Conference Operations Manager

Conferences@UVA is seeking an energetic and organized Conference Operations Manager to join our team. UVA hosts thousands of visitors to the University during the summer months, including adults, youth and students from both UVA and other institutions who come to Grounds to participate in research programs, sports camps, educational opportunities, and summer school classes. These guests reside in our on-Grounds residence areas while participating in their programs.

The person selected to this position will work with Conferences@UVA leadership to manage and execute the day-to-day operations for approximately 100 summer residential programs and will support other university-hosted events during the academic year as needed. They will also provide leadership, direction and support to a team of student staff and manage deliverables with our clients and service partners.

The successful candidate will show the ability to be adaptable and nimble in an ever-changing events landscape and will be a problem solver. They will have excellent interpersonal skills and be comfortable with technology. They will prioritize providing quality customer service to our clients and will have experience in supervising student staff.

This position requires the ability to adjust to a flexible work schedule during the 12 weeks of our summer conference season from mid-May through mid-August, including the need to work some weekends, holidays, and after-hours during that time.

Role and Responsibilities include:

• Oversight and management of reservations and operational logistics for several marquee summer conference programs with individual online reservations, including Graduation Weekend, Reunions, and several smaller, high-touch clients. This involves working in the Conference Module of StarRez, creating events and bookings, assigning rooms, managing changes/cancellations, handling special requests, building readiness, linen distribution, and check-in/check-out operations.
• Primary responder to inquiries in the Conferences@UVA house email account, managing client questions and requests, addressing general inquiries and providing excellent and timely customer service.
• Recruiting, hiring, onboarding, training and supervising a team of approximately 25 student staff. This includes developing marketing strategies to recruit and retain qualified candidates, overseeing their hiring in Workday, designing and administering a training curriculum for supervisors and conference assistants, assigning work schedules, keeping the team motivated and fully tasked, approving time and holding staff accountable.
• Developing and implementing efficiencies and processes for managing the operations of a portfolio of over 100 summer conference groups. Will generate and execute deliverables such as room rosters, guarantees and other necessary documentation for all summer programs, and communicate with clients to ensure timely receipt and delivery.
• Collaborating with business partners and the Housing and Residence Life team to coordinate the transition of residential spaces from academic year to and from summer conferences, and to ensure the success of our summer conference programs’ on-Grounds experience.
• Maintaining accurate program-related records for billing purposes and work with HRL’s Director of Business Services to ensure the timely and accurate billing of summer programs.
• Creating reports in Star Rez for data that can be used for strategic planning and assessments.

Some weekend and evening hours during the summer conference season (mid-May through mid-August) will be required.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelors Degree
• At least one year of experience. Additional experience may be considered in lieu of degree.
• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects at the same time
• Excellent communication and customer service skills
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office suite of programs (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook)
• Comfortable with technology and quick to learn new software and database programs
• Demonstrated ability to learn new skills and develop professionally
• Ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team, providing direct support to senior professionals and being able to complete tasks without immediate supervision
• Understands and practices discretion.
• Inspired by the mission to engage and support our students in the discovery and pursuit of meaningful lives
• A demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.

A competitive applicant with have many of the following preferred knowledge areas, skills and abilities:

• Prior experience in a higher education housing operations and/or summer conferences setting
• Strong interpersonal relationship and teamwork building skills
• Prior experience building and leading student teams in a higher education setting
• Interest in building a career in higher education and student affairs preferred
• Demonstrated initiative and ability to independently problem-solve
• Experience in a customer service role
• Familiarity with Star Rez or other housing software

Compensation and Benefits:

The anticipated hiring range for this position is $ 55 ,000.00 - 65,000.00 annually, commensurate with qualifications and experience. The successful candidate will pass a background check. This is an exempt-level, benefited position with UVa benefits . Employee's benefits package highlights include:

• 22 days of paid time off, increasing with service; 13+ paid holidays each year, in addition to paid time off
• Parental and Community Service Leave
• Health plan with options to meet healthcare and financial needs
• Retirement benefits
• Tuition and professional development benefits
• Employee wellness program featuring activities to earn up to $500/year.

To Apply:

Please apply through the UVA Job Board , and search for R0066152. Internal applicants must apply through their UVA Workday profile by searching ‘Find Jobs.’ Complete an application online with the following documents:

• Resume
• Cover letter

Applications that do not contain all required documents will not receive full consideration. References will be completed via UVA’s standardized process SkillSurvey. A total of five references will be requested via SkillSurvey during the final phase of the interview process. A minimum of three references is required. For questions about the application process, please contact Michele Jarman , Academic Recruiter. This position will not sponsor cases for immigration.

This position is open until filled, but to assure full consideration, candidates are encouraged to have complete applications by November 11, 2024.

Physical Demands:

This is primarily a sedentary job involving extensive use of desktop computers. The job does occasionally require traveling some distance to attend meetings, and programs.

The University of Virginia, i ncluding the UVA Health System which represents the UVA Medical Center, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, UVA Physician’s Group and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, are fundamentally committed to the diversity of our faculty and staff. We believe diversity is excellence expressing itself through every person's perspectives and lived experiences. We are equal opportunity and affirmative action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, veteran or military status, and family medical or genetic information.