Director, Events

United States Digital Space LLC; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 164,000 - 246,000; Full time

Job summary

Klaviyo is seeking an experienced Director of Events to own the vision for our event experiences, from K:BOS to NRF, Shoptalk, and eTail. You will lead a fast-paced team, manage multi-year strategy, and partner with agencies to deliver remarkable experiences.

You will drive brand awareness, pipeline, and engagement across B2B and B2C audiences while balancing strategic ownership with hands-on execution.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of hands-on event management experience.
• At least 3+ years of experience as a people leader.
• Experience with partnership and co-branding activations.
• A portfolio of event experiences with online and in-person campaigns.
• Proven track record with agency and contractor relationships.
• Strategic thinker with execution focus.
• Excellent communicator with senior leaders.
• Collaborative across teams and partners.
• Tech-savvy with AI tools and event platforms.

Responsibilities

• Develop and own the year-long strategy for owned, third-party, and internal events.
• Own the multi-million-dollar events budget and ROI.
• Present to leadership to justify investment and report impact.
• Lead and develop the events team and contractors.
• Coordinate with agencies and stakeholders to deliver on-brand experiences.
• Oversee flagship conference and external events from vision to on-site execution.
• Drive promotional plans to generate leads and registrations.
• Collaborate with marketing, sales, customer success, and product teams.
• Measure performance and translate results into strategic investments.
• Stay ahead of industry trends and competitive activity.

Skills

Event leadership

Budget management

Strategic planning

Stakeholder management

Team leadership

Communication

AI tools

Tools

Splash

Swoogo

Salesforce

Job description

At the company, we value the unique backgrounds, experiences and perspectives each the company (we call ourselves Klaviyos) brings to our workplace each and every day. We believe everyone deserves a fair shot at success and appreciate the experiences each person brings beyond the traditional job requirements. If you're a close but not exact match with the description, we hope you'll still consider applying. Want to learn more about life at the company? Visit the company.com/careersto see how we empower creators to own their own destiny.

The Brand | Creative | Events Team at the company is seeking an experienced, proven Director of Events to own the vision and leadership of our event experiences, from our growing, annual flagship user conference - K:BOS - to the third-party stages like NRF, Shoptalk and eTail, where the the company brand shows up in remarkable, impactful, and standout ways.

Reporting to the VP of Brand/Creative/Events, our next events leader will undoubtedly work at a fast pace, connect the dots intuitively, and drive results while working collaboratively across multiple stakeholder groups. You'll help set the multi-year strategy for the company's owned and third-party events - and to drive the team - including supporting event and experiential agencies - that bring that strategy to life.

In your day to day, you'll work across teams to develop and own the comprehensive events strategy that builds brand awareness, generates qualified pipeline, and deepens engagement within the the company and broader B2C community.

This role offers the ideal balance of strategic ownership, people leadership, operational rigor, and creative direction - the latitude to set a bold, multi-year vision for events, and the cross-functional team to help you deliver it.

How you'll make a difference:

• Develop and own the year-long strategy for the company's owned, third-party, and internal events - setting the calendar, priorities, ROI metrics, and investment case that ladder up to broader marketing and business goals
• Own the annual, multi-million-dollar events budget - forecasting spend, negotiating vendor and agency contracts, and reallocating investment across the portfolio to maximize ROI
• Present to marketing leadership and executive leadership to build the case for investment and report on impact
• Lead and develop event team, including direct management of the Sr. Events Manager and event contractor, providing the coaching and structure that lets them do their best work
• Drive alignment with agencies, internal stakeholders, and outside production partners to consistently deliver remarkable, on-brand experiences - setting the creative and operational bar and holding partners to it
• Own the strategy and executive-level oversight of the company's flagship user conference (K:BOS) and third-party events, from big-picture vision through on-site execution
• Own promotional plan to drive leads, registrations and engagement for events, including but not limited to microsite planning, lifecycle strategy, paid, and internal enablement
• Partner cross-functionally with marketing, sales, customer success, product marketing, and executive stakeholders to ensure events strategy supports broader go-to-market and brand goals
• Partner with our Field Marketing team to measure event performance and translate results into strategic recommendations for future investment
• Stay ahead of industry trends and competitive events activity, ensuring the company's presence stays fresh, innovative, and category-defining

Who you are:

• 12+ years of hands-on event management experience, ideally at a fast-paced, growth-oriented B2B SaaS or consumer brand company
• At least 3+ years of experience as a people leader
• Experience with partnership and co-branding activations
• A proven portfolio of event experiences, with compelling stories to tell about their development, management and success metrics, including holistic campaigns spanning online and in-person touchpoints
• Track record of leading people and directing agency or contractor relationships to deliver high-bar creative and operational outcomes
• Strategic thinker who can set a year-long vision and calendar while staying close enough to execution to catch what matters
• Exceptional communicator with strong verbal and written skills, comfortable presenting to senior leaders and executive stakeholders
• Natural collaborator and people leader who builds strong relationships across teams and gets the best out of the people and partners around them
• Confident decision-maker who can navigate ambiguity, competing priorities, and high-stakes, high-visibility moments with composure
• Tech-savvy with AI tool and skill-building proficiency, including Claude/ChatGPT, Salesforce, event platforms (Splash, Swoogo), and the adaptability to learn new tools quickly
• Willingness to travel approximately 30% of the time, as needed

Massachusetts Applicants: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Our salary range reflects the cost of labor across various U.S. geographic markets. The range displayed below reflects the minimum and maximum target salaries for the position across all our US locations. The base salary offered for this position is determined by several factors, including the applicant's job-related skills, relevant experience, education or training, and work location.

In addition to base salary, our total compensation package may include participation in the company's annual cash bonus plan, variable compensation (OTE) for sales and customer success roles, equity, sign-on payments, and a comprehensive range of health, welfare, and wellbeing benefits based on eligibility.

Your recruiter can provide more details about the specific salary/OTE range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

Base Pay Range For US Locations: $164,000-$246,000 USD

This role may require up to 10% travel for purposes such as new hire onboarding, client or partner work if applicable, team meetings, and industry events. Travel is coordinated in advance.

Get to Know the company

We're the company (pronounced clay-vee-oh). We empower creators to own their destiny by making first-party data accessible and actionable like never before. We see limitless potential for the technology we're developing to nurture personalized experiences in ecommerce and beyond. To reach our goals, we need our own crew of remarkable creators—ambitious and collaborative teammates who stay focused on our north star: delighting our customers. If you're ready to do the best work of your career, where you'll be welcomed as your whole self from day one and supported with generous benefits, we hope you'll join us.

AI fluency at the company includes respon