Manager, Arts Festival and Special Events

Harvard University, Faculty of Arts & Sciences; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Tuition assistance

Parental leave

Professional development

Commuter benefits

Job summary

Harvard University’s Office for the Arts (OFA) supports student engagement in the arts and weaves the arts into university life. Through programs and services, OFA mentors artists, connects students with professionals, and builds inclusive communities that celebrate Harvard College’s diverse talent.

The role leads the Harvard Arts Festival curation and production, handles special events strategy, and coordinates logistics, budgets, and staffing.

Qualifications

• Master's degree or equivalent work experience required.
• 5+ years of work experience in event management or related roles.
• Excellent communication and organizational skills.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Produce Harvard Arts Festival including the Harvard Arts Medal.
• Collaborate on new creative programming and initiatives for the festival.
• Project manage planning, marketing, hiring, logistics and execution.
• Recruit, hire, train, and coordinate a 12-15 Student Producers.
• Organize 800-1000+ student performers and 60-100 volunteers.
• Schedule 10-12 venues, security, equipment and staff.
• Develop partnerships with Harvard schools and offices for festival events.
• Track budgets and ensure timely reconciliation of invoices.
• Prepare post-production for festival and maintain archives.

Skills

Event management

Project management

People management

Communication skills

Collaboration across teams

Budget tracking

Adobe Creative Suite

Public speaking

Education

Master's degree or equivalent experience

5+ years of related work experience

Tools

ClickUp

Google Drive

Dropbox

Trello

ZoomEvents

Job description

Company Description

By working at Harvard University, you join a vibrant community thatadvances Harvard's world-changing mission in meaningful ways,inspires innovation and collaboration, and builds skills andexpertise. We are dedicated to creating a diverse and welcomingenvironment where everyone can thrive.

Why join the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences?

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) is the historic heart ofHarvard University. It is the home of Harvard’s undergraduateprogram (Harvard College, founded in 1636) as well as all ofHarvard’s Ph.D. programs (the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin GraduateSchool of Arts and Sciences, founded in 1872), Harvard Athleticsand the Division of Continuing Education. The 40 academicdepartments and 30+ centers of the FAS support a communityunparalleled in its academic excellence across the broadest rangeof liberal arts and sciences disciplines. Together, the FAS seeksto foster an environment of ambition, curiosity and sharedcommitment to knowledge and truth that elicits excellence from allmembers of our community and prepares the next generation ofleaders through a transformative educational experience.

Job Description

Job Summary:

The Office for the Arts at Harvard (OFA) supports studentengagement in the arts and integrates the arts into universitylife. Through its programs and services, the OFA teaches andmentors, fosters student artmaking across all disciplines andabilities, connects students to accomplished artists, and createsinclusive communities that celebrate the rich diversity of HarvardCollege. By supporting the development of students as artists andcultural stewards, the OFA enriches society and shapes communitiesin which the arts are a vital part of life.

The OFA is dedicated to building a diverse community of individualscommitted to contributing to an inclusive environment. Applicantsfrom underrepresented populations are strongly encouraged toapply.

Job-Specific Responsibilities:

Harvard Arts Festival Curation and Production:

• Work closely with the Associate Director for CreativeProductions to produce the Harvard Arts Festival including theHarvard Arts Medal.
• Collaborate with Associate Director and OFA Director as athought-partner on new creative programming, curation andinitiatives for the festival.
• Project manages the planning, marketing, hiring, logistics,implementation and execution of the festival.
• Recruit, hire, train, and coordinate a team of 12-15 StudentProducers
• Organize 800-1,000+ student performers for festival.
• Recruit and organize 60-100 volunteers (students, faculty,staff, community members), and a Volunteer Coordinator to supervisethem.
• Schedule 10-12 venues, security, equipment, volunteers, andperformances.
• Serve as the primary lead for the Festival’s Performance Fair,collaborating with the OFA Director and the Director for ArtistEngagement and Creative Productions on curation of the PerformanceFair.
• Develop new partnerships with other Harvard schools, faculty,offices, and departments to incorporate their ideas into festivalevents.
• Establish and maintain timelines and workflows for festivalcommittees/work groups
• Track and organize logistical and publicity information.
• Ensure that planning stays on schedule and that vendors andstaff have up-to-date information.
• Solicit applications for festival events from universitypartners and gather accurate publicity information on all campusarts events and exhibitions occurring during the festival.
• Gather/enter/manage Arts Fest event database, files, andcorrespondence.
• Work with Communications team to develop, manage and executestrategy for marketing, communications, and outreach for ArtsFest.
• Prepare content for Arts First Guide, signage, website, socialmedia, media inquiries, and general communications materials,working closely with senior colleagues.
• In collaboration with the Associate Director for CreativeProductions track and update the festival budget, ensuringeffective allocation of resources and assist Festival eventproducers to ensure timely reconciliation of invoices.
• Prepare final documentation and post-production for festival,and maintain Festival archive of digital and print materials, incollaboration with OFA Communications team.
• Organize annual post-mortem with OFA senior staff to discussFestival and offer proposed changes for following year.
• Solicit, track and prepare data and create yearly festivalreport; contribute data and language for OFA yearly impactreports.

