Event Project Manager

Job Status: Full Time

Employee Location: Columbus, OH or United Kingdom

Employment Time: Full-Time, Exempt

Reports To: Director, Project Operations

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

The Project Manager is a senior-level role primarily responsible for the operational budget management and financial integrity of large-scale, complex live events and studio productions.

The role serves as the primary source for project operational budgeting, connecting strategic planning with physical execution. Along with the core focus on project budgeting, the Project Manager must also possess the skills to flex into full project ownership.

This means working alongside production disciplines to create budgets and timelines, review deliverables, and work with vendors to ensure that everything is completed to our high standards to make the best show possible. Project Managers sit in the middle of everything to ensure communication happens, deliverables are clearly defined, budgets are on target, and things get done.

WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING

• Lead budget creation for assigned projects, managing and allocating funds in alignment with the approved scope, serving as the primary budget owner at the point of sale through handoff during ingestion in the project lifecycle
• Serve as the main point of contact for internal and external stakeholders for budget exercises, ensuring standards for utilization, cost tracking, and efficacy are maintained
• Oversee integration of procurement and accounting policies in project budgeting workstreams, ensuring compliance for project-related expenditures, reconciliation, and other critical financial tasks through initial budgeting
• Identify and mitigate financial risks at the time of initial budgeting and throughout the project lifecycle, providing proactive forecasting, communicating potential budget impacts to project teams and escalating to division leadership for approval
• Lead the execution of concurrent medium- to large-scale and special projects as the main point of contact for delivery, managing project scope and deliverables to wider project teams.
• Create and manage project roadmaps, workback schedules, task and milestone reports, issue trackers, incident reports, pre- and post-mortems, and general Project Operations initiatives
• Serve as the main communication hub and liaison between external and internal stakeholders, provide consistent project updates on project delivery, strategy, progress, and adjustments
• Act as the triage point for project impacts, identify risks, monitor scope creep, and work with internal teams to proactively escalate issues and mitigation plans for leadership review and approval
• Provide real-time on-site coordination of multiple departments and key stakeholders (including internal and external) in a fast-paced environment
• Identify, implement, and maintain best practices related to project execution, stakeholder management, and communication

WHAT WE NEED TO SEE

• 5+ years of experience with large, complex in-studio and event productions
• 4+ years of proven experience in creating and managing high-value, complex production budgets
• Proficient experience in leading and managing large-scale projects with the ability to lead with and without authority
• Proven expertise in financial management for projects and initiatives from start to finish, including financial cost-tracking, accounting, reconciliation, and reporting within a corporate, project-based environment
• Proven ability to independently manage multiple departments and stakeholders in a fast-paced environment
• Experience working with third-party partners and vendors
• Deep knowledge of live event and studio production
• Outstanding verbal and written communication skills
• Excellent organizational and leadership skills
• Familiarity with project management software (JIRA, Wrike, monday.com, etc.) and best practices
• Strong attention to detail, especially regarding financial documentation
• Proven ability to manage multiple financial streams and operational priorities in a fast-paced environment
• Technically minded and curious about how things work, especially broadcast technology
• A natural problem solver

PLUSES

• Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field of study
• Passion for video games and interactive media
• Experience managing multiple priorities in high-stress, time-sensitive environments
• The desire for a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment