PR/Event Planning Director

Rosemont, IL - Hybrid/Flexible Arrangement

People. Planet. Community.

Dairy’s journey starts on the farm, and the road we travel demonstrates our unwavering commitment to sustainable nutrition, as our farmers provide lasting and meaningful nourishment to people, the planet and our communities, both urban and rural. Join us on the journey!

Position Summary

Searching for an experienced public relations/event planner to manage meetings from concept through completion, helping maintain dairy’s reputation for memorable and engaging events. The ideal candidate is passionate, creative, detail-oriented, and dedicated to providing superb client service at every turn. This role demands an expert in all aspects of event, meeting, and conference planning, including marketing materials, cost containment, venue scouting, equipment logistics, room setup, best practices, and internal customer service support. The best candidate is an event planner who brings a fresh perspective to meeting and conference planning and who can manage the daily details while using big-picture thinking to ensure truly unique experiences.

Key Accountabilities

Act as a strategic partner to EVP of Board Relations to plan and execute effective meetings for farmer-funders.

Oversee client experiences from conception through post-event review; manage on-site preparations, production, and event breakdown; and ensure consistent, high-level service throughout all phases.

Coordinate with internal staff, clients, and vendors to establish the requirements for an event, and serve as liaison to senior executives and industry leaders throughout the planning process.

Locate resources, visit sites, and lead pre-event meetings to help staff make decisions about event design.

Plan and facilitate logistics for all events, including contract negotiations, guest lists, venue preparation, presentation materials, catering, entertainment, transportation, equipment, decor, and marketing materials.

Integrate and coordinate marketing and branding materials around the meeting include meeting invites, signage, and branding for event.

Requirements

Minimum Qualifications:

Education & Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in event management or related discipline

• 6+ years' event planning experience including public relations/writing for event promotion

• Experience in working with board of directors or similar audience

• Experience in building and maintaining positive business relationships

• Excellent organizational skills, including multitasking, time management, and attention to detail

• Proficient with EMS or Cvent event management software

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Manage all aspects of event planning, meet strict deadlines, and stay within budget

• Nurture and build relationships with vendors, venues, and other industry contacts while crafting and implementing the

creative and logistical aspects of all events

• Be a strong team player, working closely with different internal staff teams to provide gold standard service

• Be a strong advocate of farmer resources, using strong negotiation skills with hotels during contract reviews

• Remain current (or ahead of the curve) with trends in event planning, design, and production, and proactively identify and

solve operational challenges

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to successful manage upwards

• Ability to handle pressure and make good decisions quickly

• Comply with legal, insurance, health, and safety regulations at all times

Please note that at this time, we are not able to offer relocation assistance for this position. Candidates should be prepared to self-relocate if necessary.

Benefits

We know that in order to meet our goal of growing dairy demand, we need the best people. We offer competitive compensation and generous benefits to help our employees balance their work and personal lives.

Our comprehensive health and welfare plans offer medical, dental, vision, life, short-term and long-term disability and flexible spending accounts (health care, dependent care, transit and parking). Our 401k provides up to a 10% match and includes a Roth account. DMI reserves the right to change or end its benefits plans or programs at any time.

Dairy Management Inc.™ is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer committed to the principles of diversity. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, ethnicity, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

ABOUT DAIRY MANAGEMENT INC.

Dairy Management Inc.™ (DMI) is funded by America’s nearly 28,000 dairy farmers, as well as dairy importers. Created to help increase sales and demand for dairy products, DMI and its related organizations work to increase demand for dairy through research, education and innovation, and to maintain confidence in dairy foods, farms and businesses. DMI manages National Dairy Council and the American Dairy Association, and founded the U.S. Dairy Export Council and the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. DMI works with state and regional promotion organizations to implement these programs across the country.

We regret it is not possible to communicate with candidates except those who most closely match our requirements. Thank you.