Conference manager; Agrifood

What you will do

You will work from our Utrecht office, in a fast-paced, international environment. Your main goal is to create engaging conference sessions, source speakers, manage key stakeholder relationships and manage the conference operations from inception to execution across the Agri Food portfolio.

You stay on top of the market trends in the international livestock and protein sector and help stakeholders connect with their target audience through engaging content sessions that are relevant and stimulating to support the ongoing growth and development of the Agri Food sector. You will work closely with clients and partners, both in the office and out in the field.

You are able to identify industry influencers, translate research into conference programmes and manage the production from end to end. You enjoy building long-term relationships, and know how to turn ideas into results. You are proactive, a confident business partner for our clients and ready to make an impact.

VIV is the flagship brand of VNU Europe Exhibitions (the international branch of Royal Jaarbeurs) and caters to the international agrifood sector. The brand is an absolute leader internationally in the field of livestock farming and protein production across species.

Our international trade shows include VIV Europe, VIV Asia, VIV MEA, VIV Africa, and the national editions like VIV Select China, VIV Select Türkiye and the recently launched VIV Select India. You can find a full overview of the portfolio on the website.

The VNU team in Utrecht consists of 15 colleagues, and is an international, multicultural, and dynamic team. You will also work closely with the team at the VNU office in Bangkok.

• Developing conference programs for international VIV shows guided by customer insights from past events and current market trends in line with the shows’ concepts
• Researching and producing editorial programs that are validated by industry peers and maintain a high content quality ensuring it is fresh and relevant to the target audience
• Design engaging programs that include a variety of session types including keynotes, presentations, tech talks, panel discussions, round tables, networking sessions and workshops
• Coordinating both commercial partners and in-house sessions from start to finish ensuring all operational arrangements have been made in coordination with the Event Operations team
• You will be responsible for acquiring high-level industry speakers through research and initiating contact who can deliver valuable insights and relevant content for our audiences
• Building partnerships with key industry players including associations, investors, and government bodies in the agrifood sector to enhance the quality and reach of our conferences
• Together with the project managers you will manage the conference budgets and you will ensure programs are delivered within budget and maintain high quality standards

You are outgoing and organized and have an eye for quality. You like to try something new and go for the best result.

You also have:

• Experience in conference production for at least 2 years
• The ability to solve problems under pressure, to handle multiple relationships and tasks at the same time and the ability to operate independently, in line with show objectives and ensuring targets are met
• Excellent proven conference management, planning and organizational skills
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English
• The ability to thrive in a multicultural environment and have strong interpersonal skills
• You are professional, honest, enthusiastic, open, committed and positive with a can-do approach
• You are an innovative driver of the project with the ability to build strong industry and political networks as well as having a great inside on the events business developments

At Jaarbeurs you will have the space to do your work with joy and fulfilment and to continue growing as a professional. Our culture is open and informal and collaboration and innovation are key. It is our ambition to become Europe’s most sustainable event organiser by 2030. So we invite you to join us in…