Exhibition & Sponsorship Operations Manager

isth; Charlotte (NC); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

ISTH is seeking a Manager, Exhibition & Sponsorship Operations to drive flawless exhibition logistics and sponsorship fulfillment for its global congresses and programs. You will lead partner relationships, manage budgets, and coordinate with vendors to deliver best-in-class experiences while protecting ISTH's scientific independence.

The role emphasizes compliance with industry codes, post-congress analysis, and cross-functional collaboration with Meetings, Marketing, and Finance teams.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Minimum of 5 years in international conference and trade show management, medical/scientific field preferred.
• Knowledge of pharmaceutical and medical device industry codes.
• CEM and/or CMP designations are a plus.
• Experience with CRM (e.g., Salesforce) and exhibition management tools.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain relationships with industry partners; act as primary contact for exhibitors and sponsors.
• Manage show floor plans, budgets, and show management vendor relationships to maximize ROI.
• Produce exhibition content, kits, service documentation, and feasibility assessments.
• Coordinate contracts, compliance with ISTH guidelines, and post-congress reporting.
• Oversee on-site operations, deadlines, and communications with exhibitors and sponsors.
• Ensure separation of promotional activity from ISTH scientific program and education.

Skills

Stakeholder management

Exhibition operations

Sponsorship management

Vendor management

CRM (Salesforce)

Budgeting

Regulatory compliance

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Salesforce

Microsoft Office

Exhibition management software

CRM platforms

Job description

Position Summary

The ISTH Manager, Exhibition & Sponsorship Operations is a key member of the ISTH Meetings Team, responsible for the operational management and flawless execution of all exhibition logistics and sponsorship fulfillment, including a wide range of educational, scientific and promotional activities, for ISTH's annual congresses, educational and highlight courses and other programs held in locations around the world.

The role requires strong exhibition and sponsorship technical expertise, including a working understanding of pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industry codes, congress vetting requirements, and the standards governing the independence of accredited education. It further requires exceptional attention to detail and relationship-building skill in a global setting and with some of the world's largest pharmaceutical and device manufacturers.

Working within the ISTH Meetings team, the Manager collaborates closely with the meetings team, the industry relations and business development function, marketing and communications, finance, and external partners (such as global and/or local exhibition management companies, destination management companies and other vendors) to deliver best-in-class exhibition and sponsorship experiences for our industry partners, protect the Society's scientific independence, and maximize the retention and renewal of industry support for ISTH's meetings.

Key Responsibilities:

Industry Partnership Management

• Develop and maintain strong, ongoing and positive relationships with ISTH’s industry partners and act as the primary operational and fulfillment contact for exhibitors and sponsors for all the Society’s congresses, courses and other programs.
• Participate in the identification of services and solutions and participate in the selection, and ultimately management of (global and local) vendors/partners that will support the exhibit and sponsorship fulfillment process
• Maintain accurate exhibitor and sponsor records in the Society's CRM as the shared system of record with the industry relations and business development function, prepare regular updates, reports, statistics, trends, provide suggestions on improvements and innovations for attracting new and improving current exhibitor and sponsor ROI.
• Provide best-in-class customer service to internal and external stakeholders.
• Deliver structured post-congress reporting on exhibitor and sponsor participation, booth traffic, benefit utilization and satisfaction, and supply that analysis to the Manager, Industry Relations & Business Development to support renewal and account growth conversations.
• Escalate promptly to the Director of Meetings and the Manager, Industry Relations & Business Development any partner request that would deviate from contracted terms, ISTH rules and regulations, or applicable industry codes.

