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Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners
Coordinate activities of staff, convention personnel, or clients to make arrangements for group meetings, events, or conventions.
Also Known As:
Catering Director
Conference Planner
Conference Planning Manager
Conference Services Director
Conference Services Manager
Convention Services Director
Convention Services Manager (CSM)
Event Coordinator
Events Manager
Special Events Coordinator
Wages
Annual wages for Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners in United States
Job Outlook
Bright
New job opportunities are very likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
163,300
5% Change From 2024
Explore Meeting and Convention Planners video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Meet with sponsors and organizing committees to plan scope and format of events, to establish and monitor budgets, or to review administrative procedures and event progress.
- Review event bills for accuracy and approve payment.
- Evaluate and select providers of services according to customer requirements.
- Promote conference, convention and trades show services by performing tasks such as meeting with professional and trade associations, and producing brochures and other publications.
- Maintain records of event aspects, including financial details.
- Plan and develop programs, agendas, budgets, and services according to customer requirements.
- Promote conference, convention and trades show services by performing tasks such as meeting with professional and trade associations, and producing brochures and other publications.
- Read trade publications, attend seminars, and consult with other meeting professionals to keep abreast of meeting management standards and trends.
- Inspect event facilities to ensure that they conform to customer requirements.
- Hire, train, and supervise volunteers and support staff required for events.
- Coordinate services for events, such as accommodation and transportation for participants, facilities, catering, signage, displays, special needs requirements, printing and event security.
- Conduct post-event evaluations to determine how future events could be improved.
- Design and implement efforts to publicize events and promote sponsorships.
- Design and implement efforts to publicize events and promote sponsorships.
- Monitor event activities to ensure compliance with applicable regulations and laws, satisfaction of participants, and resolution of any problems that arise.
- Develop event topics and choose featured speakers.
- Hire, train, and supervise volunteers and support staff required for events.
- Direct administrative details, such as financial operations, dissemination of promotional materials, and responses to inquiries.
- Negotiate contracts with such service providers and suppliers as hotels, convention centers, and speakers.
- Consult with customers to determine objectives and requirements for events, such as meetings, conferences, and conventions.
- Organize registration of event participants.
- Confer with staff at a chosen event site to coordinate details.
- Arrange the availability of audio-visual equipment, transportation, displays, and other event needs.
- Meet with sponsors and organizing committees to plan scope and format of events, to establish and monitor budgets, or to review administrative procedures and event progress.
- Obtain permits from fire and health departments to erect displays and exhibits and serve food at events.
- Review event bills for accuracy and approve payment.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")