Sr Manager Event and Marketing

About the role

S&S is seeking a strategic, customer-focused Senior Manager, Event & Experiential Marketing to lead our event and experiential marketing strategy across North America.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute a North American event strategy aligned with S&S's business objectives, brand strategy, and commercial priorities.
• Manage the annual event portfolio, including national trade shows, customer events, sales conferences, leadership meetings, regional activations, brand moments, and customer engagement experiences.
• Recommend annual event investments based on business impact, customer value, and brand visibility.
• Develop annual and long-range event plans that support company growth and customer engagement.
• Present event and experiential strategies, performance metrics, and recommendations to executive leadership.
• Lead the planning and execution of live, virtual, and hybrid events from concept through post-event analysis.
• Oversee venue selection, budgeting, logistics, travel, exhibit management, production, registration, and onsite execution.
• Ensure every event and experience reflects the S&S brand and delivers a seamless customer experience.
• Identify new technologies and engagement strategies that enhance event effectiveness, attendee engagement, product/brand discovery, brand storytelling, and operational efficiency.
• Proactively manage event risks and contingency planning.
• Partner across Marketing, Sales, Creative, Merchandising, Product Marketing, Operations, and Corporate Communications to deliver integrated event campaigns and customer experiences.
• Lead the development and execution of event content and programming, partnering with Corporate Communications, Creative, and business leaders to deliver engaging presentations, customer sessions, executive messaging, and brand storytelling.
• Ensure consistent execution of the S&S brand across every customer-facing event and experiential touchpoint.
• Collaborate on booth design, sponsorships, activations, presentations, and event content that showcase the breadth of the S&S portfolio.
• Continuously improve the attendee journey before, during, and after each event.
• Lead the development of immersive brand and product experiences that help customers engage with S&S solutions, discover products, and understand the value of our technology, services, and business solutions.
• Translate business priorities into compelling customer experiences, including interactive environments, product showcases, demos, brand activations, and customer journey moments.
• Lead, coach, and develop the Event Specialist while building scalable processes that support future growth.
• Serve as the primary liaison between internal stakeholders and external agencies, vendors, venues, and strategic partners.
• Lead agency and vendor relationships to ensure exceptional creativity, execution, innovation, quality, and value.
• Foster strong cross-functional collaboration and a customer-first approach across all event initiatives.
• Partner with experiential agencies, production partners, fabricators, technology vendors, and creative teams to bring brand experiences to life.
• Develop and manage the annual event budget, ensuring investments align with business priorities.
• Monitor budgets, reconcile expenses, negotiate vendor contracts, and identify cost optimization opportunities.
• Develop and track KPIs that measure event effectiveness, customer engagement, brand awareness, attendee satisfaction, commercial impact, lead generation, product engagement, and ROI.
• Deliver post-event reporting with actionable insights and recommendations for continuous improvement.
• Stay current on industry trends, emerging technologies, and experiential marketing best practices.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Communications, Event Management, Business, or a related field preferred.
• 8–12 years of progressive experience leading corporate events, trade shows, experiential marketing, or event marketing programs.
• Experience managing large-scale, multi-event portfolios.
• Proven success leading cross-functional initiatives and managing complex budgets.
• Experience managing agencies, vendors, and strategic partners.
• Previous people leadership experience preferred.

Skills & Competencies

• Strategic planning and business acumen.
• Strong project and program management skills.
• Executive presence with exceptional communication and stakeholder management abilities.
• Leadership, coaching, and team development.
• Budget management and financial acumen.
• Vendor and agency management.
• Strong negotiation, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Data-driven mindset with the ability to turn insights into action.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, event management platforms, and collaboration tools.

Benefits

• Salaried: $138,400 - $150,000 (based on experience)
• Full-Time, Exempt
• Plus Bonus Eligibility
• Monday - Friday (standard business hours)
• Remote Opportunity

Company Information

Founded in 1988 and headquartered in Bolingbrook, Illinois, S&S is a tech-forward leader in branded merchandise distribution, helping customers grow through a powerful combination of products, technology, services, and business solutions. With more than 80 leading brands and an expansive North American distribution network, S&S empowers businesses with the scale, expertise, and reliability they need to succeed. As S&S continues to invest in its brand and customer experience, we're creating industry-leading experiences that strengthen customer relationships, showcase our unmatched product portfolio, and reinforce our position as the market leader. From major trade shows and customer events to sales meetings and brand activations, every interaction is an opportunity to demonstrate what makes S&S different.