Director of Booking

The National Western Center is a 250-acre, year-round campus in North Denver connecting the region's agricultural heritage with world-class live entertainment, sports, and civic programming. Anchored by the Livestock Center's CoBank Arena—a 25,284-square-foot arena floor configurable from 3,000 fixed seats up to 6,100 for concerts or 5,200 for end-stage productions, with 12 premium suites and 65'6" rigging clearance—the campus also includes the Stockyards Event Center, Equestrian Center, and 20-acre Festival Grounds for concerts, festivals, trade shows, and community events. Home to the 120-year-old National Western Stock Show and a growing slate of concerts, family shows, and cultural festivals, the campus represents one of the most ambitious venue developments in the country, with over 2.2 million square feet of indoor and outdoor event space at build-out.

About the role

The Director of Booking will lead booking strategy, promoter and agency relationships, and calendar optimization across the CoBank Arena, Festival Grounds, and the broader National Western Center campus. This senior, revenue-driving leadership role is responsible for building a diverse year-round programming mix—concerts, festivals, family shows, sports, and other ticketed events—that complements the campus's anchor tenant, the National Western Stock Show, while maximizing venue utilization and profitability. The Director will manage relationships with national promoters and agencies (Live Nation, AEG, Outback, Feld, and comparable partners), develop the campus's identity as an emerging Denver-market destination, and collaborate with sales, operations, marketing, finance, and leadership to align booking strategy with long-term brand positioning.

This role is ideal for a seasoned booking professional or promoter-side operator who understands venue economics, deal structures, and the Denver/Front Range market, and who wants to help shape programming strategy for a campus in its early, high-growth years. You’ll join a small, nimble, collaborative, and entrepreneurial team as we accelerate the growth of a new events hub and innovation campus in Denver, Colorado.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain relationships with promoters, agencies, and tour producers to develop diverse, high-quality programming across the National Western Center, with a heavy focus on CoBank Arena and the Festival Grounds/Plaza.
• Own the campus's multi-year event pipeline, balancing the Stock Show's seasonal footprint with concerts, festivals, sporting events, and other bookings year-round.
• Negotiate license agreements and contracts with promoters, agents, and producers in the best interest of the campus, and lead settlements for assigned events.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with the National Western Center Authority, tenants, government partners, and the broader Denver entertainment and civic community to encourage regular use of the facility.
• Analyze sell-through, margins, and repeat-partnership data to continually refine the programming mix and maximize venue utilization.
• Collaborate with marketing on on-sale strategy, audience development, and show positioning for each event.
• Partner with operations and production teams to scale events appropriately across indoor arena and outdoor event space configurations, and manage operational feasibility.
• Develop the booking department's annual operating calendar and activity schedule, and contribute attendance and revenue projections.
• Support the Chief Executive Officer in developing and administering the booking department's operating budget; maintain accurate, current revenue forecasts.
• Identify and pursue new event opportunities, including underserved genres, cultural communities, and emerging event formats suited to a 250-acre agricultural and civic campus.
• Develop and lead a small team of booking staff as the department scales with the campus.
• Represent the NWCA at industry conferences (IEBA, Pollstar Live, and similar) and build the venue's reputation among agents, promoters, and artists.
• Serve as manager on duty for select events as assigned.
• Other duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, Sport Management, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years of progressive experience in venue booking, talent buying, promoter relations, or booking management, with a track record spanning arena and outdoor/festival-scale events.
• 3+ years supervising staff or leading a booking function.
• Experience overseeing multi-venue or multi-space programming calendars—indoor arena and outdoor festival grounds a strong plus.
• Established relationships with national promoters (Live Nation, AEG, Feld, etc.) and major talent agencies (CAA, WME, UTA) or comparable regional networks.
• Ability to cultivate relationships with local independent promoters.
• Fluency in event P&L, deal structures, on-sale strategy, and revenue forecasting.
• Strategic mindset paired with hands-on operational capability; comfortable building programming in a fast-growing, entrepreneurial venue environment.
• Experience working alongside civic authorities, agricultural or livestock organizations, or convention and visitors bureaus is a plus given the campus's Stock Show anchor tenancy.
• Ability to work flexible hours, including evenings, weekends, and holidays, as the event calendar requires.

Skills

• Embrace the startup nature of the organization; no job is below you.
• Detail- and results-oriented.
• Entrepreneurial self-starter with strong problem-solving skills; takes initiative and communicates clearly with internal and external stakeholders.
• Acts with respect, competency, and integrity.
• Works well as part of a team.
• Excels in high-pressure situations while maintaining a calm, professional manner.
• Collaborative by nature; seeks compromise and demonstrates excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Strong time management and prioritization skills.
• Results-oriented with sound judgment.
• Dependable with a track record of reliability.
• Excited about the opportunity to grow with the organization.
• Passionate about the mission of the National Western Center.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• Paid time off.
• Paid parental leave.
• 401k plan with a 4.00% company match.
• Support for community involvement.
• Relocation assistance where applicable.
• Family-friendly benefits and flexible work hours.

Pay

The starting salary is $110,000–$130,000 with bonus, commensurate with experience.

Schedule

This position can be performed through a mix of on-site and remote work in Denver, Colorado.