Event Producer

Utopia Experience; St. Louis (MO); Hybrid; USD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Retirement plan with match up to 3%

Flexible paid time off

Collaborative culture

Non-profit client exposure

Transparent, collaborative atmosphere

Hybrid schedule

Job summary

Utopia Experience is seeking an experienced events professional to own a portfolio of client accounts from kickoff through post-event reconciliation. You’ll manage multi-year partnerships and single events, ensuring consistent delivery and accountability for every client.

You’ll collaborate with leadership and production teams to design budgets, negotiate hotel contracts, and create compelling sponsorship packages that drive value for clients and sponsors alike.

Qualifications

• 3–5+ years planning corporate events
• Proven success managing $500K+ event budgets
• Real hotel contract negotiation experience
• Hands‑on experience with registration platforms
• Comfort working with A/V vendors, production teams, and technical requirements

Responsibilities

• Own the full planning lifecycle for a portfolio of client events
• Negotiate hotel contracts to protect margins and please finance teams
• Own the full budget lifecycle, track spend, and reconcile post-event
• Design sponsorship packages and manage fulfillment from logos to deliverables
• Create intuitive registration experiences using Cvent and other platforms
• Manage A/V procurement and other vendor partnerships with confidence
• Coordinate complex event logistics across multiple tracks and speakers
• Travel to events across the U.S. and internationally to ensure flawless on-site execution

Skills

Event planning

Budget management

Contract negotiation

Registration platforms

AV coordination

Client relationships

Tools

Cvent

HubSpot

Monday.com

Google Sheets

Job description

This isn’t just a “coordinate vendors and make timelines” kind of role. This is about orchestrating high-stakes, high-visibility experiences. Our average event is "500–2,000 attendees", six-figure budgets, and clients who trust us with their most reputation-defining moments. If complexity energizes you, if a 47-tab spreadsheet feels like a puzzle instead of a panic attack, and if you secretly enjoy being told “this might be impossible” — keep reading.

ABOUT UTOPIA

Utopia Experience is a full-service event planning company with a production edge — we plan and manage conferences, galas, and corporate events, and we understand A/V, production, and video at a level most planners don't. Whether we're partnering with franchise brands on their annual conventions, producing a company's annual sales kickoff, or helping nonprofits rethink how they bring people together, we're dedicated to the success of our clients. We don't just plan events — we build relationships, and we care about how every attendee and sponsor experiences the room.

WHAT YOU'LL ACTUALLY DO

You'll own a portfolio of client accounts at once, some multi-year partnerships (think a three-year, multi-conference engagement), some single events — and you're the primary point of accountability for every one of them, from kickoff through post-event reconciliation. Every client gets the same standard, whether it's their first event with us or their fifth year.

The Strategic Work

• Own the full planning lifecycle
• Negotiate hotel contracts that protect margins and make finance teams happy
• Own the full budget lifecycle, line-item build, tracking against spend, invoice management, and post-event reconciliation
• Design sponsorship packages that feel like true partnerships. Manage fulfillment end to end: logo collection, deliverable tracking, and sponsor communications
• Build thoughtful, intuitive registration experiences attendees don’t hate using (we most often work in Cvent, however the specific platform chosen per event based on the client’s needs)
• Manage A/V procurement and other vendor partners with confidence

The Execution Work

• Create signage plans, event assets, and attendee journey maps
• Manage complex logistics: multi-track conferences, dozens of speakers, layered run-of-shows, and tight timelines
• Travel to events across the U.S. (and increasingly internationally) to ensure thoughtful on‑site execution
• Coordinate clients, production teams, vendors, and VIP speakers like a conductor — keeping everyone in sync, in tempo, and (mostly) on key

The Growth Work

• Help refine and scale our planning processes as we expand into new markets
• Bring ideas that make our events, systems, and client experience better
• Collaborate closely with the VP of Operations, creative, production, and business development teams for inspiration, innovation, and brainstorming

No two events run the same way. The service mix, the vendors, and even the tools change from one client to the next — so the people who thrive here aren’t the ones who memorize one process. They’re the ones who can pick up any part of any event and run it to standard.

WHO WILL THRIVE HERE

You Have the Experience

• 3–5+ years planning corporate events, conferences (not weddings, not social events)
• Proven success managing $500K+ event budgets with strong financial discipline
• Real hotel contract negotiation experience (you understand attrition)
• Hands‑on experience with registration platforms
• Comfort working with A/V vendors (you know the difference between a projector and an LED wall), production teams, and technical requirements

You Have the Mindset

• You spot problems before they become emergencies — and already have backup plans
• Details don’t drain you; they energize you
• You understand events are reputation-defining moments
• You stay calm under pressure because… well, that’s just event life. Plan tight, hang loose.

You Have the Personality

• Natural relationship builder who makes clients feel confident and cared for
• Clear communicator who can translate technical jargon into plain language
• Team player who jumps in wherever needed (setup, load‑in, and strike)
• Self‑starter who doesn’t need (too much) hand‑holding — and humble enough to ask for help

You MUST

Travel 6-8 weeks per year on average (not consecutive)

Be legally authorized to work in the U.S.

Be flexible with evenings and weekends during event season

Have a valid passport (or be willing to get one)

Be comfortable with modern tech (Cvent, HubSpot, Monday.com, Google Sheets)

Be comfortable with accountability and high standards

WHAT MAKES UTOPIA A GREAT PLACE TO WORK:

• Retirement plan with 100% match up to 3%
• Flexible paid time off and holidays (essentially unlimited PTO… We don't do formal PTO - that system is antiquated. Just don’t take advantage, and we’re all good!)
• Truly awesome people - we don't have needless meetings, don't tolerate egos and genuinely like each other. You will love it here.
• We believe in doing good. A large part of our business is serving non profit organizations that are making the world a better place to live
• We work hard, have fun, learn each day, challenge each other, and we have an incredibly transparent and collaborative atmosphere
• Hybrid schedule - In-office: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday | Work from home: Monday, Thursday