Events Officer

About us

The British Ecological Society was the first ecology society to be established anywhere in the
world.

We are now one of the biggest scientific societies for ecologists, with a membership of over
6,500 across 125 countries. We foster the study of ecology and support the ecology community at
all stages of their careers through our journals, meetings, grants, and education and policy
work.

Our vision is for nature and people to thrive in a world inspired by ecology. The successful
candidate will become part of a wider staff team seeking to excite and inspire our various
audiences in ecology at a time when our science has never been more relevant.

About you

We are seeking an enthusiastic and self-motivated individual to join our friendly events team.
You’ll need 1-2 years’ demonstrable experience in delivering high-profile mid-sized events and
conferences. You will need a high-level of organisation and reliability as well as knowledge of
Microsoft Office and experience of using a CRM and a hybrid event platform. We need a clear and
concise communicator who can build and maintain relationships with a wide variety of
stakeholders and diverse audiences.

You will assist the BES in the organisation and delivery of our events programme, including our
flagship scientific conference, the BES Annual Meeting, which sees 1,200 ecologists gather from
around the world and share the latest research.

We actively value the diversity and wide range of perspectives that people from different
backgrounds bring to their work, to ecology and to our Society.

About the role

Reporting to the Events Manager, the Events Officer will:

• In collaboration with the Events Manager, oversee the delivery of allocated parts of the
  Society’s Annual Meeting.
• Be responsible for organising, facilitating and evaluating some of the smaller events
  across the organisation, ensuring that they are executed to a high standard.
• Provide on-site support at events and go on site visits.
• Use digital platforms to help with event management and administration, delegate experience
  and event marketing, working with the Events team. This includes our website, CRM system,
  conference abstract system, hybrid conference platforms, WordPress, MS Teams and Zoom.
• Act as the main point of contact for exhibitors and sponsors, following a sale, ensuring
  that all elements of their agreed package are delivered.
• Manage all aspects of Annual Meeting volunteer helpers, including the application process,
  recruitment, onsite training and support.
• Work alongside the Communications team and Head of Marketing to produce the promotional
  collateral and delegate communication plan for the events, including social media posts,
  mailings and joining instructions.

The successful candidate will become part of a team seeking to excite and inspire our various
audiences in ecology at a time when our science has never been more relevant for society.

A full job description, including person specification and competencies is available
here.

Applicants must have the right to live and work in the UK. Successful applicants will need
to provide evidence that they have the right to live and work in the UK. The BES is unable to
provide visa sponsorship and unable to hire anyone living outside the UK.

BES Staff Benefits

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays and additional festive leave between Christmas and
  New Year
• Well-being programme
• Employee Assistant Programme
• Salary sacrifice pension (the Society contributes 8% of your gross salary, and you may
  contribute additionally to this)
• Hybrid working and 4-day work week trial (see below)
• Cycle to work scheme (after probation)
• Generous training budget (after probation)

Hybrid Working

BES staff are based at least 3 days per week at our office near Old Street in London. We
endeavour to make our new custom-designed office a relaxed environment, with a casual
dress-code, ping-pong table, Nespresso machine, and regular social activities.

In July 2023 we launched an exciting trial of the ‘4-day Work Week’, available to all
interested full-time staff. Further details can be discussed at the interview stage for
successfully shortlisted candidates.

Equality and Diversity

More information regarding Diversity at the BES can be found here and our
Equality and Diversity work can be found here.