DescriptionJob Title: Event Sales and Experience Manager
FLSA Status: Exempt
Hours: Full-time
Pay Rate: Range starts at $69,591/year
Summary:
The Event Sales and Experience Manager provides performance and operational leadership for a diverse and high-impact events portfolio at Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium. As a key leader within the Guest Experience division, this role reports to and partners with the Director of Events to lead sales strategy, operational execution, and team performance, transforming iconic Zoo spaces beyond traditional visitation into distinctive, once-in-a-lifetime experiences grounded in exceptional hospitality.
From private celebrations and corporate gatherings to signature after-hours public experiences, these events invite guests to merge personal celebration moments with the Zoo, offering opportunities to immerse themselves in renowned habitats, engage in unique animal encounters, and deepen their connection to wildlife in ways that feel intimate and unforgettable. These experiences are an extension of the Zoo’s offerings, balancing emotional connection with clear business outcomes including revenue generation, audience diversification, and brand impact.
Strong operations enable great hospitality, and this role ensures execution and guest experience are inseparable. Success in this role is measured through revenue performance, guest satisfaction, team effectiveness, and operational consistency across the events portfolio.
Duties and Responsibilities (include but not limited to):
Sales Leadership and Revenue Growth
- Own the performance of the event sales function, with shared accountability alongside the Director of Events for achieving revenue targets through a healthy pipeline, strong conversion to booking and disciplined sales execution.
- Establish and enforce sales processes, tools, information flow, and performance expectations that support an efficient, responsive, and high-quality client experience.
- Develop, implement, and manage execution of a comprehensive event sales strategy encompassing outbound lead generation, inbound inquiry management, proposal development, contract execution, deposit management, and seamless client relationship management between the sales and operations teams.
- Partner closely with Director of Events to align sales strategy, event pricing and packaging, capacity planning, and operational realities with revenue goals, guest experience service standards, and brand expectations.
- Communicate sales pipeline performance and forecast, ensuring accurate reporting of current opportunities, pending sales, and revenue projections.
- Serve as a senior client-facing leader for high-profile, complex, or VIP events as needed or as defined by the Director of Events.
- Coach Assistant Managers and Sales Coordinators to resolve challenging client situations independently, serving as the escalation lead for high-impact matters when required.
- Extend professional event sales and service standards to internal events, ensuring internal partners receive the same level of care, clarity, and execution as external clients.
Event Operations and Execution
- Own the operational execution of all private and public events, ensuring consistency, quality, safety, and readiness across the Zoo’s full events portfolio.
- Establish, document, and continuously refine standard operating procedures, staffing models, and execution strategies, ensuring teams are trained and equipped to execute them confidently and consistently.
- Lead staffing, scheduling, and deployment of full-time and part-time event team members to support seamless execution and exceptional guest experience.
- Collaborate with Events and Zoo stakeholders to assess end-to-end event execution and develop innovative solutions that elevate quality and guest satisfaction within logistical and operational constraints.
- Develop and enforce service recovery protocols and training aligned with established guest experience principles that empower Assistant Managers and Event Experience Leads to confidently handle onsite escalations, client concerns, and service recovery; serve as the escalation point for complex issues as needed.
Guest Experience and Quality Standards
- Partner closely with the Director of Events and the Public Events Experience Specialist to operationalize what a high-quality event looks and feels like; ensure service standards are clearly established, trained, and reinforced across the team.
- Own the quality and consistency of the guest experience across all events, from the sales process through the event experience, ensuring every event feels intentional, welcoming, and professionally delivered.
- Embed established guest experience principles into all operational decisions, including staffing plans, timelines, layouts, and execution strategies.
- Work closely with the Event Experience Assistant Manager to evaluate service delivery, reinforce hospitality culture, and coach teams toward consistently high performance.
- Collect, review, and apply guest feedback, client insights, and event outcomes to inform improvement and elevate the overall event experience.
Team Leadership and Development
- Translate organizational standards, professionalism, and expectations into consistent day-to-day behaviors and outcomes across event sales and experience teams.
- Oversee and actively participate in recruitment, interviewing, and hiring processes for both the Event Sales & Event Experience teams, supporting with candidate screening, interviews, onboarding, and successful integration into the department.
- Sustain a high-performing, guest-centered team culture that reflects the Zoo’s hospitality values and service standards.
- Provide clear direction, coaching, and expectations that enable leaders to manage day-to-day execution with confidence.
- Establish rhythms for communication, feedback, and performance management that support alignment and growth.
