Frieze is the world’s leading platform for modern and contemporary art, dedicated to artists, galleries, collectors and art lovers alike. Frieze comprises three magazines – frieze, Frieze Masters Magazine and Frieze Week – and five international art fairs – Frieze London, Frieze Masters, Frieze New York, Frieze Los Angeles and Frieze Seoul. In October 2021, Frieze also launched No.9 Cork Street, a permanent space for visiting international galleries in the heart of Mayfair, London. Frieze is part of the IMG/Endeavor network.
Endeavor is a global sports and entertainment company, home to the world’s most dynamic and engaging storytellers, brands, live events and experiences. The company is comprised of industry leaders including entertainment agency WME; sports, fashion, events and media company IMG; and premier mixed martial arts organization UFC. The Endeavor network specializes in talent representation, sports operations & advisory, event & experiences management, media production & distribution, experiential marketing and brand licensing.
Who You Are
The role of the Head of Events Role will report to the Director of Studios & Branded Content and receive support from Events Assistant, Events Manager (lead up to each fair, 6 months of the year) and Website Assistant on events logistics, as well as additional support from each department hosting each event. The work of the Events Department is to provide bespoke event coordination and logistics delivering events for internal departments within Fair and Publishing teams including VIP, Exhibitors, Press, Marketing, Digital, Partnerships/Studios and Publishing.
Responsibilities Include But Not Limited To
Audience Cultivation via events:
- Develop and implement strategies to attract and engage current and new prospective audience and VIP attendees, ensuring their satisfaction and encouraging repeat attendance at Frieze fairs and events and driving audience growth.
- Collaborate with the Fair Directors, VIP Director, Frieze 91, Partnerships and Studios teams to align regional events with appropriate audiences, strategically inviting guests based on event formats and creating events based on regional cultivation needs and encourage membership
- Collaborate with institutions and hosts to create compelling programming and secure notable speakers for these events.
Partner Events:
- Provide strategic advice and guidance to the Partnerships team on sponsored event planning, ensuring successful outcomes for both Frieze audiences and partners’ audiences.
- Work closely with clients to deliver highest level events and the quantity and quality of guests, maximizing partner return on investment and fostering long-term relationships.
Event Planning and Execution:
- Oversee the end-to-end management of all events across company, including budgeting, scheduling, venue selection, catering, staffing, and logistics.
- Conduct site visits and pre-event preparations to anticipate and address any potential issues, ensuring seamless event experiences.
- Coordinate with internal and external stakeholders, including hosts, institutions, galleries, and vendors, to ensure successful event delivery.
- Work with digital teams to develop digital solutions for manual administrative processes, RSVP collation, invite reminders, data collection, CRM Database collation and maintenance of historical data.
Strategic Advisory Role:
- Offer strategic advice and insights to the senior teams, including the VIP Director and Fair Directors, to shape the overall event strategy.
- Provide input on region-event matching, guest selection, and event formats to optimize audience engagement and satisfaction.
- Strategically schedule events to ensure minimal internal competition and avoid conflicts with events organized by third parties or clients.
- Coordinate with various departments and stakeholders to establish a comprehensive event calendar that optimizes attendance and maximizes overall impact.
- Conduct thorough research and analysis of industry events to identify potential conflicts and proactively adjust our event schedule to avoid overlap and audience fragmentation.
Manage Events Team:
- Recruit, train, and manage an Events Assistant to provide support in event planning and execution. Assigning tasks, provide guidance, and ensure the Events Assistant's performance aligns with the event objectives. Conduct regular performance evaluations, offer constructive feedback, and identify opportunities for growth and development.
- Oversee the recruitment process for an Events Manager before each fair (4 times a year for 6 months of the year), ensuring qualified candidates are identified and selected. Develop training programs and materials to onboard and train the Events Manager, ensuring they are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to successfully execute events.
- Manage 25% of the responsibilities of the Website Assistant related to website listings for events. Ensure accurate and up-to-date event information is listed on the website, including event descriptions, schedules, and registration details. Collaborate with the Website Assistant to resolve any technical issues related to event listings.
Oversee 200+ Events a Year
- Including lead up to and across each of the 4 Frieze weeks, year around cultivation, publishing moments, and partnerships/Studios activations and internal company staff celebrations.
Budget Management
- gathering quotes and running budgets for all events across the business ensuring maximum impact of spend per guest and qualitative budgeting across events, taking sustainability and budget savings into account.
- Tracking spends and maintaining individual budgets, ranging between £2,000 - £200,000. Each fair week managing budgets totalling over £200,000.
You Will Have The Following Strengths
- Extensive experience in events production and management
- Proven experience leading a team and working autonomously
- Project management experience within commercial environment, dealing with clients and brands
- Experience in recruiting team members
- Experience in managing and tracking budgets
- Experience in working on several projects simultaneously
- Advanced Microsoft excel knowledge
- Guest list software and RSVP Software experience
We'd Also Love If you Have These
- Project management skills
- People management skills
- Budget tracking and accounting management
- Attention to detail
- Multi-tasker
- Working well under pressure
- Forward facing interpersonal skills
Our Diversity & Inclusion Statement
Frieze unites people in our love of the arts. We understand this can only be accomplished when we harness the entirety of our company and lead with a lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion in everything we do. As a global company that drives culture, we are committed to practicing anti-discrimination including race, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability, together with artists, writers, and cultural practitioners from all backgrounds. There is still much work to be done to address systemic inequality and discrimination within the arts and culture industry, and we are dedicated to making progress to both within our own organization and the art world at large
Endeavor unites and brings people together in our love of sport, culture, and entertainment. We understand this can only be accomplished when we lead with a lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion in everything we do. As a global company that drives culture, we strive to reflect the world’s diverse voices.
Endeavor is an equal opportunities employer and encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, or religion or belief.