Program Manager, Events and Activations

Job description

It's fun to work in a company where people truly believe in what they are doing. At Dutch Bros Coffee, we are more than just a coffee company. We are a fun-loving, mind-blowing company that makes a difference one cup at a time. Position Overview The Program Manager, Events & Activations is the operational engine behind Dutch Bros' employee experience events and field marketing activations. This role owns the program management backbone for A Better World (ABW) — the company's flagship multi-day leadership event — partnering with the Internal Brand team and key workstream owners to build the master timeline, track progress , surface risk early, and keep hundreds of moving parts aligned to milestones. Beyond ABW, this person builds and runs the operating rhythm for field-facing culture events and marketing activations, ensuring intake, scheduling, vendor coordination, and on-site execution stay s clear and on track. Success requires rigorous critical-path planning, comfort with live event execution under pressure, and the judgment to flex process to the size and stakes of each event. This person carries strong executive presence, comfortable presenting status, risk, and tradeoffs directly to senior leaders and representing the Employee Experience function in cross-functional forums. This is a high-impact role for someone who thrives in ambiguity, builds structure where none exists, and is energized by making great events land on time and on budget. Key Result Areas A Better World (ABW) Program Management Serve as the program management partner to the Employee Experience lead who owns ABW, providing the planning structure, tracking, and cross-functional coordination that keeps the event on schedule. Build and maintain the master workback schedule, critical path, and dependency map across creative, content, production, venue, AV, talent, travel, and merchandise workstreams. Run the operating cadence for ABW—planning meetings, status reviews, decision logs, and risk registers—keeping every workstream owner accountable to agreed milestones. Surface risks, dependencies, and bottlenecks early and escalate them with recommended solutions so the event owner can make fast, informed decisions. Coordinate Creative Studio and partner-team contributions into ABW, ensuring briefs, deadlines, review checkpoints, and deliverables are clear on both sides. Track ABW spend against forecast in partnership with the event owner, maintaining visibility into commitments, invoices, and budget health. Facilitate post-event analysis—capturing attendee feedback, cost performance, and process learnings—and translate findings into an improved plan for the following year. Codify ABW planning into a repeatable program management playbook that can scale to regional and new-market culture events. Cross-Department Program Management Serve as the central program management function for events and activations across the Field Market i ng and Employee Experience teams, maintaining a single view of all active activations , owners, timelines, and risks. Build and manage a unified intake and prioritization process so incoming requests are scoped, sequenced, and staffed against real capacity. Identify tiering structure for events to enable more turnkey, less bespoke, execution Apply the right level of project management rigor to each initiative—structured critical-path planning where deadlines are fixed and stakes are high, lighter iterative cadences where creative work needs room to develop. Maintain a portfolio dashboard that gives the Sr. Director and leadership real-time visibility into project status, capacity, risk, and blockers. Identify dependencies and conflicts between the two teams early and drive resolution before they impact delivery. Establish and continuously improve the standards, templates, and rhythms that allow both teams to operate consistently as they scale. Executive Partnership & Event Preparation Act as a strategic thought partner to the team leader, helping prioritize workstreams and align execution to department and company goals. Prepare executive-ready updates, dashboards, decks, and briefing materials that clearly communicate progress, risk, and decisions needed. Represent the department in cross-functional meetings and partner forums, speaking to status and tradeoffs with authority on the team leader’s behalf. Anticipate roadblocks and dependencies, flag them early, and bring recommended solutions rather than open problems. Shape high-impact leadership meetings by coordinating agendas, pre-work, and post-meeting follow-through. Planning, Budget & Continuous Improvement for Employee Experience and Consumer-Facing Activations M anage the annual operating calendar, including budget planning cycles, key deliverables, and milestone tracking across both teams. Monitor department budgets and ensure spend aligns with strategic priorities. Conduct research, benchmarking, and analysis to inform decisions on process, tooling, staffing models, and program design. Evaluate and refine internal systems and workflows to reduce friction and increase the team's focus on high-value work. Serve as a point of connection between the department and partner marketing teams, streamlining shared processes and handoffs. Keep a pulse on employee feedback loops and make recommendations to optimize or modify event logistics and content, as necessary Skills Executive Presence — Commands credibility with senior leaders. Communicates status, risk, and tradeoffs with clarity and confidence, and can represent the department in rooms where decisions get made. Adaptive Project Management — Fluent in multiple methodologies and knows when to apply which . Brings hard structure