Conference Manager

Job title: Conference Manager

Reporting Line: Managing Director

Employment Type: Full-time

About Forbes Middle East

Forbes Middle East is a leading business publication that highlights the most influential people and companies shaping the Arab world. As part of the global Forbes brand, we deliver trusted news, rankings, and insights on business, finance, leadership, and lifestyle across the region.

Position Overview:

The Conference Manager is responsible for shaping the content strategy, program delivery, and overall success of our industry-leading business events across multiple sectors. You will not only design world-class conference agendas and manage senior-level contributors, but also lead and mentor the conference production team, ensuring they deliver high-quality, commercially successful programs. This role demands editorial vision, strong leadership, and the ability to translate market insight into compelling, profitable events.

Key Responsibilities:

• Setting the editorial and program direction across all conferences, roundtables, and workshops, ensuring strategic alignment and strong market positioning.

• Leading research initiatives to identify key market trends and “golden content,” driving event differentiation and audience relevance.

• Designing agendas that are innovative, insightful, and commercially aligned, enhancing delegate engagement and business outcomes.

• Managing, coaching, and developing the conference production team, improving performance and supporting professional growth.

• Providing clear direction on research, agenda writing, and speaker acquisition, ensuring quality and consistency in outputs.

• Fostering a collaborative, high-performance culture, balancing creativity with commercial accountability.

• Overseeing the recruitment, confirmation, and management of senior-level speakers, moderators, and facilitators, ensuring high-Caliber contributions.

• Building long-term relationships with industry leaders, securing recurring engagement and strengthening event credibility.

• Ensuring the accuracy and quality of all speaker communications and event materials, enhancing professionalism and trust.

• Overseeing speakers’ budgetary planning, optimizing resource allocation and ROI. • Collaborating cross-functionally with Business Development, Marketing, and Operations, aligning messaging, promotion, and delivery for maximum impact.

• Managing conferences end-to-end, delivering seamless content flow and a world-class delegate experience.

• Analyzing event performance and team outcomes, driving continuous improvement in content, formats, and processes.

• Partnering with senior leadership to launch new event products and expand into new sectors, supporting business growth and innovation.

Qualifications & Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Communications, Marketing, or related field.

• Master’s degree or professional certifications (AMA or MBA) is an advantage. Experience:

• 8–10 years’ proven experience in conference management, event production, or program strategy.

• Experience building and maintaining relationships with top-tier Speakers, journalists, influencers, and strategic partners.

• Strong background in content development, speaker management, and cross-functional coordination.

• Excellent research and analytical skills to identify market trends and audience needs.

• Strong editorial judgment and ability to design innovative event agendas.

• Outstanding communication and negotiation skills for managing senior-level speakers. • Leadership ability to motivate and guide production teams.

• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage timelines, budgets, and multiple priorities.

• Commercial awareness to ensure events meet both audience and business objectives. • Proficiency in digital tools and event platforms.