Events Manager

Events Manager

The Events Manager is a pivotal role responsible for centralizing, coordinating, and managing all events within District facilities, with a strong emphasis on maximizing revenue generation through external facility rentals. This position will serve as the District's primary point of contact for both internal and external groups seeking to utilize college spaces, ensuring seamless event execution, compliance with college policies, and efficient resource allocation. The Events Manager will lead a team of event setup staff and foster collaborative relationships across various college departments.

Supervision Received and Exercised: Receives direct supervision from the Vice President of Administrative Services or designee. Exercises supervision over assigned personnel.

Representative Duties

The duties listed are intended to provide examples of the types of work performed and are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities. The District reserves the right to modify or assign additional duties consistent with the classification. The following duties are representative of the essential functions of this position:

• Serve as the primary institutional point of contact for the rental of District facilities, including but not limited to, gymnasiums, athletic fields, meeting rooms, and specialized external areas across all campuses.
• Develop and execute marketing strategies to promote facility use to external community partners to optimize rental revenue.
• Regularly evaluate and update the facility fee schedule to ensure fiscal sustainability and market competitiveness.
• Manage the full lifecycle of event billing, including invoicing, income tracking, and the calculation of associated costs for staffing (overtime and regular rates). Oversee the facility fee waiver process, ensuring all documentation is prepared for Superintendent/Presidential or designee approval and tracked annually. Implement risk management protocols by ensuring all liability forms and insurance certificates are executed and on file for both internal and external facility users.
• Facilitate comprehensive logistical support for a diverse range of campus events and programs sponsored by internal departments, student organizations (including ASCOD), administrative units, and other institutional stakeholders. Centralize the management of event resources, including the procurement, inventory, and maintenance of equipment such as tents, tables, chairs, and audiovisual assets. Coordinate directly with Maintenance & Operations (M&O), Campus Safety, and Information Technology to ensure seamless service delivery for on campus activities.
• Serve as the system administrator for the District's event scheduling software to track assets and facilitate District-wide communication. Maintain a centralized college events calendar in coordination with the Public Relations Office to ensure broad notification via the website, email, and VIP alerts. Chair regular event stakeholder meetings and coordinate annual scheduling with external partners, such as the McCallum Theatre, to prevent facility conflicts.
• Supervise, train, and evaluate the performance of assigned event setup and support staff. Manage staff schedules to ensure adequate coverage for evening and weekend events while monitoring departmental labor costs and efficiency.
Other Duties:
• Attend workshops or conferences related to event management, safety, or California Education Code compliance regarding facility use (Civic Center Act).
• Participate in District-wide committees as assigned by the supervisor.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Education & Experience Any combination equivalent to: Bachelor's degree in Hospitality Management, Event Management, Business Administration, or a related field, AND three (3) years of progressively responsible experience in event planning, facility management, or a related field.

Knowledge of: Comprehensive principles and practices of event coordination, site logistics, and execution for both small-scale meetings and large-scale public events. Principles of budgeting, billing, and invoicing; methods for tracking expenses and revenue; and basic cost-recovery modeling. Applicable Federal, State, and District laws and regulations, including the Civic Center Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as they pertain to physical access and event accommodations. Understanding of basic insurance requirements (including Certificates of Insurance), hold harmless agreements, and safety protocols for public gatherings. Modern event scheduling software, centralized calendar management, and standard office productivity applications. Effective methods for managing equipment inventory and coordinating multi-departmental service requests involving Maintenance & Operations (M&O), Information Technology (IT), and Campus Safety. Basic principles of public relations and promotional strategies to drive facility rental interest and revenue. Customer service best practices and effective communication techniques for engaging with a diverse campus population and external community partners.

Ability to: Demonstrate sensitivity to and an understanding of the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, disability, and ethnic backgrounds of community college students and staff. Plan and coordinate events from start to finish, ensuring they are accessible, inclusive, and responsive to a diverse community. Manage multiple priorities, stay organized, and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment. Monitor budgets and support fiscally responsible decision-making. Communicate clearly and effectively, both verbally and in writing, with a wide range of stakeholders. Build and maintain respectful, collaborative relationships with individuals from diverse backgrounds. Lead, supervise, train, and motivate staff and event support teams to achieve operational goals and deliver high-quality services. Identify issues proactively and implement practical, timely solutions with sound judgment and minimal supervision. Apply policies and procedures consistently and fairly. Provide a high level of customer service while maintaining professionalism and responsiveness.

Employment Status

• Classified Supervisor
• Classified Leadership Salary Range 7

Salary placement is contingent on education, experience, and department budget.

• Retirement System: CalPERS (upon meeting eligibility criteria).
• This is a grant-funded position. Continued employment is contingent upon the availability of Grant funds.

Schedule & Location:

• This position is scheduled 40 hours per week, 12 months per year. Requires some evening and weekend responsibility, and to be available on-call to respond to emergency situations.
• The primary location is Palm Desert Campus but may travel to other campuses if needed.
• The schedule and location are subject to change based on District need.

Working Conditions Environment: District office environment; subject to constant interruptions and frequent interaction with others; sitting for long periods at a time (up to 2-3 hours); repetitive use of upper extremities including hand coordination activities; requires some holiday, evening, and weekend responsibility; occasional travel to other locations to attend meetings or conduct work. The ability to type, use phone, stand intermittently, walk, bend and stoop, occasionally lift (up to 20 pounds), carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects of light to moderate weight, work at a computer, including sitting and viewing a monitor for various lengths of time, repetitive use of keyboard, mouse or other control device, dexterity of hands and fingers to operate keyboard, ability to communicate and provide information to others.

Required Application and Required Uploaded Documents:

• Online Application: All sections of the College of the Desert District online application must be completed including education and experience.
• Resume: Must include length of employment (month/year start and end dates) for each employer.
• Cover Letter: Please address how you meet the minimum requirements for this position and any special qualifications you possess.

Optional Uploaded Documents:

• College Transcripts: Academic transcripts of all college level coursework showing date degree awarded from an accredited institution. For consideration, degree(s) must be awarded at the time of application. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable at time of application. Successful candidate must provide official transcripts upon hire. Non-U.S. transcripts must include a certified U.S. evaluation (i.e., NACES agency: at the time of application. Diplomas will not be accepted in lieu of the required transcripts.

Required in Your Application:

• List of References: References should include at least two supervisors and one colleague. Please include name, title, email and current phone numbers. Letters of reference will not be accepted in lieu of the required List of References.

Important Information for Applicants:

• Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S.
• College of the Desert does not offer sponsorship nor take over sponsorship for an employment VISA.
• Employment is contingent on residence in California.

• Incomplete application packages will not be considered.
• All submitted materials become the property of College of the Desert Community College District and will not be returned or copied and will be considered for this position only.
• Salary placement will be contingent on all materials submitted for this position.
• Applicant