Senior Global Events & Programs Lead

Harvard Kennedy School; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance starting day one

Retirement plans

Parental leave

Tuition assistance

Commuter benefits

Job summary

Harvard Kennedy School seeks a Senior Events Manager to lead CID’s public-facing events globally from Cambridge. You will shape the annual events portfolio, advise leadership on priorities, and drive high-impact conferences, seminars, and strategic convenings for CID staff, students, alumni, and partners.

You will manage budgets, partnerships, and post-event communications, ensuring operational excellence and effective engagement across Harvard and international development circles.

Qualifications

• BA/BS and a minimum of 5 years of professional experience in event management, program management, higher education administration, or related field.
• Demonstrated experience leading strategy and management of complex events with multiple stakeholders.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.

Responsibilities

• Develop and lead a comprehensive annual events strategy that advances CID's mission, research priorities, institutional visibility, and community engagement across Harvard and globally.
• Lead financial planning and stewardship for CID's annual events portfolio, developing budgets, and monitoring expenditures.
• Manage all logistical aspects of events, conferences, and speaker visits, including venue, catering, travel, AV, registration, and on-site execution.
• Coordinate communications and event promotion, including drafting newsletters and social media posts, and post-event write-ups.
• Oversee hybrid and virtual programming, including Zoom setup and livestream coordination.

Skills

Event management

Program management

Budget planning

Stakeholder engagement

Communication skills

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in related field

Tools

Salesforce

Zoom

Excel

PowerPoint

Canva

Job description

Harvard Kennedy School seeks a Senior Events Manager to lead CID’s public-facing events globally from Cambridge. You will shape the annual events portfolio, advise leadership on priorities, and drive high-impact conferences, seminars, and strategic convenings for CID staff, students, alumni, and partners.

You will manage budgets, partnerships, and post-event communications, ensuring operational excellence and effective engagement across Harvard and international development circles.