Senior Manager, Events (San Francisco, CA, US, USA_520565) - Sephora

Job ID: 254871
Location Name: CA-FSC SF Off (0174)
Address: 350 Mission St, 20th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105, United States (US)
Job Type: Full Time
Position Type: Regular
Job Function: Human Resources
Remote Eligible: Hybrid Schedule

Company Overview:

At Sephora we inspire our customers, empower our teams, and help them become the best versions of themselves.  We create an environment where people are valued, and differences are celebrated. Every day, our teams across the world bring to life our purpose: to expand the way the world sees beauty by empowering the Extra Ordinary in each of us.  We are united by a common goal - to reimagine the future of beauty.

The Opportunity:

Reporting to the Director of Events, the Sr. Manager oversees a team managing events of various scales, including virtual events, trade shows, conferences, and internal team activities. Responsibilities include developing creative concepts, communicating effectively with teams and clients, supervising event operations, managing contracts, directing staff, overseeing technical aspects, and procuring venues within budget. Strong project management and leadership skills are essential.

The ideal candidate possesses the organizational acumen of a seasoned project manager, the negotiation skills of a seasoned politician, and the ability to transition between leading events and overseeing managers for execution. Fluent communication with interdisciplinary teams is crucial, emphasizing comprehensive event leadership from ideation to execution with meticulous attention to detail.

The candidate excels in guiding projects, and team members, or independently driving projects to completion, ensuring timely delivery and exceeding expectations. They prioritize coaching and uplifting the team while maintaining a heightened attention to detail. Effective communication, robust leadership, commitment to relationships, and exceptional client service abilities are pivotal, with high emotional intelligence as a prerequisite.

The candidate's extensive background equips them to navigate team challenges adeptly, foresee potential obstacles, and maintain composure in high-pressure situations. A creative thinker and self-starter, the candidate thrives in a fast-paced environment with quick turnarounds, translating industry trends to align with internal standards. Given Sephora's business partners are considered clients, a background in client services and client skills are highly important.

Candidate Requirements

• Grace Under Pressure and Solution Oriented: Demonstrates calm and logical problem-solving skills in challenging situations.
• Network Expertise: Extensive relationships in fabrication, promotion, design, virtual platforms, production, and staffing, particularly in major markets such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and New York.
• Comprehensive Event Production/Management Knowledge: Over 10 years of experience servicing large brands or studios, including expertise in ideation to full execution, meetings, conferences, and virtual events.
• People Management: Minimum of 5 years of people management experience, including managing budgets ranging from $100,000 to $5 million.
• Skills: Strong interpersonal, analytical, negotiating, influencing, facilitation, organizational, decision-making, and conflict-resolution skills. Proficient in MS Office, Google Drive, and related tools.
• Technical Production Skills: Strong technical production skills and/or knowledge.
• Travel: Ability to travel domestically or internationally up to 30%.
• Event Variety: Extensive experience managing different types of events preferred (e.g., festivals, brand activations, conferences, in-office events, virtual events, trade shows, and influencer events).
• Design: 5+ Years of experience working alongside design teams to produce creative for large-scale event activations.
• Agency background is preferred.

Responsibilities

• First on-site and last to leave.
• Oversee development of pre-pro deck/event bible.
• Lead small to large programs from ideation to full execution for both virtual and in-person experiences.
• Lead strategy and creative brainstorming, translating ideas into detailed activation plans.
• Provide support for budget planning and event strategy
• Negotiate contracts, fees, lead bidding, and estimates while safeguarding project budgets.
• Work with clients to determine event details and guide expectations for successful events.
• Sustain client relationships on production-related issues and manage client needs and expectations.
• Directly manage components of events, including event activities, staff management, reporting, and post-event activities.
• Conduct/arrange site inspections, client & vendor walk-throughs.
• Develop and review individual and team budgets, track/audit all costs associated with events.
• Source venues and vendors, negotiate contracts.
• Develop project timelines, run of shows, and other production documents.
• Oversee contracts, payment schedules, and payment delivery with the accounting department.
• Manage multiple projects simultaneously from business development to final delivery.
• Liaise with participating departments to achieve client goals for each project.
• Obtain necessary permits and documentation.
• Work all assigned hours, including weekends and holidays if necessary.
• Assess and manage risk within and across multiple projects.
• Stay aware of the current industry environment shaping opportunities for client solutions.

People Management

• Lead, mentor, and coach a team of event professionals.
• Provide ongoing feedback and performance evaluations to team members.
• Develop and implement training programs for continuous improvement.
• Address conflicts within the team promptly and effectively.
• Encourage open communication and collaboration among team members.
• Participate in the recruitment process, including interviewing/selecting new team members.
• Establish and monitor performance metrics, working with team members to set and achieve goals.
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement, encouraging innovative ideas and best practices within the team.

Submissions

• Please submit a portfolio with applicable case studies for review. 

The annual base salary range for this position is $128,000.00 - $143,000.00 The actual base salary offered depends on a variety of factors, which may include, as applicable, the applicant’s qualifications for the position; years of relevant experience; specific and unique skills; level of education attained; certifications or other professional licenses held; other legitimate, non-discriminatory business factors specific to the position; and the geographic location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will perform the job.  Individuals employed in this position may also be eligible to earn bonuses.  Sephora offers a generous benefits package to full-time employees, which includes comprehensive health, dental and vision plans; a superior 401(k) plan, various paid time off programs; employee discount/perks; life insurance; disability insurance; flexible spending accounts; and an employee referral bonus program. This job will be posted for a minimum of 5 days.

While at Sephora, you’ll enjoy… 

• The people. You will be surrounded by some of the most talented leaders and teams – people you can be proud to work with.  
• The learning. We invest in training and developing our teams, and you will continue evolving and building your skills through personalized career plans.
• The culture. As a leading beauty retailer within the LVMH family, our reach is broad, and our impact is global. It is in our DNA to innovate and, at Sephora, all 40,000 passionate team members across 35 markets and 3,000+ stores, are united by a common goal - to reimagine the future of beauty.

You can unleash your creativity, because we’ve got disruptive spirit. You can learn and evolve, because we empower you to be your best. You can be yourself, because you are what sets us apart. This, is the future of beauty. Reimagine your future, at Sephora.

Sephora is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, military/veteran status, or disability status. Sephora is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodation to applicants with physical and mental disabilities.

Sephora will consider for employment all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable law.