Conference Services Manager

# Conference Services Manager

## About the Role

We are seeking a professional, sales-focused, and service-oriented **Conference Services Manager** to manage catering accounts, support guest satisfaction, and help drive food, beverage, and room-rental revenue growth for the hotel. This role is responsible for developing new catering business, maintaining strong relationships with existing clients, evaluating event opportunities, and ensuring catering events are planned and executed successfully.

The Conference Services Manager will work closely with clients, hotel leadership, sales teams, culinary staff, banquet operations, front office, accounting, and other departments to deliver high-quality meetings, events, and catering experiences. This position requires strong sales ability, excellent organizational skills, attention to detail, and the ability to manage events from initial inquiry through final execution.

The ideal candidate is a strong relationship-builder who understands hospitality, event planning, catering sales, and hotel operations. They should be able to sell hotel services confidently, coordinate event details accurately, and help ensure each client experience supports both guest satisfaction and revenue goals.

## Key Responsibilities

* Solicit new catering sales accounts and develop business opportunities that support hotel revenue goals.
* Manage assigned catering accounts and maintain strong relationships with existing clients.
* Sell hotel services, catering offerings, meeting space, banquet packages, food and beverage options, and room-rental opportunities.
* Evaluate catering and event inquiries to determine fit, revenue potential, operational needs, and profitability.
* Help the hotel meet or exceed food, beverage, room-rental, and catering revenue targets.
* Prospect new business through outreach, referrals, networking, market research, industry events, and relationship development.
* Conduct market research to identify potential clients, competitive trends, pricing opportunities, and local event demand.
* Participate in forecasting, budgeting, revenue planning, and sales reporting processes.
* Prepare proposals, contracts, event orders, banquet event orders, menus, pricing summaries, and client communications.
* Conduct site inspections, property tours, and client meetings to showcase hotel event spaces, catering capabilities, guest rooms, and amenities.
* Work with clients to understand event goals, guest counts, room setup needs, catering preferences, audiovisual needs, timelines, and special requests.
* Coordinate event planning details with culinary, banquet, operations, sales, accounting, front desk, housekeeping, and other hotel teams.
* Oversee catering-event execution to ensure service quality, timing, setup accuracy, food and beverage delivery, and guest satisfaction.
* Communicate event details clearly to internal teams through accurate documentation, pre-event meetings, and ongoing follow-up.
* Monitor event progress and resolve client concerns, service issues, or operational challenges in a timely and professional manner.
* Build long-term client relationships that encourage repeat business, referrals, and positive guest experiences.
* Attend networking events, industry functions, community activities, and hospitality-related events to promote the hotel and build market visibility.
* Track account activity, sales pipeline, event performance, client feedback, and revenue results.
* Support post-event follow-up, billing coordination, client satisfaction review, and future booking opportunities.

## Required Qualifications

* Experience in catering sales, conference services, event planning, hotel sales, hospitality management, banquet operations, or a related role.
* Strong understanding of hotel catering, food and beverage operations, meeting space sales, and event execution.
* Ability to develop new business and maintain strong client relationships.
* Strong sales, negotiation, presentation, and closing skills.
* Excellent customer service skills and commitment to guest satisfaction.
* Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple events, accounts, deadlines, and client requests at once.
* Ability to prepare accurate event details, proposals, contracts, banquet event orders, and client communications.
* Strong communication skills and ability to collaborate with clients and internal hotel departments.
* Ability to evaluate business opportunities based on revenue potential, operational capacity, and guest needs.
* Comfort using hotel sales systems, CRM platforms, event management software, spreadsheets, and office tools.
* Professional appearance, positive attitude, and ability to represent the hotel effectively in client-facing settings.

## Preferred Qualifications

* Experience in a hotel, resort, conference center, banquet facility, restaurant group, or hospitality sales environment.
* Experience managing corporate meetings, social events, weddings, banquets, conferences, nonprofit events, and group functions.
* Familiarity with hotel systems such as Delphi, Amadeus, Opera, Salesforce, CI/TY, Tripleseat, Social Tables, or similar platforms.
* Experience with revenue forecasting, budgeting, pipeline tracking, and catering sales reporting.
* Knowledge of local market conditions, event trends, competitive venues, and hospitality industry practices.
* Experience participating in trade shows, networking events, chamber events, tourism groups, or industry associations.
* Bachelor’s degree in hospitality management, business, marketing, event management, or a related field is helpful but not required.

## Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a hospitality professional who can balance sales, planning, service, and execution. This person understands that successful catering and conference services require both strong client relationships and careful attention to operational details.

They should be confident prospecting new accounts, presenting hotel services, conducting site inspections, and closing business. At the same time, they should be organized enough to ensure event details are accurate, internal teams are aligned, and clients feel supported throughout the planning process.

The right candidate is proactive, polished, and revenue-minded, with a genuine commitment to guest satisfaction. They should enjoy working with people, solving problems, and helping clients create successful events that reflect well on the hotel.

## Work Environment

This role is typically performed in a hotel, conference, banquet, or hospitality environment. The Conference Services Manager may spend time in sales offices, meeting rooms, event spaces, client meetings, site inspections, and active event settings.

The position may require occasional evening, weekend, or holiday availability depending on event schedules, client needs, and business demands. The successful candidate should be comfortable working in a fast-paced hospitality environment where priorities can change quickly and service quality is essential.

## Compensation and Benefits

Compensation will be based on experience, qualifications, location, and overall fit for the role. Benefits may include:

* Competitive salary
* Commission, bonus, or incentive opportunities, depending on company policy
* Full-time employment
* Health, dental, and vision benefits
* Paid time off
* Retirement plan options
* Hotel, travel, or dining discounts, depending on company policy
* Professional development opportunities
* Opportunity to grow within hotel sales, catering, events, or hospitality leadership
* Collaborative hospitality team environment

## Equal Opportunity Statement

We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds. Employment decisions are based on qualifications, experience, skills, and business needs. We are committed to maintaining a respectful, inclusive, and guest-focused work environment.