How to hire a special events planner

How to hire a special events planner, step by step

Here's a step-by-step special events planner hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The special events planner hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect special events planner also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   This list presents special events planner salaries for various positions.

   Type of Special Events Planner	Description	Hourly rate
   Special Events Planner	Meeting, convention, and event planners coordinate all aspects of events and professional meetings. They arrange meeting locations, transportation, and other details.	$13-40
   Conference Coordinator	A conference coordinator organizes professional gatherings and meetings according to a client's needs and preferences. There are also instances where they may plan reunions, parties, and other events... Show more	$15-25
   Planning Committee Member	The role of planning committee members is to assist with designing and implementing an educational activity. They need to ensure that the leadership gives the continuing education (CE) developer enough time to complete the CE process... Show more	$9-152

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • National Security
   • Event Planning
   • Event Coordination
   • Event Management
   • Event Logistics
   • Event Budgets
   • Uscentcom
   • VIP
   • Press Releases
   • Site Selection
   • Travel Arrangements
   • Contract Negotiations
   • Vendor Contracts
   • Social Events

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Select and manage live entertainment for VIP parties, special events and weekend entertainment.
   • Maintain business website and manage Facebook account.
   • Create and present PowerPoint presentations at trades shows and workshops.
   • Orchestrate seamless industry VIP and charity events worldwide involving up to 800 guests and budgets of up to $12K.
   • Develop agenda and itinerary, organize and procure all speaker biographies and materials and logistics for successful program execution.
   • Assist in the development of sponsorship opportunities, themes, and giveaways.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your special events planner job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A special events planner can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, special events planners' average salary in arkansas is 60% less than in connecticut.
   • Seniority. Entry-level special events planners 65% less than senior-level special events planners.
   • Certifications. A special events planner with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a special events planner's salary.

   Average special events planner salary

   $50,325yearly

   $24.19 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level special events planner salary

   $29,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 22, 2025

4. Writing a special events planner job description

   A job description for a special events planner 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 special events planner job description:

   Special events planner job description example

   Job DescriptionProduction opportunities at Quad instill a sense of empowerment and possibility distinct from those at other employers. Quad’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities include world-class automation and printing technology. Our platform includes digital, gravure and offset presses that give our clients a full range of options to produce personalized marketing products. Fueled by innovative, interesting days, you’ll find hard work is good work, and feel a deep sense of pride in a job well done – something shared by everyone in the community we call Quad.
   As of 6/15/22 Quad Waukee is Opening their doors every
   
   Wednesday from 9:00am - 3:00pm!
   
   Walk in any Wednesday for a plant tour and immediate interview. Bring a friend!
   
   Looking for a job? Walk away with a career.
   
   Have the opportunity to get hired on the spot.
   
   Wear closed toed shoes! Please also bring along a valid picture ID and a mask to wear the entire time you are at the plant.
   
   Waukee, IA
   
   250 NW 10th Street
   
   Waukee, IA 50263
   
   We are Hiring For:
   
   FT General Laborers, Book Binders, Press Packers, Electrical and more!
   
   
   
   Our compressed work schedule is geared toward balancing work and family life. You will work 3 to 4, 12 hour days a week with opportunities for overtime (OT paid after 40 hours per week) including days, nights, weekends, and holidays .
   
   
   
   At Quad entry-level wages for full-time start between $15.23/ hour and $16.24/hr . You have immediate opportunities to advance – driving you to be better than yesterday. As your career progresses, there are multiple upward paths available, as we are continuously looking for our next group of leaders to excel within the organization.
   
   
   
   About the Waukee Plant :
   
   A coldset web offset and sheetfed printing plant, Waukee is one of the United States' premiere printers of telephone directories, especially high-quality, four-color short-run directories.
   
   Points of Interest
   
   
   With web and sheetfed offset presses, the plant specializes in printing independent directories, each year printing more than 1,200 titles from more than 70 clients.
   World Color acquired the current plant, built in 1991, in 1999. When Quebecor Printing merged with World Color later that year, the plant became part of the new company, Quebecor World, which changed its name to Worldcolor in 2009. Quad/Graphics acquired Worldcolor in 2010.
   
   
   
   
   Quad is a Wisconsin-based company, which is among the largest magazine and direct-mail printers in the U.S. Our company leverages its strong print foundation as part of a much larger, robust integrated marketing services platform that helps marketers and content creators improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their marketing spend across offline and online media channels.
   
   Quad is closely following the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), and implementing processes that promote the safety of our employees, candidates, customers and communities. We follow CDC and local health authorities, federal and state governments along with best practices and recommendations from our healthcare subsidiary, QuadMed.
   
   
   
   WORK HARD. MOVE UP. STAND PROUD.
   
   Be Something Greater. Be Quad.
   
   
   
   Additional Company Information
   
   
   
   We offer excellent benefits to eligible employees, including 401(k), holidays, vacations and more.
   
   Quad is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. We are committed to creating a place of belonging — a space where employees do not need to sacrifice who they are to exist and grow in our workplace. Quad does not discriminate on any unlawful basis including race, religion, color, national origin, disability, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis prohibited by applicable federal, state, or local laws. Quad also prohibits harassment of applicants and employees based on any of these protected categories.
   
   
   
   Drug Free Workplace

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5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right special events planner for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit special events planners, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   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 special events planner

   Once you've found the special events planner 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 also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new special events planner first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

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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