EVENT MANAGER

Event Manager

The Event Manager is primary event operational authority for all events on the Fairgrounds. This position is responsible for the end-to-end execution of large-scale events that carry significant financial, public safety, and legal liability for the agency; operating with full independent decision-making authority over department budgets, high-value contract negotiations, emergency protocols; working alongside the Programming Manager to develop long-term event scheduling strategies designed to generate revenue.

The Event Manager position manages event staff, including guest services, parking, operations/facilities, and box office. The consequence of error at this level is substantial, as operational missteps, regulatory non-compliance, or event disruptions directly impact agency revenue, public safety, and state asset integrity. This position may offer the ability to work remotely, within Arizona, based upon the department's business needs and continual meeting of expected performance measures.

Job Duties:

• Serve as the lead operational authority on the floor with venue clients, promoters, and agency leadership; autonomously negotiate real-time layout adjustments, resolve production rider conflicts, and handle escalated structural, technical, or venue challenges on the fly.
• Operational Policy & Floor Enforcement:
  Formulate, implement, and enforce live site standard operating procedures, crowd management protocols, and safety rules across all event footprints, holding venue staff, promoters, and production crews accountable to agency execution standards during loading, show run, and strike.
• On-Site Personnel & Production Command:
  Direct, supervise, and evaluate permanent event coordinators, technical stage crews, floor managers, and third-party contractors during live operations; exercise direct tactical authority on the event floor to resolve workforce bottlenecks, manage shift changes, and enforce performance standards.
• Oversee, evaluate, and enforce operational parameters for specialized technical production contractors and labor crews-including audio/visual engineers, lighting designers, pyrotechnicians, and union/non-union labor-authorizing the use of high-risk show elements (e.g., hazmat handling, indoor pyrotechnics, drone displays, and high-voltage power ties) to ensure full compliance with artist technical riders, state safety codes, and federal regulations.
• Exercise final technical authority to halt or modify production setups, stage builds, or pyrotechnic/laser effects that exceed facility structural load limits, breach state fire codes, or pose life-safety hazards to the public or crew.
• Direct event fiscal planning alongside the Booking Manager, negotiating and refining facility contract parameters to maximize venue profitability and protect agency operational interests.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities (KSAs):
Knowledge of:

• Comprehensive knowledge of large-scale concert and event production methodologies, including touring production riders, heavy-rigging load capacities, multi-tier audio/visual/lighting setups, staging mechanics, artist load in/strike dynamics, indoor/outdoor acoustic dynamics, pyrotechnic/special effects safety codes, complex crowd management psychology, and site logistics for high-occupancy touring artists and music venues.

Skills in:

• Advanced skill in negotiating and aligning operational deliverables with vendors, security providers, and labor groups to ensure precise delivery windows, optimal loading and load-out schedules.
• Mastery in managing end-to-end event logistics under compressed turnarounds; expert skill in directing spatial layout plans, site traffic flows, freight staging, equipment loading, and the dynamic positioning of heavy physical assets across multi-acre grounds;
• Live Operations & Logistical Crisis Resolution:
  Exceptional skill in resolving high-pressure logistical bottlenecks with clients, de-escalating disputes, managing crowd-flow congest ions, and executing rapid contingency plans during live event disruptions.

Ability to:

• Operate autonomously with minimal administrative direction and make critical, time-sensitive safety and financial…