What does a meeting planner do?

A meeting planner makes professional decisions in all areas of meeting preparation and presentation. They plan meetings, establish meeting objectives, schedule meetings, budget expenses, inspect meeting sites, negotiate with suppliers, and create a speaker lineup. They also need to deal with travel arrangements and with technical equipment used in the course of the meeting.
Meeting planner responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real meeting planner resumes:
- Manage company's social medias and publish weekly relate topics on Facebook and newsletter.
- Confirm reservations, registrations and manage itineraries.
- Develop and issue client/supplier contracts, submit RFP s, secure meeting space, research and create budgets for proposals.
- Handle all participants regarding event specifications, RFP's, registrations, confirmations, cancellations, schedules, and cost summaries.
- Deliver onsite execution and conduct post event surveys.
- Oversee arrangements for event production and onsite technology.
- Develop marketing pieces and PowerPoint presentation for various groups.
- Coordinate all travel for group/hotel reservations, sales meetings/expense reimbursements.
- Develop agenda and itinerary, organize and procure all speaker biographies and materials and logistics for successful program execution.
- Negotiate logistics and entertainment for VIP, and guest special events as well as contract arrangements for 15breakout sessions.
- Utilize Delphi to check room availability and make necessary changes.
- Provide creative support and assistance by researching and developing booth entertainment ideas and designing booth signage and packaging of giveaways.
Meeting planner skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Meeting Planners are proficient in Client Facing, Event Planning, and PowerPoint. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Negotiation skills, and Organizational skills.
We break down the percentage of Meeting Planners that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Client Facing, 10%
Worked with IT team to improve client facing websites as well as communications sent out to pharmaceutical field
- Event Planning, 8%
Worked collaboratively with multiple business markets representatives in observance of event planning and implementation.
- PowerPoint, 6%
Developed marketing pieces and PowerPoint presentation for various groups.
- Audio Visual, 5%
Manage meeting logistics for on-site training center including repairs/replacement of audio visual equipment.
- Event Management, 5%
Managed all meeting planning and event management initiatives as a freelance Independent Contractor for major corporations coordinating and executing all details.
- Site Selection, 4%
Arranged educational seminars including site selection, contract negotiations, meeting room assignment, registration and brochure design/printing.
Most meeting planners use their skills in "client facing," "event planning," and "powerpoint" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential meeting planner responsibilities here:
Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a meeting planner to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "meeting, convention, and event planners exchange information with clients, suppliers, and event staff." Meeting planners often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "coordinated all communication with sales representatives, faculty and internal staff throughout the meeting planning and execution process. "
Negotiation skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling meeting planner duties is negotiation skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "meeting, convention, and event planners must be able to secure quality products and services at reasonable prices for their clients." According to a meeting planner resume, here's how meeting planners can utilize negotiation skills in their job responsibilities: "coordinated medical education events including contract negotiation, program logistics, program implementation, sales and marketing, and deadline management"
Organizational skills. meeting planners are also known for organizational skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to meeting planner responsibilities, because "meeting, convention, and event planners must multitask, pay attention to details, and meet tight deadlines." A meeting planner resume example shows how organizational skills is used in the workplace: "streamlined all aspects of meeting planning, operations and budget reconciliation through superior organizational skills. "
Problem-solving skills. A big part of what meeting planners do relies on "problem-solving skills." You can see how essential it is to meeting planner responsibilities because "meeting, convention, and event planners must be able to anticipate potential issues and prepare creative solutions that satisfy clients." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical meeting planner tasks: "resolved all customer service issues that arose due to misunderstanding of travel arrangements or agent error. "
The three companies that hire the most meeting planners are:
- Supernus Pharmaceuticals3 meeting planners jobs
- AbbVie2 meeting planners jobs
- Raymond James Financial2 meeting planners jobs
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Meeting planner vs. 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. They manage how to effectively deal with people from staff and crew to sponsors, and talents, especially in tight schedules and difficult circumstances. Moreover, the event director is the representative of the event when dealing with the benefactors of the event, media group for promotion coverage, and people outside the industry.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between meeting planners and director of events. For instance, meeting planner responsibilities require skills such as "client facing," "meeting materials," "room set-up," and "site inspections." Whereas a director of events is skilled in "customer service," "customer satisfaction," "booking," and "crm." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Directors of events tend to make the most money working in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $71,076. In contrast, meeting planners make the biggest average salary, $55,783, in the hospitality industry.On average, directors of events reach similar levels of education than meeting planners. Directors of events are 2.1% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.6% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Meeting planner vs. Event specialist
Events specialists, also known as events producers or event planners, have many roles and responsibilities. They establish event concepts, select venues, secure sponsorships, and handle logistics for events. Also, they plan and manage event timelines, coordinate technical aspects, and manage risks. Event specialists are also responsible for communicating with vendors, organizing marketing materials, and liaising with event speakers. To become an event specialist, one should need to meet several qualifications that include having a degree in marketing, hospitality, or public relations. Organization skills and experience in project management are also important.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that meeting planner responsibilities requires skills like "client facing," "powerpoint," "audio visual," and "site selection." But an event specialist might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "brand awareness," "product preparation," "product demonstrations," and "food preparation."
Event specialists earn a lower average salary than meeting planners. But event specialists earn the highest pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $44,799. Additionally, meeting planners earn the highest salaries in the hospitality with average pay of $55,783 annually.event specialists earn similar levels of education than meeting planners in general. They're 1.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for meeting planners in the next 3-5 years?
Siddharth Mobar
Assistant Professor, Lasell University
Meeting planner vs. Events volunteer
A Lead event specialist is responsible for providing clients a proposal or a plan to make an event successful. Most of the time, they are the person who continually interacts with their clients to determine what they need, from the planning stage down to the implementation phase. Meaning this will also be how they can promote their brand or business and generate an income from it. Additionally, they are the ones who organize a promotional event and interacts with potential clients.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a meeting planner is likely to be skilled in "client facing," "event planning," "audio visual," and "event management," while a typical events volunteer is skilled in "art projects," "plan events," "community events," and "ran."
Events volunteers typically earn similar educational levels compared to meeting planners. Specifically, they're 2.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Meeting planner vs. Lead event specialist
Even though a few skill sets overlap between meeting planners and lead event specialists, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a meeting planner might have more use for skills like "client facing," "audio visual," "event management," and "site selection." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of lead event specialists require skills like "customer service," "food safety guidelines," "facebook," and "product demonstrations. "
In general, lead event specialists hold similar degree levels compared to meeting planners. Lead event specialists are 1.2% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of meeting planner
Updated January 8, 2025