to live event execution and lighter, iterative rhythms to creative development. Large-Scale Event Program Management — Builds and manages critical path , dependencies, and timelines for complex multi-day events with many contributing teams and owners. Creative Workflow Fluency — Understands how creative work actually gets made . Builds process that protects the work instead of slowing it down. Cross-Functional Orchestration — Connects two departments and multiple external partners, aligning intake, handoffs, and delivery without friction. Prioritization & Capacity Management — Sees where resources are strained before it becomes a problem and helps leadership make clear-eyed calls on what gets done, deferred, or dropped. Risk Anticipation & Problem Solving — Anticipates roadblocks, escalates early with options attached, and solves problems in real time under pressure. Clear Communication & Documentation — Produces clean, executive-ready documentation—workback schedules, dashboards, briefs, and updates that leaders can act on immediately . Budget & Resource Tracking — Maintains visibility into program spend and vendor commitments, and ensures resources stay aligned to strategic priorities. Emotional Intelligence & Adaptability — Builds trust across creative and operational partners, handles sensitive information with care, and stays steady through change and ambiguity. Job Qualifications REQUIRED Bachelor's degree in a relevant field or equivalent experience 6+ years of experience in program or project management, preferably spanning creative production, brand marketing, event production, or agency environments Demonstrated experience program-managing a large-scale, multi-day live event or comparable high-visibility initiative—building workback schedules, tracking cross-functional workstreams, and managing risk through execution Experience managing creative workflows and production pipelines (design, video, campaign development) with competing intake and shifting priorities Fluency in more than one project management methodology and the judgment to flex between them; able to right-size process to the work rather than impose a single system Strong executive presence, including experience presenting to and building materials for senior leaders, and comfort representing a department in cross-functional settings Proven ability to lead cross-functional initiatives across multiple stakeholders, departments, and competing priorities High level of maturity, discretion, and professional judgment Advanced proficiency in project and portfolio management tools (Asana, Monday, Smartsheet, Wrike, or equivalent) and MS Office, especially Excel and PowerPoint as well as AI automation. PREFERRED Dutch Bros field experience, preferably leadership experience of Shop Manager or above Experience working closely with senior executives or leadership teams Project management certification (PMP, CAPM, PMI-ACP, CSM, or equivalent) Background in event production, field marketing events or a live production environment Working familiarity with event production operations—AV, venue coordination, vendor contracts, and speaker logistics —sufficient to plan, sequence, and pressure-test timelines accurately Experience tracking program-level budgets and coordinating vendor deliverables Experience supporting a team through rapid growth or scaling Familiarity with resource and capacity planning models for creative teams Location Requirement: This role is located in Tempe, AZ. This position is required to be in office 4 days per week (Mon-Thurs); Fridays are optional remote work days . Ability to travel for ABW and other field-facing culture events, including extended on-site hours during event windows. Physical Requirements In-Office Environment: Must be able to work in a busy, crowded, and loud office with frequent distractions and interruptions Must be able to collaborate in-person with occasional impromptu in-person meetings Office Conditions: Adaptability to typical office conditions, which may include exposure to air conditioning, heating, artificial lighting, and varying noise levels Mobility : Ability to sit, stand, reach, twist, stretch, and work at a desk for long stretches . Must be able to occasionally move or lift office items up to 25 pounds Event Environment: This role includes on-site event execution, which may require extended periods of standing and walking, long or irregular hours, and travel during event windows Hearing Requirements: Hearing must be sufficient or correctable to ensure clear understanding of spoken information, including participating in virtual meetings and phone calls. Use of hearing aids or other assistive devices is acceptable if needed. Reading and Writing Proficiency: Ability to read and write in English is essential for processing documents, drafting reports, and following up on necessary actions. Proficiency in written communication is required to handle job-related tasks effectively. Vision Requirements: Vision must be adequate or correctable to perform essential job duties, such as reading documents on a computer screen and using other visual tools. Use of corrective lenses or other measures to meet visual requirements is expected if needed. Technology Proficiency: Must be proficient in operating a computer and other office productivity tools such as printers, scanners, and collaboration software. Effective Communication: Must possess strong verbal and written communication skills to interact effectively with team members, clients, and other stakeholders via email, video conferencing, and other in office communication tools. Compensation: DOE If you like wild growth and working in a unique and fun environment, surrounded by positive community, you'll enjoy your career with us!