Senior Director of Programming| XL Center

Oak View Group

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.

Position Summary

The Senior Director of Programming is a senior member of the leadership team acting as the primary contact for all facility usage requests and maintains / distributes the booking calendar to both internal and external clients as needed. The Senior Director of Programming acts as liaison between the assigned event manager and clients/promoters producing events at XL Center and ensures that all booking systems, policies, and general communication with all parties involved is accurate, clear, and consistent.

 

The position will also act as a regional point of contact of information for all Oak View Group owned and operated facilities in the Northeast region. Responsibilities include direct interaction with agents, managers, promoters, and event producers of all event types, both public and private with the goal of driving content into all the OVG O&O facilities.

 

This role pays an annual salary of $140,000 to $150,000 and is bonus eligible.

 

Benefits for FT roles: Benefits: 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 May 22, 2025.

 

About the Venue

The XL Center is Connecticut’s premier destination for sports & entertainment.The 15,000+ seat downtown arena is home to the eleventh-time National Champion UConn Women's Basketball team and the six-time National Champion UConn Men's Basketball team. Led by Hall of Fame basketball Head Coach Geno Auriemma and Dan Hurley, the Men's & Women's basketball programs have established themselves as national powerhouses.

 

The XL Center is also home to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, the primary developmental affiliate of the New York Rangers.

 

The XL Center entertains millions of visitors annually with a variety of concerts, family shows, ice-skating spectaculars, consumer events, and trade shows throughout the season. The venue has played host to an extraordinary roster of world-renowned artists, including Taylor Swift, Justin Timberlake, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Pearl Jam, Black Eyed Peas, Britney Spears, Drake, and many others.

 

The XL Center will continue to be the center of sports and entertainment for Hartford and the State of Connecticut for years to come.

Responsibilities

 

• Responsible for soliciting, contracting, and managing from start to finish, ticketed, non-ticketed and special events at XL Center.
• Working in tandem with the General Manager and Assistant General Manager, establish all booking guidelines, policies and procedures for the arena.
• Act as regional hub for all Northeast owned and operated arenas including direct communication with the respective programmers at each of the facilities, organizing and distributing regular reporting on opportunities, and actively soliciting agents, managers, promoters, and event producers on behalf of all the venues to secure incremental business at the arenas
• Responsible for all services and activities of the programming department including sales tools and materials, proposals and estimates, sales calls and contracts.
• Oversee and manage the venues booking calendar.
• Establish arena rental rate card as well as catering minimums for all private event spaces at the venue.
• Participate in the development and administration of the annual budget and event forecasting.
• Prepare written proposals and estimates; reevaluate potential business value of various events and clients; initiate contractual arrangements, finalize all booking arrangements, prepare contracts, negotiate rental and other rates as required.
• Initiate, develop and maintain new relationships with promoters, agents and other event producers/organizers while exploring new and creative event opportunities for the venue.
• Establish and enhance an expansive network of event producers, promoters, artist agents / managers and other clients to bring more concerts, sports and other events (both public and private) to the venue.
• Conduct facility tours for potential clients; answer questions and provide information regarding venue capabilities.
• Develop and deliver presentations to clients, associations, corporations and others interested in renting the facilities.
• Develop bid propo