INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARYARTS

Job Description

Job Title: Senior Events Manager

Salary: £42,849 - £46,575

Reporting to: Director of Audiences and Business Growth

Contract: Permanent, full-time

Location: London

Deadline for application: midday 20th May 2026

Overview

The Institute of Contemporary Arts is a leading multi-arts centre located on the prestigious Mall in London, with views to St James’s Park. The history of both the ICA and the building is iconic – the ICA is an incubator for artistic talent with artists from Stormzy to Amy Winehouse and Basquiat to Lubaina Himid hosting seminal shows within the walls of the venue.

Alongside this, the building stands proudly as a transformative, progressive space for the creative industries housed in a magnificent, Georgian Grade I listed building with a variety of event spaces for hire including exquisite private rooms, two cinemas, a gallery space, a bar area and a theatre/live music space. Our spaces are often used for magazine and fashion photo shoots, filming, weddings, receptions, dinners and much more.

The Events team plays an important role at the ICA, supporting exciting plans to grow and leverage the event hire business as a key commercial income stream for the ICA.

The Senior Events Manager will lead the growth and delivery of the ICA’s Events & Hires business. With a strong focus on proactive event sales, commercial development and client engagement to encourage repeat sales and the development of longer standing, corporate relationships, the post holder will position the ICA as one of Central London’s most unique, cool and leading venues for cultural, corporate, and private events.

This role will manage the work of the Events Officer, ensuring operational excellence while driving ambitious revenue growth. The Senior Events Manager will be a target driven individual, responsible for meeting ambitious financial targets and KPIs; developing the sales pipeline and converting enquiries to bookings; building client, agent, and supplier relationships; and ensuring all events are delivered to the highest standards.

INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS

The post holder will be commercially minded, with a proven track record in event sales, business development, budgeting and team leadership.

They will also have a creative flair – imagining new, high-impact solutions for clients, working closely with our preferred supplier list to realise the ambition of clients’ event needs. They will work closely with colleagues across Visitor Experience, Operations, Marketing and Technical to deliver seamless, world-class client experiences that maximise income potential and build upon our reputation for excellent client service.

Please note due to the nature of the role, you will be required to work occasional evenings and weekends.

Duties and Responsibilities

Lead the delivery and planning for the ICA’s Event Hire offer, building the event hire pipeline and client base in order to meet ambitious income targets and drive revenue growth.

Manage the Events Officer, ensuring that enquiries are responded to in a timely manner and that client requests, supplier contacts and additional costs are delivered to a high standard.

Proactively identify and convert new business opportunities with corporate, commercial, media, private and cultural clients across various different event types – product launches, events, photoshoots, fashion shows, private receptions, weddings, dinners and conferences amongst others.

• Build and manage a robust pipeline of leads, taking responsibility for proposals, negotiations and contracts.

• Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with clients, agencies, suppliers and partners.

Attend Client events as and where necessary, ensuring that the right level of on the ground support, including event managers, suppliers, security is leveraged to fit the clients’ needs.

Be the Event Lead for high end client engagement, and support the management of incoming event enquiries as and when required to ensure the continued smooth flow of client feedback

• Lead all negotiations on large-scale events, such as conferences or takeovers and where multi-suppliers and colleagues are involved

INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS

• Manage all ICA partner events that connect to programming strands, or support with in-kind activity for the ICA

Manage the core approved supplier list, advising clients on supplier best fit and manage the re-tendering as and when required.

Monitor business data and KPIs alongside market trends, competitor activity and industry developments to inform sales strategy.

Develop bespoke event packages and initiatives to enhance profitability and client appeal.

Work closely with the Development team to highlight prospective clients who are potential corporate, sponsorship or individual prospects.

Working closely with the Director of Audiences & Business Development, lead on the development of Corporate membership packages which compliment the commercial hire business.

Work closely with the Marketing team to develop high-impact communications, marketing materials and packages for external event hire platforms.

Ensure the Events Hire business complements the ICA’s public programme, building a collaborative and solutions focused approach to managing hires alongside the public offer and attending and leading internal meetings where necessary

Ensure compliance with ICA policies, relevant legislation, insurance requirements and GDPR data protection regulations.

This is not, however, an exhaustive list of duties and the ICA’s management may, at any time, allocate other tasks which are of a similar nature or level.

About You

Essential:

• FEI/HEI qualification or equivalent experience

2+ years’ experience managing a Venue hire proposition including end-to-end event planning and delivery in a cultural space

Demonstrable experience leading complex events across different spaces including large scale dinners and product launches

Experience in developing event strategy, including leading event package development that deliver strong profit margins

• Demonstrable experience in meeting or exceeding targets

INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS

• Experience managing and developing approved event suppliers

• Very strong organisational skills with excellent attention to detail

Excellent customer service and a high level of interpersonal skills with the ability to manage relationships under pressure

• Experience working with event and / or CRM databases, preferably Artifax

• Knowledge of health and safety and event compliance requirements

• Ability to assess and manage risk

• Demonstrable experience managing budgets

Desirable:

• Experience leading events in a Grade I listed building

Experience working with diverse audiences

• Experience producing marketing or communications content

• Health and Safety qualification (IOSH)

First Aid qualification

• Genuine interest in the arts and creative sectors

Why Join Us?

This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a historic and forward-thinking cultural institution, contributing directly to its commercial sustainability while working in a unique and prestigious setting.

To apply, please share details of your CV and cover letter to jobs@ica.art