Regional Events Manager

Who We Are: 

Founded in 1891 by a group of visionary volunteers, The Trustees of Reservations (The Trustees) is Massachusetts’ premier conservation and preservation organization. The Trustees’ preserves, for public use and enjoyment, properties of exceptional scenic, historic, and ecological value in Massachusetts. Our properties are open to all, and we thrive by involving as many people as possible in all that we do. We aim to protect special places for future generations to enjoy in perpetuity, and have helped protect more than 50,000 acres, including 27,000+ acres on more than 120 reservations that are open to the public. As a non-profit conservation organization, we are funded and supported entirely by our visitors, supporters, volunteers, and our 100,000 Member households. We encourage you to learn more about The Trustees on our website, www.thetrustees.org. 

Posting Information: 

Salary/Hourly Rate: $65-75,000 

Hours per week: 40 

Job Classification: Full-Time, Exempt 

Job Type: Onsite 

Location: Southeast Region, MA (offices at the Bradley Estate in Canton and Weir River Farm in Hingham) 

What You’ll Do: 

Your Impact: 

Ready to create memorable special events with the Trustees’ beautiful Southeast properties as your canvas? In this role, you’ll use your creativity and organizational superpowers to bring to life Winterlights, a Trustees Signature Event, as well as facilitate special events like weddings, parties, and public gatherings that people will remember for years to come. 

The Role:

As the Regional Events Manager you will be a part of our Public Engagement team and report to the Regional Vice President. You’ll be responsible for Winterlights at the Eleanor Cabot Bradley Estate in Canton, leading the creative design for this December illumination event, as well as managing daily operations and social media marketing. During the summer season, you’ll be the point of contact for Fireside Catering weddings at Bradley and will oversee other private rentals across The Trustees’ other Southeast properties including Bird Park in Walpole, the Governor Ames Estate in Easton, Armstong-Kelley Park in Osterville, and Weir River Farm in Hingham.  You will occasionally support our Public Engagement team, helping at public events, concerts, and festivals across the region. 

You are an enthusiastic partner, collaborating with state-wide colleagues in Retail, Enterprise Partnerships, Stewardship, Horticulture, and Public Engagement. You’ll also manage seasonal staff for setup, breakdown, and run-of-show, and flex your strong customer service skills, providing a magical and memorable experience for thousands of visitors each year. 

In This Role You Will: 

Lead Bradley Winterlights 

• Planning, design, and installation:  

• Develop and administer the Winterlights budget. Collaborate with Event Managers from other Trustees Winterlights sites across the state to design, purchase, and implement new indoor and outdoor show elements and update/refresh traditional features. 

• In partnership with the Winterlights Tech Manager, participate in physical set-up of the show, including moving elements out of storage, testing displays, and using ladders and other equipment to install lights on buildings and trees.  

• Develop and execute a staffing plan and master schedule, hiring, training, and coordinating the seasonal event team and volunteers.  

• Manage the seasonal Assistant Event Manager, overseeing social media marketing, permitting, ticket sales, and gift shop/concessions inventory 

• Analyze data to understand trends and create a strategy for driving ticket revenue to ambitious NET Gain goals. 

• Run-of-show operations (opens Friday after Thanksgiving and runs Wednesday - Sunday through the first weekend of January):  

• Serve as the shift manager each night at Winterlights: monitor weather and ticket sales, arrive prior to the event staff to ensure daily operations run smoothly, and stay on-site through the duration of nightly closing and clean-up.   

• Manage staffing needs throughout the event, making sure all critical roles are filled, and staff can deliver an excellent experience to our visitors.  

• Troubleshoot problems and deploy staff and resources to make sure the show runs smoothly.   

• Represent the Trustees to our visitors throughout the show, offering insight into our mission, membership, and experiences across the state.   

• Coordinate site logistics prior to and during weather events to ensure the safety of our visitors and staff. 

• Monitor and restock inventory for concession stand