How to hire a conference producer

How to hire a conference producer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step conference producer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a conference producer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new conference producer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a conference producer, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a conference producer to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a conference producer that fits the bill.

   The following list breaks down different types of conference producers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Conference Producer	Description	Hourly rate
   Conference Producer	Meeting, convention, and event planners coordinate all aspects of events and professional meetings. They arrange meeting locations, transportation, and other details.	$15-34
   Marketing And Event Planning Internship	A marketing and event planning intern is responsible for supporting the operations of a company's marketing department, performing administrative duties under the guidance of a direct supervisor or tenured marketing staff. Marketing and event planning interns shadow all the processes of marketing operations, assisting with events management procedures, and suggesting strategic solutions to boost the company's brand image to the public... Show more	$10-16
   Director Of Events	An event director or director of the event is responsible for organizing a successful execution of an event. This job is demanding and involves a varied range of tasks and obligations, from planning and overseeing the cast and crew recruited, supervise training for effective execution of the event... Show more	$18-53

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Project Management
   • Phone Research
   • Senior-Level Executives
   • AV
   • Linkedin
   • Event Management
   • Business Development
   • Promotional Materials
   • Target Market
   • Conference Program
   • Event Production
   • Conference Agendas
   • Conference Topics
   • Video Conferences

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage internal & external reservations for audio and videoconferencing requirements over telephone and via e-mail.
   • Manage internal & external reservations for audio and videoconferencing requirements over telephone and via e-mail.
   • Prepare weekly PowerPoint event calendars for senior leadership.

   More conference producer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your conference producer job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A conference producer salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a conference producer in Kentucky may be lower than in New Jersey, and an entry-level conference producer usually earns less than a senior-level conference producer. Additionally, a conference producer with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average conference producer salary

   $48,495yearly

   $23.31 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level conference producer salary

   $33,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 19, 2025

   Average conference producer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Texas	$54,169	$26
   2	Maryland	$53,113	$26
   3	New York	$53,026	$25
   4	California	$51,762	$25
   5	Illinois	$50,420	$24
   6	Michigan	$42,249	$20
   7	North Carolina	$38,051	$18

   Average conference producer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	IES Abroad	$126,255	$60.70
   2	KLA	$123,724	$59.48
   3	Amazon	$62,991	$30.28	29
   4	Informa Plc	$60,422	$29.05	6
   5	Worldwide Business Research	$50,187	$24.13
   6	PennWell	$47,305	$22.74
   7	Marcus Evans Inc.	$47,048	$22.62
   8	American Institute	$45,180	$21.72
   9	IQPC	$44,849	$21.56

4. Writing a conference producer job description

   A job description for a conference producer role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a conference producer job description:

   Conference producer job description example

   Dynamic opportunity to join the Aviation Week Network events group. An exciting position has arisen for a Conference Producer to join the team to help produce and deliver a series of conference programs covering the latest trends in the aerospace and defense industry. These conferences cover supply chain, manufacturing, materials, M&A, and programs featuring the top global industry thought leaders. The conference producer will be part of an international team that puts on 10-15 events annually, from 200-person conferences to tradeshows for 15,000 attendees, in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the Americas.
   
   The Conference Producer will research, write and deliver high-quality and innovative agendas for a portfolio of aerospace and defense conferences, identifying and recruiting appropriate speakers at the same time as ensuring the marketability and commercial viability of each conference they are responsible for. Applicants must have strong project management skills and preferably at least 12 months of experience in a B2B commercial environment. The role will help support growth and revenue goals and work directly with senior-level leadership. Aviation Week is looking for a conference producer with a strong commercial acumen who can help to take the portfolio to the next level and has excellent team working, communication, and interpersonal skills. This role requires someone with an enthusiasm to succeed, a willingness to travel, and brilliant research and analytical skills.
   
   To research and produce high-quality and innovative agendas for a portfolio of aerospace and defense conferences using in-depth phone-based and desktop research of key subject areas
   
   To research important industry topics and keep up to date with industry trends to ensure streams of content are relevant to our audience
   
   To source, select, and secure the participation of high-level, industry-leading speakers through research, networking, and existing contacts to achieve your target requirements
   
   To assume full project ownership of each event from a content perspective and to ensure that events run to deadline and to schedule close working with the cross-functional team
   
   To produce all content-related copy for your events including sales-driven brochures, websites, direct mail, and emails
   
   To contribute to social media activity for the events through regular participation on LinkedIn, Twitter, and other social media channels to nurture a community as well as promote the events
   
   To be responsible for the onsite delivery of the events through meticulous on-site execution of the conferences to exceptional customer standards
   
   To provide input for the sales and marketing strategy for the events by identifying and suggesting possible sponsors, supporters and media partners
   
   To contribute towards portfolio development by generating topics to deliver a forward schedule of commercially viable programs and to conduct due diligence and assist in the development of new ideas for expanding the portfolio
   
   To make and maintain relationships with industry stakeholders and the Aviation Week Network client base to develop and build communities around the events in the portfolio
   
   To work with other departments to ensure all processes are efficient and effective as possible, suggesting new processes where necessary
   To work with the senior management team to grow and enhance the product and service offering across the portfolio to maintain market leadership

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5. Post your job

   To find the right conference producer for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with conference producers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit conference producers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your conference producer job on Zippia to find and recruit conference producer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit conference producers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new conference producer

   Once you've found the conference producer candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new conference producer. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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