- Partner with the Director of Events on talent development, succession planning, organizational capacity, and redundancy planning.
- Step in to support or redirect teams when performance, culture, or execution standards are at risk.
Training, Standard Operating Procedures, and Systems
- Own the development, adoption, and continuous improvement of standard operating procedures in alignment with approved departmental frameworks and standards across event sales and operations, ensuring teams are trained and equipped to execute them confidently and consistently.
- Ensure training, standards, and compliance related to food and alcohol service are operating in accordance with county health codes, local and state liquor laws, liquor license requirements, and responsible service expectations.
- Develop training programs to support the entirety of event sales and operations, ensuring training is treated as a core component of team performance and operational excellence.
- Establish clear expectations for onboarding, role-specific training, refreshers, and ongoing skill development, with particular emphasis on sales execution, guest experience, service recovery, and operational readiness.
- Partner with the Assistant Managers of Sales and Event Experience to support the delivery, reinforcement, and coaching and training at the team level, while maintaining accountability for quality, consistency, and outcomes.
- Use data, feedback, and operational insights to regularly assess guest event journeys, team performance, and operational outcomes to identify training gaps and opportunities for improvement.
- Partner with Business Systems and Operations teams to align tools, workflows, and reporting with training and execution needs.
Cross-Department Collaboration
- Support and maintain ongoing cross-departmental and cross-functional alignment, translating strategic direction into coordinated plans, processes, and execution across Marketing, IT, Business Systems, Facilities, Education, Animal Care, as well as cross-functional Guest Experience partners including Food & Beverage, Guest Services, and Retail.
- Ensure collaboration supports seamless execution and a cohesive, on-brand guest experience.
Supervisory Responsibilities:
- Direct supervision of the Internal Event Coordinator, Event Sales team, and Event Experience Assistant Manager.
- Indirect leadership of Event Experience Coordinator, Event Experience Leads, Assistants, and Bartenders.
- Responsible for recruitment, training standards, scheduling frameworks, and performance expectations.
All leaders are expected to:
- Foster connection, trust and transparency by leading with honesty, consistency, and inclusion. Leaders who embody these principles build a sense of community – creating an environment where team members feel seen, valued and united in purpose. This foundation enables teams to thrive and share in the joy of working together toward common goals.
- Maintain two-way communication by regularly connecting with team members and encouraging dialogue. Open communication fuels innovation by ensuring all voices are heard and ideas are shared, driving our collective impact.
- Create space for feedback—both giving and receiving—and follow up meaningfully. By valuing feedback, we promote an environment of care, where growth and improvement are supported, leading to impactful outcomes for both individuals and teams.
- Model accountability and responsiveness by owning outcomes and addressing issues timely. This demonstrates care for the team’s well-being and ensures that our actions have a meaningful, positive impact on the organization.
- Promote psychological safety by supporting open expression without fear of retaliation or judgment. A psychologically safe environment is fundamental to fostering joy in the workplace and enables everyone to contribute to our collective success with confidence.
Qualifications:
- 5-8 years of progressive experience in event sales, event operations, hospitality, or experiential programming.
- Experience overseeing events or hospitality operations in licensed environments, with responsibility for enforcing responsible food and alcohol service standards and regulatory compliance.
- Experience coaching managers and leading teams in a sales and operations environment is preferred.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to lead cross-functional collaboration.
- Demonstrated commitment to inclusive management that fosters belonging, trust, and equitable collaboration across teams.
- Skilled in de-escalation, service recovery, and conflict resolution with the ability to calmly and professionally navigate challenging guest situations while supporting team members.
- Strong sales acumen with experience building a pipeline, managing clients and driving revenue.
- Deep understanding of guest experience principles and service-oriented leadership.
- Highly organized with strong problem-solving skills and the ability to manage competing priorities.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office and event sales, CRM, or event management systems preferred.
- Valid driver’s license required.
Candidates might be (depending on position) required to pass a pre-employment background check, drug test, negative skin tuberculosis test.
Work Environment and Physical Demands:
- Ability to work indoors and outdoors in varying weather conditions.
- Must be available to work evenings, weekends, and holidays based on event schedules.
- Ability to stand and walk for extended periods during event execution.
- Ability to lift up to 50 pounds as needed for event setup and operations.
DISCLAIMER
The information presented indicates the general nature and level of work expected of employees in this classification. It is not designed to contain, nor is it to be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and objectives required of employees assigned to this job.
Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer as defined by the EEOC.
