Senior Global Events Strategist

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

Benefits offered by this job

Generous paid time off

Medical, dental, vision insurance

Retirement plans

Tuition assistance & reimbursement

Commuter benefits

Job summary

Harvard Kennedy School’s Center for International Development (CID) invites a Senior Events Manager to drive strategic planning, design, and execution of CID’s public-facing events in Cambridge and globally. The role leads program development, stakeholder engagement, and operational excellence for exceptional experiences.

Reporting to CID’s Senior Director of Communications, the candidate collaborates with researchers, faculty, and practitioners to advance CID's mission, manage budgets, and

Qualifications

• BA/BS degree required or equivalent experience in event management or higher education administration.
• Minimum 5 years of professional experience in event management or related field.
• Experience leading strategy and management of complex events with multiple stakeholders.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English.
• Proficiency with Word, Excel, PowerPoint; familiarity with Canva and AI tools.

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, allocating resources strategically, monitoring expenditures, and identifying opportunities to maximize impact and efficiency.
• Lead design and delivery of CID's event portfolio, including ongoing programming and marquee events such as CID’s flagship annual Global Empowerment Meeting (GEM), advising leadership on calendar, priority themes, speakers, content, and audiences.
• Identify and cultivate strategic partnerships to expand reach and impact of CID programming.
• Serve as strategic advisor to faculty and leadership in developing programming that elevates CID research and strengthens relationships.
• Establish metrics to evaluate event success, analyze participation trends and audience feedback, and recommend improvements.
• Manage all logistical aspects of events, conferences, and speaker visits including venue, catering, travel, audiovisual needs, registration and on-site execution.

Skills

Event management

Program management

Higher ed admin

Communication

Microsoft Office

Webinars

Education

BA/BS degree

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Salesforce

Zoom

Canva

AI tools

Job description

Harvard Kennedy School’s Center for International Development (CID) invites a Senior Events Manager to drive strategic planning, design, and execution of CID’s public-facing events in Cambridge and globally. The role leads program development, stakeholder engagement, and operational excellence for exceptional experiences.

Reporting to CID’s Senior Director of Communications, the candidate collaborates with researchers, faculty, and practitioners to advance CID's mission, manage budgets, and