Executive Director, High-Impact Event Leadership

The University of Texas at Austin; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of Texas at Austin seeks an Executive Director for Event Management to lead the team delivering the university’s most visible events, from presidential and ceremonial to donor and student programs. You’ll oversee project management, production staff, and event operations to ensure timely, high-quality outcomes.

You will coach managers, align priorities with institutional goals, manage budgets and vendor contracts, and partner with university leaders to translate strategy into

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Ten years of progressively responsible experience in event management or related field.
• Five years of supervisory experience leading professional staff.
• Experience leading complex, high-visibility events with executive leadership and multiple stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to lead teams, establish expectations, and achieve results through others.
• Experience managing budgets, staffing plans, vendors, and production schedules.
• Strong organizational and project management skills with ability to manage multiple priorities.
• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills.
• Ability to work evenings, weekends, and extended hours as required.

Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee a portfolio of high-profile university events, ensuring projects are well planned and executed.
• Provide direct leadership for project managers, coordinators, production staff, and event operations personnel.
• Ensure projects remain on schedule, decisions are timely, risks identified early, and teams ahead of deadlines.
• Review project progress and challenge timelines to maintain speed and quality.
• Balance workloads and resources to support successful event execution.
• Remove barriers and make decisions to keep projects moving forward.
• Oversee event planning, logistics, production, staffing, inventory, safety and security coordination, and on-site execution.
• Develop and maintain planning processes, standards, tools, and procedures for consistency and efficiency.
• Coordinate with university partners, vendors, and stakeholders for planning, approvals, and execution.
• Oversee budgets, contracts, purchasing activity, and resource decisions with responsible stewardship.
• Evaluate outcomes and stakeholder feedback to identify improvements for future events.
• Represent University Events & Experience with professionalism during meetings, rehearsals, and live events.

Skills

Leadership

Project management

Budget management

Communication

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

The University of Texas at Austin seeks an Executive Director for Event Management to lead the team delivering the university’s most visible events, from presidential and ceremonial to donor and student programs. You’ll oversee project management, production staff, and event operations to ensure timely, high-quality outcomes.

You will coach managers, align priorities with institutional goals, manage budgets and vendor contracts, and partner with university leaders to translate strategy into