Exhibition Operations and Sponsorship Fulfillment

• Support the development of exhibition and sponsorship expense budgets; monitor expenses against budget, track fulfillment costs and margin, analyze trends and drive operational optimization. Revenue target-setting and forecasting rest with the Manager, Industry Relations & Business Development.
• Develop, together with the meetings and business development teams as well as the (global and/or local) show management company, venue and other partners, and manage the show floor plan to maximize exhibitor-delegate interactions, satisfaction and ROI/ROO for industry partners and participants alike.
• Produce the operational content of the exhibition and sponsorship prospectus, exhibitor kits and service documentation for each congress, in support of the Manager, Industry Relations & Business Development, and provide deliverability, cost and feasibility assessment for proposed new sponsorship offerings.
• Establish and maintain effective operational communications with confirmed exhibitors and sponsors following contract execution; including, but not limited to booth space and sponsorship allocations, order confirmation, exhibitor kits, deadline management, onsite service delivery, post-congress correspondence and general communication.
• Responsible for the implementation of all exhibit and sponsor contracts and agreements according to all applicable ISTH guidelines, legal requirements, etc.
• Responsible for proper and timely reconciliation and payment of exhibition and sponsorship amounts deliverables with the support of the ISTH finance team.
• Collaborate with the Director of Meetings to develop the technical manual, together with the selected vendors; while managing and executing all aspects of the day-to-day implementation for exhibition and sponsorship services.
• Assist in the selection, implementation, development and ultimately manage an online exhibition and sponsorship sales and exhibition/sponsorship services tool.
• Inform the development of, and ultimately manage and enforce, exhibition and sponsorship rules and regulations in accordance with global and local requirements, including the applicable pharmaceutical and medical device industry codes and the MedTech Europe Conference Vetting System.
• Fully prepare and independently manage industry site visits as well as industry post-congress feedback meetings, surveys and other structured feedback mechanisms.
• Manage deadlines, deliverables and information flow for sponsorship recognition as well as fulfillment of sponsor/exhibitor benefits with the ISTH marketing and communications team, the registration, program and wider meetings team as well as other parties as necessary; to include, but not be limited to printed programs, website, congress app and other media, registrations, onsite benefits, etc.
• Ensure the physical and programmatic separation of promotional industry activity from ISTH's independent scientific program and accredited education, including floor plan adjacency, signage, satellite symposia scheduling and labeling, and onsite compliance monitoring.
• Manage the operational delivery of industry satellite symposia and non-CME industry sessions in coordination with the program and education teams.
• Manage digital and virtual exhibition and sponsorship deliverables, including congress app, website, on-demand and year-round digital placements.
• Advance the Society's sustainability commitments in exhibition operations, including booth materials, freight, waste and energy standards, and report on progress annually.
• Assist in other Society projects as assigned by the Director of Meetings.
• Perform other meetings or Society related duties as assigned.

Skills, Abilities, and Knowledge Required:

• Embodies ISTH’s internal core values of fun and recognition, collaboration, trust, communication, respect and progress
• A self-starter who demonstrates ownership and commitment to the role
• Can operate with a high degree of autonomy, responsibility, initiative and professionalism
• Work with a sense of urgency and results-orientation, with the ability to multi-task in a fast paced multi-cultural and international service environment
• Demonstrated ability to remain flexible, manage multiple priorities, and stay highly organized and detailed oriented
• Proven business and analytical skills
• Ability to develop creative solutions to client needs and challenges
• Professional presence - ability to communicate with others and collaborate respectfully and in a culturally sensitive way with high-level professionals including volunteer leadership, members, industry professionals and stakeholders from around the world
• Keen ability to listen, build relationships and partner with customers while enforcing ISTH rules and regulations
• Sound judgment and the confidence to hold firm with senior industry stakeholders when a request would compromise ISTH's rules, regulations, or scientific independence.
• Exemplary written and verbal communications skills
• Stay current with global trends in exhibition and sponsorship for medical/scientific organizations and represent the Society in relevant global organizations
• Proficiency with terminology and common procedures/rules/regulations of the exhibition and conference industry in an international and medical/scientific setting.
• Fluency in one or more additional languages is a significant plus

Experience and Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and professional experience
• Minimum of 5 years professional experience in an international conference and trade show management role, with specific experience with events held in different locations around the world and in the medical/scientific field
• Demonstrated knowledge of pharmaceutical and medical device industry codes
• Certified Exhibition Management (CEM) and/or Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designations preferred
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office, tradeshow, sponsorship/exhibition management and/or other conference management software
• Experience with CRM platforms (e.g., Salesforce or similar) and online exhibition and sponsorship service management tools.

Performance Measures:

• Exhibitor and sponsor satisfaction scores and post-congress feedback.
• Exhibitor and sponsor retention and rebooking rate, in partnership with the Manager, Industry Relations & Business Development.
• On-time, on-budget delivery of exhibition build-up, operations and dismantle.
• 100% fulfillment of contracted sponsor benefits, with documented verification.
• Zero compliance findings related to industry codes, congress vetting, or scientific program independence.
• Accuracy and timeliness of exhibition and sponsorship reconciliation with Finance.

Work Environment:

• This position is mainly sedentary
• The position requires the ability to lift and carry up to 30 lbs. of materials.
• Weekend and after-hour work may be required as dictated by the event schedule
• Travel (primarily internationally) required is approximately 20-25% of work schedule, concentrated around congress build-up, onsite delivery and site visits