At The Obama Foundation, our mission is to inspire, empower, and connect people to change their world. We seek to build an active democratic culture where people are equipped and motivated to make change in the communities where they live, work, and play. Right here on the South Side of Chicago, we’re building a home for this vision, a global center for change with a range of opportunities - coordinated programming, community outreach events, educational moments, and more - that invite visitors from down the block or across the globe to turn hope into action.
Achieving our ambitious goals starts with an exceptional team built on our Hope to Action Values - Courage, Empathy, Integrity, Accountability, Community, Inclusivity, Pragmatism, Resilience, Imagination, and Hope. A Framework that anyone, anywhere, can use to build trust, activate participation, and expand opportunity in their community.
Purpose of the Role
Reporting to the Convenings Manager, the Associate will lead an assigned portfolio of events while serving as the team’s functional lead for event production, production partners, and event branding. They will translate event goals and creative direction into executable production plans that balance experience, brand standards, budget, and operational requirements.
This is a fast-paced, highly collaborative role that requires managing multiple events and workstreams simultaneously. Evening and weekend availability is required.
This is a term-based, onsite role with an end date of December 2027, located at the Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park.
Core Job Responsibilities
- Lead the planning and execution of assigned OPC and Foundation convenings, managing timelines, budgets, internal coordination, and onsite delivery.
- Serve as the primary Convenings point of contact for production partners, managing scopes, timelines, deliverables, budgets, and onsite execution.
- Lead event production planning, including AV, lighting, staging, scenic elements, rentals, technical requirements, load-in, setup, and strike.
- Partner with internal teams to execute event branding across signage, environmental graphics, digital displays, printed collateral, wayfinding, stage elements, and other event touchpoints.
- Translate creative concepts into executable production plans that account for venue requirements, budget, timelines, and attendee experience.
- Coordinate with Presidential Center campus teams to integrate production plans with campus operations.
- Lead production meetings, site visits, technical rehearsals, vendor briefings, and onsite production activities.
- Develop production standards, templates, workflows, and vendor resources to support consistent execution across the Convenings portfolio.
- Identify production risks and develop contingency plans to support safe, efficient, and high-quality event execution.
- Provide production expertise and support for convenings led by other members of the team.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Key Deliverables / Outcomes
- Comprehensive production plans covering technical requirements, vendors, schedules, load-in, event execution, and strike.
- Event branding plans that ensure physical and digital event elements are cohesive, accurate, and aligned with Foundation standards.
- Production budgets and vendor scopes that are effectively managed from planning through reconciliation.
- Consistent production standards, tools, and workflows across the Convenings portfolio.
- High-quality onsite execution and effective management of production partners.
- Post-event evaluations that identify lessons learned, vendor performance, and opportunities for improvement.
Required Qualifications
- 3 years of experience in event production, event planning, venue management, experiential events, or related operations.
- Willingness and availability to work evenings and weekends and be onsite for assigned events.
- Demonstrated experience managing complex live event production from planning through onsite execution.
- Working knowledge of AV, lighting, staging, rentals, scenic elements, technical production, and event branding.
- Experience managing production agencies, vendors, contractors, budgets, and project timelines.
- Proven ability to manage multiple events and priorities simultaneously in a fast-paced environment.
- Strong project management, communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills.
- Ability to translate creative ideas into operational plans while balancing quality, budget, and venue requirements.
- Ability to work across a large indoor/outdoor campus for extended periods during event setup, execution, and breakdown.
- Strong alignment with the Obama Foundation’s values.
The salary range for this role is between $59,755 and $74,670.
This is a term-based, onsite role with an end date of December 2027, located at the Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park.
For an overview of our benefits package, including insurance, paid time off, retirement & more, please visit https://www.obama.org/careers/.
Don’t check off every box in the requirements listed above? Please apply anyway! If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to still consider submitting an application. You may be just the right candidate for this role or another one of our openings!
Equal Opportunity Employer
The Foundation is committed to creating a diverse work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. The Foundation does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, disability, parental status, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable laws. We encourage individuals of all backgrounds to apply. If you are a qualified candidate with a disability, please e-mail us at careers@obama.org if you require a reasonable accommodation to complete this application.
