Senior Design Manager, Events

McDermott Will & Schulte; Town of Boston (NY); On-site; USD 145,000 - 194,000; Full time

Job summary

McDermott Will & Schulte is seeking a Senior Design Manager, Events to lead bold, world-class experiences across our portfolio. You will own the creative vision end-to-end from invitation through on-site moments, collaborating with the Creative Director to deliver cohesive, elevated environments.

You will shape concepts across digital, environmental, and physical channels, guiding designers and vendors to execute at the highest level with operational rigor and budget discipline.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required or equivalent experience.
• At least 10 years in event design/experiential marketing with leadership responsibility.
• Hands-on proficiency with design tools (Adobe Creative Suite; Figma or similar).
• Ability to design large scale and intimate, detail-driven experiences across channels.
• Strong portfolio showing conceptual thinking across digital and physical environments.

Responsibilities

• Partner with Creative Director to push creative boundaries while ensuring clarity and sophistication across events.
• Develop overarching concepts and narratives unifying digital, environmental, and experiential elements.
• Design immersive experiences that align with brand standards and audience expectations.
• Translate themes into scalable creative systems for various formats and geographies.
• Oversee on-site creative applications including branding, signage, stage graphics, and collateral.
• Lead creative status calls, manage timelines, and coordinate with internal designers and vendors.

Skills

Creative leadership

Event design

Brand environments

Project management

Communication

Vendor management

Audience engagement

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Figma

Job description

Build your big career with the firm that does Big Law, Better. McDermott Will & Schulte is a leading global law firm that brings together more than 1,700+ lawyers and 1,400 business professionals. We celebrate excellence, collaboration, and community and have been recognized as a top workplace by USA Today, Fortune, The American Lawyer, Vault and others. We are also certified by Great Place to Work.

With Us, You’ll Find

• A firm where everyone belongs: Our award-winning culture prioritizes warmth and authenticity - we encourage you to be yourself!
• Enthusiasm for all perspectives: We're smarter and stronger when everyone has a voice and a seat at the table. We welcome unique viewpoints and ideas, and we make opportunities for you and your career to thrive.
• Support to feel your best and do your best: Wellness is integral to building a successful career and a rich life. That's why our benefits program supports your physical, emotional, mental, and financial health, with an emphasis on work-life balance.
• Real rewards for real work: We offer generous compensation packages that recognize hard work and excellence.

Job Description

The Senior Design Manager, Events is a strategic creative leader responsible for envisioning and delivering bold, world-class event experiences across McDermott's portfolio - from intimate, high-touch gatherings to large-scale, multi-day signature events with 2,000+ attendees. Reporting into the Creative Director, this role owns the creative vision end-to-end, ensuring every touchpoint - from first invitation through on-site immersion and post-event moments - feels cohesive, elevated, and unmistakably McDermott.

Positioned at the intersection of brand, experience design, and production, the Senior Manager brings a strong point of view and big-picture perspective, seeing the full arc of an event and understanding how each creative decision shapes audience perception and impact. This role calls for a confident creative lead who can articulate and defend strategic ideas with clarity, and balances conceptual ambition with operational rigor to turn complex, abstract ideas into bold, memorable experiences across digital, environmental, and physical channels.

Essential Functions And Responsibilities

• Partner closely with the Creative Director to push creative boundaries while ensuring consistency, clarity, and sophistication across all event executions
• Help drive the creative vision for McDermott events, developing overarching concepts and narratives that unify digital, environmental, and experiential elements into a seamless attendee journey
• Design immersive, ownable experiences that transform venues into branded environments aligned with McDermott's brand standards, business priorities, and audience expectations
• Translate high-level themes and messaging into scalable creative systems that work across event sizes, formats, and geographies
• Oversee the design of digital event assets, including email campaigns, event registration websites, and social graphics, ensuring cohesion across all pre-event marketing channels
• Lead the design and execution of on-site creative applications, including environmental branding, signage, stage graphics, wayfinding, experiential moments, and printed collateral
• Own the creative workstream for assigned events, leading creative status calls, managing timelines and workflows, and serving as the primary creative point of contact for stakeholders
• Brief, guide, and review work from internal designers and external vendors, providing clear direction and managing partners to ensure design intent is executed at the highest level, on time and on budget

Job Specifications

• Bachelor's degree
• At least ten (10) years of experience in event design, experiential marketing, brand environments, or integrated creative roles, with leadership responsibility
• Hands on expertise in design tools (Adobe Creative Suite; Figma or similar preferred) with the judgment to know when to design personally vs. delegate
• Ability to design large scale, high profile events as well as intimate, detail driven experiences
• Strong portfolio demonstrating conceptual thinking, spatial/environmental design, and integrated digital and physical executions
• Deep understanding of how creative strategy supports business objectives and audience engagement
• Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to articulate ideas clearly and persuasively to senior stakeholders
• Ability to manage vendors, production partners, and print processes with confidence and precision
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word)

Successful candidates will be provided with outstanding career opportunities and will receive a competitive total rewards package with the opportunity to earn performance-based bonuses.

Target Hiring Range $145,000 - $194,000

Please note that quoted salary ranges are not guarantees of what final salary offers may be. Base pay is based on market location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and geographic location. Base pay is only one part of the Total Rewards that MWE provides to compensate and recognize our staff professionals for their work. Full time positions are eligible for a discretionary bonus and a comprehensive benefits package.

Physical Demands And Work Environment

The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Physical Demands

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to sit, use hands, reach with hands and arms, stoop, talk and hear
• Employee must occasionally lift up to twenty (20) pounds

Work Environment

Typical indoor office environment

Disclaimer

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of the work being performed by people within this classification. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of employees assigned to this job.