Job Description

The Society of American Foresters (SAF) is the national scientific and educational organization representing forestry and natural resource professions in the United States. Founded in 1900 by Gifford Pinchot, it is the largest professional society for foresters and natural resource management professionals representing academia, private industry, nonprofit, and federal state and local governments in the nation. SAF\xe2\x80\x99s mission is to advance sustainable management of forest resources through science, education, and technology, promoting professional excellence while ensuring the continued health, integrity, and use of forests to benefit society in perpetuity. More information about SAF is available at

The Society of American Foresters (SAF) is seeking a Specialist, Business Relations. The Specialist, Business Relations supports and advances the mission of SAF by identifying, prioritizing, and cultivating a variety of funding opportunities that enable SAF to fulfill key Strategic Plan objectives and provide high-quality services to its members and partners. Reporting directly to the Director, Events & Sales, the Business Relations Specialist manages the promotion, marketing, selling, and servicing of advertising and sponsor initiatives of SAF. The Specialist, Business Relations will work with the Director, Events & Sales to develop and implement annual sales goals for various program areas including the National SAF Convention and SAF\xe2\x80\x99s publications including the College Guide, The Forestry Source, eForester, Journal of Forestry, and Forest Science. This specialist will also create and develop all marketing materials and sales kits for soliciting advertisers and event sponsors and exhibitors.

Responsibilities:

• Direct the promotion, marketing, selling, and servicing of advertising in SAF\xe2\x80\x99s monthly publication The Forestry Source, bimonthly publications Journal of Forestry and Forest Science, its weekly online publication The eForester, and its annual publication for recruiting prospective industry professionals, The College Guide.
• Develop relationships with prospective affinity partners to provide benefits for members.
• Develop and administer SAF\xe2\x80\x99s national advertising activities.
• Manage sponsor and exhibitor sales, marketing, and recruitment for the annual SAF National Convention and other events.
• Coordinate SAF store activities during National Convention.

Exhibitor and Sponsor Sales and Management:

• Prepare the National Convention Partner Prospectus for distribution prior to the annual National Convention sales opening; ensuring effective communication of timelines, deadlines, deliverables, and pertinent details.
• Create website content to market appropriately.
• Work closely with the Director, Events & Sales and Manager, Marketing & Communications to determine Exhibit Hall components, color schemes, space allocation, exhibit hours, and exhibitor activities, etc.
• Create and send all exhibitor correspondence including updates and marketing efforts.
• Onsite at National Convention: act as liaison with the exhibitors, sponsors, and decorator by managing exhibit hall, sponsors engagement, and any temporary staff.
• Manage post-show evaluation summary and analysis of exhibitor feedback.
• Accompany the Director, Events & Sales and CEO on site visits for floor plan development.
• Submit RFPs to secure service contractors.
• Work with the accounting team on account receivables and manage revenue collection outreach to corporate participants with unpaid balances.

Advertising Sales and Relationship Building:

• Initiate, maintain, and grow relationships with potential and current business partners, moving them toward consistently supporting the associations\xe2\x80\x99 mission across the year in a variety of opportunities that align with their work and further their goals. This will include providing industry insights to help the association attract and retain corporate partners.
• Manage all advertising activities for SAF, including in The Forestry Source, Journal of Forestry, Forest Science, eForester, and The College Guide. This will include sending and receiving proposals and contracts, tracking creative material, interacting often with the Director of Publications, and invoicing all placements appropriately.
• Offer recommendations for the growth and improvement of our relationships with advertisers and partners based on conversations and feedback from our partners, ensuring that business development goals remain aligned with and supportive of SAF\xe2\x80\x99s strategic priorities.
• Act as the voice of our business partners, work with internal stakeholders to explore and uncover sponsor and exhibitor deliverables that will provide meaningful return and a positive experience for our partners.
• Work in coordination with the other SAF staff to track our sales and prospecting efforts, allowing for accurate revenue forecasting.
• Maintain and manage prospecting lists and update partner data as needed.

Requirements:

• Bachelor\xe2\x80\x99s degree in communications, public relations, sales, marketing, or related field.
• 1-3 years of experience in partner/client management, exhibit, sponsorship, advertising sales, or an equivalent combination of relevant experience and education/training required.
• Advanced in Windows-based applications such as MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• A team player who is personable, adaptable, and has an excellent customer service ethic.
• Experience working with sensitive data and protecting confidential information.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Self-starter comfortable with moderate supervision who is able to take initiative and accomplish tasks on time.
• Detail-oriented, proactive, self-starter, with a positive, hands-on attitude and a desire to grow and develop in the position, on the team, and within the association.
• Adept at developing and maintaining collaborative internal and external relationships.
• Working knowledge of sponsorship/exhibition management software, association management software (AMS), mass email marketing platforms, or other contact resource management (CRM) applications.
• Ability and desire to work to a budget and meet reasonable sales goals.
• Customer service skills, positive and confident phone manner.
• Exceptional time management skills and ability to multi-task and handle multiple deadlines at once.
• Desire to take ownership of projects from inception through implementation to completion, following up every step of the way.
• Ability to work both independently and contribute as a team member.
• Ability to travel occasionally to events and conferences.
• As a remote position, all candidates must have the ability to work from home comfortably with full access to internet and ability to be on video phone calls with staff and partners.

Preferred Education/Skills:

• Prior association management experience is a plus.
• Sales and marketing campaign experience a plus.
• Knowledge and passion for forests and natural resources a plus.

Travel:

• An annual short-term trip for the Society\xe2\x80\x99s convention

Benefits

The Society of American Foresters takes pride in offering outstand benefits for our employees and their families. Our benefits package includes Medical, Dental, Vision, 15 days of PTO, 13 Paid Holidays, a 3% 401(k) non-elective contribution, Short-Term Disability, Long-Term Disability, Life, and AD&D Insurance.

Salary

The salary for this position is $55,000 - $60,000 annually.

Other Duties

Please note this position description does not cover, contain, or list a fully comprehensive listing of duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee in this role. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Reasonable Accommodation

SAF will provide reasonable accommodation to the known physical or mental limitations of a qualified individual with a disability unless doing so would pose an undue hardship on the operation of the business. Telecommuting on an ad hoc basis is available following 90 days of successful employment.

EEO Statement

SAF provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, gender identification or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, SAF complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall and transfers, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

SAF expressly prohibits any form of workplace harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran status. Improper interference with the ability of SAF\xe2\x80\x99s employees to perform their job duties may result in discipline up to and including discharge.

Disclaimer

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this job. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified.

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The Society of American Foresters