Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners
Hospitality and TourismO*NET 13-1121.00United States
Coordinate activities of staff, convention personnel, or clients to make arrangements for group meetings, events, or conventions.
- Median annual earnings
- $61,173
- Projected change
- +11.2%
- Typical education
- Bachelor's degree
- Employment
- 168K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
40.8% of the workforce
Growing to 186.85K by 2035
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The work
What meeting, convention, and event planners do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Consult with customers to determine objectives and requirements for events, such as meetings, conferences, and conventions.
- Review event bills for accuracy and approve payment.
- Coordinate services for events, such as accommodation and transportation for participants, facilities, catering, signage, displays, special needs requirements, printing and event security.
- Confer with staff at a chosen event site to coordinate details.
- Arrange the availability of audio-visual equipment, transportation, displays, and other event needs.
- Inspect event facilities to ensure that they conform to customer requirements.
- Maintain records of event aspects, including financial details.
- Monitor event activities to ensure compliance with applicable regulations and laws, satisfaction of participants, and resolution of any problems that arise.
- Negotiate contracts with such service providers and suppliers as hotels, convention centers, and speakers.
- Evaluate and select providers of services according to customer requirements.
- Plan and develop programs, agendas, budgets, and services according to customer requirements.
- Conduct post-event evaluations to determine how future events could be improved.
- Hire, train, and supervise volunteers and support staff required for events.
- Direct administrative details, such as financial operations, dissemination of promotional materials, and responses to inquiries.
- Meet with sponsors and organizing committees to plan scope and format of events, to establish and monitor budgets, or to review administrative procedures and event progress.
- Read trade publications, attend seminars, and consult with other meeting professionals to keep abreast of meeting management standards and trends.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $35,076
- 25th percentile
- $45,881
- 50th percentile
- $61,173
- 75th percentile
- $81,277
- 90th percentile
- $112,921
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $61,173 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+11.2%faster than average
2025167,998 jobs
2035 projected186,846 jobs
18,848 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- Bachelor's degree
- 40.8%
- Some college
- 37.2%
- High school diploma or less
- 7.9%
- Associate degree
- 7.5%
- Certificate
- 6.6%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Negotiation
- Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Management of Financial Resources
- Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Event Coordinators3,704 postings
- 02Event Managers2,661 postings
- 03Event Staff2,095 postings
- 04Event Assistants1,060 postings
- 05Special Events Coordinators545 postings
- 06Event Planners475 postings
- 07Event Specialists468 postings
- 08Directors of Meetings and Events338 postings
- 09Marketing Events Managers309 postings
- 10Wedding Coordinators270 postings
- 11Events Program Managers241 postings
- 12Directors of Events240 postings
- 13Sales and Events Managers228 postings
- 14Special Events Managers226 postings
- 15Catering Event Staff222 postings
- 16Party Coordinators215 postings
- 17Meeting Planners213 postings
- 18Event Planning Managers199 postings
- 19Service Workers197 postings
- 20Special Events Assistants196 postings
Top employers
- 01Marriott International559 postings
- 02Michaels392 postings
- 03Aramark381 postings
- 04BEST Crowd Management291 postings
- 05Robert Half286 postings
- 06Allied Universal266 postings
- 07Hilton250 postings
- 08Oak View Group243 postings
- 09Compass Group172 postings
- 10Legends Global161 postings
- 11Hyatt159 postings
- 12CBRE152 postings
- 13Fooda141 postings
- 14Isc2140 postings
- 15Nascar136 postings
- 16Crowe132 postings
- 17Urban Air Adventure Parks132 postings
- 18ASM Global131 postings
- 19Herc123 postings
- 20Leigh And Co105 postings
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