The Senior Events Manager at the Center for International Development (CID) at Harvard Kennedy School leads the strategy, design, and execution of CID's public-facing events in Cambridge and globally. This role shapes the overall vision and annual event portfolio, advising leadership on programming priorities and directing the development and execution of conferences, student seminars, and strategic convenings for the CID community, including staff, fellows, Harvard students, global alumni, and external practitioners and researchers. Reporting to CID's Senior Director of Communications and coordinating closely with the Associate Director, Student and Fellow Programming, the manager serves as the Center's lead on all CID events and convenings. The position requires working mostly in-person at the CID offices during the academic year, with more flexibility over the summer.

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), and working with faculty and leadership to identify priority themes, curate speakers, shape program content, and engage target audiences. Advise CID leadership on the annual events calendar, prioritizing programming opportunities and balancing institutional goals, faculty interests, budget, and organizational capacity.
Identify and cultivate strategic partnerships that expand the reach and impact of CID programming. Advise leadership on opportunities for external speaking engagements, collaborations, and new event initiatives that strengthen CID's visibility and influence.
Serve as a strategic advisor to faculty and leadership in developing programming that elevates CID research, responds to emerging policy issues, and strengthens relationships across Harvard and the global development community.
Establish metrics to evaluate event success, analyze participation trends and audience feedback, and recommend improvements to programming strategy, engagement, and operational effectiveness.
Manage all logistical aspects of events, conferences, and speaker visits, including venue coordination, catering, travel, audiovisual needs, registration, and on-site execution, as well as supporting logistics when needed for regional programming off campus.
Anticipate, troubleshoot, and resolve operational and technical challenges during event planning and execution, exercising sound judgment under pressure.
Develop, manage, and reallocate the budget for conferences, event series, and outreach. Negotiate contracts, as needed, and manage internal and external vendors, such as facilities, catering, media and technology services, security, and other vendors.
In collaboration with the CID Communications team, coordinate communications and event promotion through Harvard and external channels, including drafting the CID weekly newsletter, event posters, social media posts, etc. Initiate post-event communications including event write-ups, posting on CID’s YouTube channel, and more.
Manage event registration and attendance tracking through Salesforce and other systems, ensuring collection of information at registration that will lead to a successful event.
Process event-related invoices, reimbursements, and financial documentation.
Oversee support of hybrid and virtual programming, including Zoom webinar setup, livestream coordination, and audiovisual troubleshooting.
Contribute to a collaborative team environment by supporting additional CID initiatives and operational needs as required.
Operate independently in a fast-paced environment, demonstrating exceptional attention to detail, initiative, sound judgment, and the ability to manage multiple priorities with limited oversight.

Requirements

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, programs, or initiatives involving multiple stakeholders and competing priorities.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
Position requires adaptability, flexibility, and the ability to multitask while maintaining excellent attention to detail.
Successful candidate must be highly motivated and detail-oriented, have the ability to meet tight deadlines, and strong organizational skills.
Demonstrated interpersonal skills with experience providing complex administrative and programmatic support, working well independently and contributing as a valuable team member.
Strong proficiency with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Canva, AI tools.
Experience running online webinars and live streams, using Zoom and other software.

Nice to have

Bachelor’s degree in a related field (Economics, Public Policy, International Development) preferred.
Professional work experience in international development and deep understanding of the development sector preferred.
Masters’ degree is preferred in Economics, Public Policy, International Development, or related field requiring substantial quantitative coursework.

Benefits

Generous paid time off including parental leave
Medical, dental, and vision health insurance coverage starting on day one
Retirement plans with university contributions
Wellbeing and mental health resources
Support for families and caregivers
Professional development opportunities including tuition assistance and reimbursement
Commuter benefits, discounts and campus perks

Senior Events Manager, Center for International Development

Responsibilities

Requirements

Nice to have

Benefits