Director of Event Programming | Full-Time | Mobile Arena

Oak View Group is the global leader in venue development management and premium hospitality services for the live event industry. Offering an unmatched 360-degree solution set for a collection of world-class owned venues and a client roster that includes the most influential highest attended arenas convention centers music festivals performing arts centers and cultural institutions on the planet.

The Director of Event Programming reports to the Arena General Manager and oversees all aspects of booking and scheduling ticketed and non-ticketed events at the new arena and the Saenger Theater. Responsible for delivering a superior level of content procurement private and special events customer service and effective relationships with clients promoters tenants staff and guests.

Work Environment

This position is on-site at the new Arena. Standard business hours apply with flexibility required to support events including mornings evenings and weekends as needed. Must maintain regular attendance and a professional presence.

This role pays an annual salary of $90000-$105000 and is bonus eligible

Benefits for Full-Time roles: Health Dental and Vision Insurance 401(k) Savings Plan 401(k) matching and Paid Time Off (vacation days sick days and 11 holidays)

This position will remain open until December 31 2025.

The new Mobile Arena will anchor a lively downtown Mobile Alabama a city that offers world-class accommodations retail shops restaurants museums parks and art galleries. The state-of-the-art 10000 capacity arena is under construction and scheduled to open in early 2027. It will be home to a minor league hockey team concerts family shows regional and national sports events community gatherings and annual Mardi Gras events. It will include a wide range of premium seating and experiences including suites clubs and loge boxes and include over 27000 square feet of multi-purpose and pre-event space.

This OVG managed property also consists of the Seanger Theater and the Mobile Convention Center. The Saenger Theater seats 1900 patrons and hosts over 70000 guests annually. It is the home of the Mobile Symphony Orchestra Lagniappes annual Nappie Awards and has hosted national acts such as The Avett Brothers Willie Nelson Chicago The Black Jacket Symphony Vince Gill Bob Dylan and more.

• Serves as a key contributor to the growth and profitability of the business including strategic direction of event related programming at the new arena and the Saenger Theater.
• Establish and implement current & long-term objectives for event programming of all private public and ticketed events.
• Energetically promotes the use of all event spaces in conjunction with marketing representatives to increase utilization.
• Develop and maintain high level relationships across the entire live industry.
• Negotiate deal points to ensure maximum revenue streams for the venues.
• Prepares final presentation of all contracts and agreements with promoters organizers agents band managers and industry professionals.
• Oversee and manage the development of the annual event operating calendar activity schedules and projections for attendance and/or revenue.
• Directly accountable for the budgeting and profitability of events and venue programming goals.
• Effective daily communication with directors managers associates and coordinators within the venues.
• Build and maintain positive customer/client relationships by providing efficient quality services and products.
• Assist with managing costs to maximize event revenue with Events Department.
• Research cultivate data develop pitches with market information to agents and event promoters.
• Facilitate communication between OVG venues and promoters agents and managers for the betterment of OVG venue content.
• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

Education & Experience:

• 5-7 years of experience working in an arena and/or stadium or theater.
• 3 years of event programming experience of an arena and/or stadium or theater.
• Bachelors degree in business management hospitality sports management or other related field and/or equivalent of work experience in live entertainment.
• Experience communicating with and directing staff across a wide range of functions in a fast-paced environment in sports & entertainment industry.
• Previous experience working with professional and collegiate sports sports tenants concerts family shows and community events.
• Prior responsibility and experience with event calendar and booking software
• Experience and understanding of event ticketing and box-office operations

Skills & Competencies:

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills
• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office
• Proven relationships and success working with a variety of event promoters
• Proven record of developing and maintaining strong partnerships and collaborative spirit with peers in all venue departments
• Working knowledge of event food & beverage and parking operations
• A high degree of personal integrity and successfully operating in a team environment that values the success of the organization

At OVG we understand that to continue positively disrupting the sports and live entertainment industry we need a diverse team to help us do it. We also believe that inclusivity drives innovation strengthens ourpeople improves ourservice and raises ourexcellence. Our success is rooted in creating environments that reflect and celebrate the diverse communities in which we operate and serve and this is the reason we are committed to amplifying voices from all different backgrounds.

Oak View Group is committed to equal employment opportunity. We will not discriminate against employees or applicants for employment on any legally recognized basis (protected class) including but not limited to veteran status uniform service member status race color religion sex national origin age physical or mental disability genetic information or any other protected class under federal state or local law.