Meetings and Events Services Manager - Regent Santa Monica Beach

Regent Santa Monica Beach—an IHG Hotels & Resorts (IHG) property—lands in Santa Monica in 2024 as the first destination in the Americas. The resort will set a new standard for modern upper luxury. 

Located steps from the famed Santa Monica Pier, the resort will celebrate the beauty of unexpected harmony through contrasts, delivering inspired stays through a blend of serenity and a touch of decadence. The resort will feature sumptuous rooms and suites, along with a stunning beachfront pool deck, a destination spa, and a wellness center. Additionally, Regent Santa Monica Beach will welcome guests for unforgettable epicurean experiences, including a restaurant concept created in collaboration with an acclaimed celebrity chef as well as a high-end artisanal marketplace.

Job Summary:

The Meetings and Events Services Manager (MESM) will play a pivotal role in managing groups and events throughout their experience at the resort.  They will act as the principal liaison between the resort operations departments and the client.  The ideal candidate will achieve a balance between execution of contracts, exceptional guest service, and profitability.  Through efficient management, communication, and coordination of the group and event requirements, the MESM will capture the resort’s share of revenue through banquet food and beverage, room rental, and auxiliary revenue streams such as audio visual and labor fees, in addition to driving business to the resort’s amenities and outlets. The MESM will be an essential facilitator in sales account management, exceeding guest expectations consistent with the Regent brand while placing the resort front of mind with returning clients for future bookings.  The ideal candidate will have multi-faceted experience in various markets, as the scope of client interactions will include working with planners managing conferences with guest rooms and events, incentive programs, rooms-only bookings, corporate meetings, and social events.  A results-driven individual with a passion for creative event conceptualization, attention to detail, and event execution in the luxury hospitality space is essential.  This position requires an applicant with a flexible schedule, able to work morning/afternoon/evening shifts, weekends, and holidays.

A little bit about your day:

Reporting to the Director of Meetings and Events, every day is different, but you’ll mostly:

• Full-service planning of meetings, conferences, corporate events, and social events with accuracy and detailed communication outlined for the client and departments within the resort.
• Fiscal responsibility managing deposit schedules while partnering with the client to ensure full transparency of expected charges.
• Management of contracted guest room blocks in coordination with reservations, guest experience, guest service, and front office teams.
• Maintain accurate group rooming lists and pickup reports.
• Liaise with Director of Group Sales and Director of Revenue Management for control of group room blocks, creating contract addenda when required while monitoring potential attrition.
• Collaborate closely with the Banquet, Culinary, and Audio-Visual teams to ensure seamless execution and profitability of events, including menu planning, event conceptualization, and on-site liaison with client introductions to operations team the day(s) of event and arrival.
• Ensure that contracted groups and events are meeting or exceeding minimum food and beverage revenues, guest room revenues, and meeting room rental revenues.
• Ability to uncover client needs, negotiate pricing, manage client requests, and maximize upsell and rebooking opportunities.
• Conduct pre-arrival planning visits for all groups and events assigned.
• Accompany sales team as requested on site visits with potential clients.
• Create and distribute accurate and timely group and event resumes outlining all details of the program as it will interface with each department at the resort.
• Create and distribute accurate and timely Banquet Event Orders detailing menus, setup requirements, agendas, and all pertinent event details.
• Attend BEO and resume meetings sharing full communication with resort operations. 
• Host client-facing pre-con meetings introducing resort operations leaders.
• Manage vendors engaged to provide services at event and with groups at the resort.
• Maintain accurate and current venue function bookings observing proper guidelines.
• Update Director of Meetings and Events regularly on financial forecast of groups and events being managed.
• Stay current with industry trends, competitor offerings, and market demand to identify opportunities for innovation and business growth.
• Partner with Meetings and Events team to curate a list of recommended event vendors providing service consistent with the Regent brand.
• Ensure accuracy of folios for each program managed with thorough grasp of financials and adherence to Regent accounting standards.
• Execute other relevant tasks as assigned by Director of Meetings and Events or Director of Sales and Marketing.

Requirements:

• Proven success in event and group rooms management, preferably within the luxury hospitality industry.
• Extensive experience creating Banquet Event Orders, event diagrams, and group resumes.
• Excellent communication skills, ability to build rapport and establish trust with clients and colleagues.
• Highly organized with exceptional time management skills to handle multiple projects simultaneously.
• Creative problem-solving skills and the ability to think strategically to deliver tailored solutions.
• Proficiency with Delphi and other in-house systems.
• A passion for the hospitality industry and a genuine desire to create unforgettable experiences.
• Bachelor's degree is preferred.

What you can expect from us: 

The annual pay range for this role is $80,000.00 to $90,000.00. This range is only applicable for jobs to be performed at Regent Santa Monica Beach. This is the lowest to highest pay scale we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range, and the range may be modified in the future. A colleague’s pay position within the pay range will be based on several factors including, but limited to, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, geographic location, performance, shift, travel requirements, sales or revenue-based metrics, and business or organizational needs.

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, or any other form of compensation that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law.

Join us and you’ll become part of the global IHG family – and like all families, all our individual colleagues share some winning characteristics. As a team, we work better together – we trust and support each other, we do the right thing, and we welcome different perspectives. You need to show us you care, that you notice the little things that make a difference to guests as well as always looking for ways to improve.

In return, we'll give you a competitive financial and benefits package which may include healthcare support, dental, vision, disability and life insurance support, and a matching 401k plan. Hotel discounts worldwide are available as well as access to a wide variety of discount programs and the chance to work with a great team of people. Most importantly, we'll give you the room to be yourself.

IHG is an equal opportunity employer: Minorities / Females / Veterans / Disabled.