgrounds. If there is anything we can do to improve your experience or support you, please get in touch at [e-mail].

Principal Responsibilities

Strategy and Delivery

• Lead the design,operational planning and execution of all external events ensuring financial efficiency, consistency and quality.
• Partner with content leads, the corporate fundraising team, Membership team, Donor Relations and Research staff to shape event delivery, which is innovative, impactful, and aligned with our mission.
• Champion best-in-class production across multiple formats (in-person, hybrid, online), ensuring accessibility, consistency, and engagement.
• Continuing improvement and development of current ways of working.
• Oversee end-to-end delivery of key events including commercial conferences, sponsored partner engagements, and flagship events such as the Chatham House Prize and London Conference.
• Lead on and ensure clear communication between all parties before, during and after events such as catering, AV, research teams or fundraising teams.
• Ensure the function maintains high standards of documentation, including production schedules, run-of-show materials, and speaker briefs.
• Manage supplier relationships, negotiate contracts, and ensure high-quality delivery within set timelines and budgets.
• Support in budget planning and management for assigned events, ensuring efficient use of resources and timely credit control.
• Monitor industry trends and contribute insights that help maintain Chatham House’s reputation for excellence in event delivery.
• Ensure Health and Safety is core to all event planning, collaborating closely with the facilities team.
• Actively contribute to the delivery of the Chatham House EDI strategy.

People

• Work with the Head of Events to measure event impact.
• Actively contribute to team priorities, supporting the Head of Events as part of the broader Events senior team.
• Develop other event production staff.
• Provide effective day-to-day leadership and support to a team of event professionals (with direct line management responsibilities).
• Foster a collaborative and high-performance culture focused on continuous improvement and professional growth.

Personal Specification

Essential:

• Significant experience in live event production and operations.
• Passion for what we do.
• Proven ability to lead and motivate a team, with experience in line management and supporting professional development.
• Skilled in multi-format event delivery (in-person, online, hybrid).
• Excellent budget management, supplier coordination, and logistics skills.
• Clear communicator and confident collaborator with senior internal and external stakeholders.

Desirable:

• Experience delivering international or cross-cultural events.
• Familiarity with CRM systems, event platforms and digital production tools.
• Awareness of accessibility and sustainability best practices in event delivery.
• Recognised health and safety qualification e.g. IOSH Managing Safety or NEBOSH General Certificate.
• First aid at work certificate.

Benefits

Benefits include approximately 37 days annual leave (including public holidays and Chatham House closure days), pension salary exchange, employee assistance programme, parental leave, flexible working and other benefits designed to suit your lifestyle. All of this, in a professional, engaging and intellectually stimulating environment.

Salary:£50,000 per year.

Contract:Full-time, 18-month fixed-term contract.

Location:St James's Square, London.This is a hybrid role based in our London office. The successful candidate will be expected to work onsite at least 3 days per week, with flexibility to increase this during key event periods.

Closing Date:Tuesday 15July2025,23:59 BST.

Application task:

As part of your application, please complete the following task (maximum 1 page):

Scenario:
Chatham House is preparing to host a high-profile hybrid event on a current global affairs issue of your choice. The event will feature keynote speakers, panel discussions, and audience Q&A, with both in-person attendees and a global livestream audience. The event is scheduled to take place in 6 weeks.

Task:
Please outline your approach to planning and delivering this event. Your response should include:

- The topic of your proposed event and why it is timely and relevant.

-Key production considerations (e.g., venue and technical setup, hybrid delivery logistics, timelines).

- Stakeholder and speaker coordination (internal teams, external partners, suppliers).

- Risk management – how you would anticipate and mitigate challenges (technical, logistical, reputational, etc.)

Please avoid using AI for your application. We want to hear from you! We can tell the difference between a genuine answer and an AI-generated one. Using AI will run the risk of your application being disqualified.