AVP, Event Marketing & Experiences

Job Description:

Role Summary/Purpose:

Our Corporate Affairs team is passionate group of marketers and communicators, committed to identifying, crafting and telling impactful stories that grow and protect the brand, build belief and inspire action among Synchrony’s 18,000+ employees and millions of partners, customers, investors and stakeholders.

We are looking for an experienced event  marketing professional that will take the lead as the primary project manager to execute our Merchant acquisition strategy for events and  tradeshows and help us to continue to shape, lead and bring new and fresh thinking to our event experiences.

The ideal candidate has a broad event background and has handled events for financial services, technology brands and has experience in creating product and brand focused experiences. You have a proven track record of managing client relationships and navigating matrixed organizations.  You demonstrate the ability to work independently while seeking guidance in complex areas. You excel in project management, multi-tasking and attention to detail. The candidate has a passion for new technology and staying current on the latest social and cultural trends. You are passionate about conceiving and driving impactful event marketing programs and thrive in a fast-moving environment.

This position will report to Synchrony’s Vice President, Event Marketing & Experiences.

Our Way of Working

We’re proud to offer you choice and flexibility. At Synchrony, our way of working allows you to have the option to work from home, near one of our Hubs or come into one of our offices. Occasionally you may be required to commute to our nearest office for in person engagement activities such as business or team meetings, training and culture events.

Essential Responsibilities:

• Create a Tradeshow experience center of excellence with sustainable process improvement plans, best practices and tactical execution plans to create efficiency and implement self-service models.

• Develop, lead, manage and execute ~80 compelling event marketing programs that showcase the Synchrony brand, our partners and resonate with our audiences.

• Design programs that connect the dots between relevant opportunities and business goals.

• Design experiences that help drive industry goals focused on the merchant experience – from acquisition to engagement.

• Flawlessly implement the event marketing strategy and activation plans – incorporating unique ideas and new trends for enhanced/differentiated experiences.

• Partner with stakeholders to define event objectives, activation opportunities, schedules, required resources and measures of success for all events.

• Collaborate with agency partners to improve overall tradeshow operations – includes but not limited to: process improvement, giveaway approach, on-site documentation for teams, merchant acquisition strategies and optimization.

• Develop and present proposals and key updates to internal stakeholders, as appropriate.

• Conduct site visits as necessary for event locations, prepare RFPs for event services, oversee negotiations, and lead the decision-making and recommendation process.

• Manage and collaborate with agency partners and other 3rd party vendors with clear roles and responsibilities as well as negotiate and execute all contracts/agreements.

• Work with internal teams on development of effective event promotion strategies that include inbound and outbound marketing communications tactics, including advertising, social media and PR.

• Develop strong relationships with event properties to maximize investment.

• Manage and when appropriate, train all relevant vendor and staff resources to ensure flawless execution of events. 

• Monitor activities to ensure compliance with applicable regulations and laws, satisfaction of participants, and resolution of any problems that arise.

• Coordinate internal engagement and collaboration across business units and business areas to maximize integration and value along with consistent reporting metrics that properly demonstrate ROI.

• Responsible for budget tracking and optimization.

• Perform other duties and/or special projects as needed.

Qualifications/Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree or, in lieu of a degree, a high school diploma/GED and 5+ years of event experience.

• 4+ years of experience in the following: event marketing, project management or marketing/creative agency experience.

• 1+ years of experience managing Salesforce camp