Special Event Strategy, Planning, and ProjectManagement:

• Support the Director for Artist Engagement and CreativeProductions to plan, project-manage, market and produce the OFAVisiting Guest Artist Series, OFA special projects and universityevents as assigned.
• Lead the setup/break down, logistics, hospitality, and artistsupport for special events.
• Book hotels, travel, and manage hospitality and logistics forvisiting guest artist series and residencies.
• Build itineraries and be point person for visiting guestartists.
• Track and organize logistical and publicity information forspecial events
• Negotiate and coordinate with vendors and internal departmentsto organize event services, including catering, audiovisual needs,signage, registration, logistics, parking, and security
• Develop and maintain a schedule for event productionmeetings
• Prepare detailed event plans and briefing documents to ensuresmooth operational execution. This includes assigning,communicating, and training staffing roles andresponsibilities.
• In collaboration with the Director for Artist Engagement andCreative Productions, track and update special events budgets.
• Partner with the OFA Director of Programs to evaluate theevent’s process by analyzing survey data and insights fromcross-functional team debriefs to assess audience experiences.
• Support digital story-telling, social media, and eventpromotion as assigned by the Director of the OFA.

Working Conditions:

The work schedule and location will be set by the department at itsdiscretion and based upon operational needs and objectives andconsistent with College Policy, which requires 5 days on-site inCambridge, MA during term time (first day of classes throughcommencement), with the exception of student breaks. When notworking at a Harvard or Harvard-designated location, employees inhybrid positions must work in a Harvard registered state incompliance with the University’s Policy on Employment Outside of Massachusetts .Additional details about the College policy will be discussedduring the interview process. Certain visa types and fundingsources may limit work location. Individuals must meet worklocation sponsorship requirements prior to employment.

Basic Qualifications:

• Master's degree required or equivalent work experience
• 5+ years of work experience in event management, event projectmanagement, people management, or similar role required

Additional Qualifications and Skills:

• Strong attention to detail
• Experience producing live performance events
• Experience providing outstanding customer service to internaland external constituents
• Excellent communication, organizational, time management, andproject management skills
• Experience working closely with students in a supportcapacity
• Significant experience leading event projects requiringcollaboration across teams of diverse stakeholders
• Demonstrated ability to work both independently and on ateam
• Deep understanding of project management and productivity tools(e.g., ClickUp)
• Knowledge of virtual and hybrid event platforms (e.g., ZoomEvents) Understanding AV technology and other event-relatedtech
• Availability to work irregular hours, including evenings
• Demonstrated commitment to education and communityprogramming
• Ability to manage large quantity of detailed information,problem-solve on the fly, remain calm and professional underchanging circumstances, combine creativity with solid productionand people management skills.
• Stage management experience is a plus, as is experience workingwith multi-generational teams, including retirees and those under18 years of age.
• Clear written and verbal skills.
• Familiarity with Adobe Creative Suite preferred. Familiaritywith publishing content to websites and social media marketing.Command of digital Collaboration tools such as Google Drive andDropbox and project management software tools such as Trello are aplus.

Additional Information

• Standard Hours/Schedule: 35 hours per week
• Visa Sponsorship Information: Harvard University isunable to provide visa sponsorship for this position
• Pre-Employment Screening: Identity, Education

Work Format Details

This position has been determined by school or unit leaders thatall duties and responsibilities must be performed at a Harvard orHarvard-designated location. Certain visa types may limit worklocation. Individuals must meet work location sponsorshiprequirements prior to employment.

Salary Grade and Ranges

This position is salary grade level 057. Please visit Harvard's Salary Ranges to view the corresponding salary range and related information.

Benefits

Harvard offers a comprehensive benefits package that is designed tosupport a healthy work-life balance and your physical, mental andfinancial wellbeing. Because here, you are what matters. Ourbenefits include, but are not limited to:

• Generous paid time off including parental leave
• Medical, dental, and vision health insurance coverage startingon day one
• Retirement plans with university contributions
• Wellbeing and mental health resources
• Support for families and caregivers
• Professional development opportunities including tuitionassistance and reimbursement
• Commuter benefits, discounts and campus perks

Learn more about these and additional benefits on our Benefits & WellbeingPage .

EEO/Non-Discrimination Commitment Statement

Harvard University is committed to equal opportunity and non-discrimination. We seek talent from all parts of society and the world, and we strive to ensure everyone at Harvard thrives. Our differences help our community advance Harvard's academic purposes. Harvard has an equal employment opportunity policy that outlines our commitment to prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, national origin, sex, sexualorientation, gender identity, veteran status, religion, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law or identified in the university's non-discrimination policy . Harvard's equal employment opportunity policy and non-discrimination policy help all community members participate fully in work and campus life free from harassment and discrimination.