Event professionals are the people who build the collective and collaborative experiences we rely on. They manage budgets, calm stakeholders, coordinate teams, solve last-minute crises, and design moments that create measurable business outcomes. And yet, in many markets these roles are paid less, on average, than other management jobs that require similar levels of responsibility.
Beneath the polished surface of the events, festivals, conferences, and corporate programs that communities, brands and organisations rely on lies a professional ecosystem marked by imbalance. Despite being numerically dominated by women, the events industry continues to reflect the systemic inequalities that pervade broader corporate structures; disparities in recognition, compensation, leadership opportunities, and wellbeing. While anecdotal evidence of gender inequity abounds, the lack of rigorous data has often obscured its scale and significance, allowing long-standing patterns to persist unchecked.
As advocates for the event management industry this blog looks at why that is, compares pay and career pathways with similar roles (project managers and marketing managers), and uses industry and government data to be clear and evidence-based about what’s happening; not to assign blame, but to help event professionals, employers, and other industry advocates be conscious of these gaps and refocus the value of event professionals.
Salary benchmarking sites and job market data give us a useful, if imperfect, snapshot. It’s hard to find a lot of extremely precise, apples-to-apples global data comparing event managers vs project managers / marketing managers in exactly parallel roles, but there is enough insight to sketch a credible picture, which shows some meaningful gaps and inconsistencies, even in similar responsibility levels.
Event professionals commonly combine what would be multiple distinct job functions in other disciplines:
This multi-disciplinary workload increases role complexity and responsibility. Yet when job families and pay bands are set, the hybrid nature of the role isn’t always fully recognised, meaning event professionals are sometimes paid at a level that reflects a narrower job description than the one they actually do.
US
UK
Australia
Important caveats:
Patterns:
Location & industry matter a lot.
Scope & seniority widen the gap.
Market recognition and specialisation.
Overall, the gap is consistent: event professionals (as a group) typically sit below project and marketing managers on average pay in several English-speaking markets.
Therefore, this signifies a lack of recognition as it can be put forward that this discrepancy persists even though many event roles involve tightly comparable, and in some cases broader remit: stakeholder management, multi-vendor contracts, complex logistics, P&L ownership and delivery under strict deadlines.
Multiple industry and academic studies point to a clear pattern: the events industry is numerically female, but leadership is disproportionately male. Because the event workforce is numerically female, the industry can suffer the same pay-penalty that research documents for other female-dominated professions; lower average pay and slower progression to top leadership roles. Cultural assumptions about who “belongs” in leadership and what leadership looks like also influence promotion and remuneration decisions.
Gap in Data = Gap in Action
It’s important to be precise: the existence of pay gaps and leadership disparities does not by itself prove discrimination. Many factors; market demand, bargaining power, skill shortages, occupational sorting, and historical job classification, interact to create outcomes. That said, the pattern (female-dominant workforce, fewer women in senior roles, lower average pay) is the same structural shape found in other sectors where gendered labour market dynamics affect pay and progression. It’s a legitimate signal for employers and industry bodies to investigate.
While gender inequality in the events industry is often discussed, there is a lack of comprehensive, quantitative data. It can be challenging to convey the urgency of addressing these disparities without comprehensive data to back it up. Without robust statistics, it’s difficult to move beyond awareness to actionable change, leaving patterns of inequity unaddressed and perpetuated. Collecting detailed, sector-wide data is essential not only to highlight the gaps but also to inform policies and initiatives that can create meaningful, measurable progress for women across all levels of the industry. A gap in data often mirrors a gap in action, and the patterns we can already see leave no doubt that change is overdue.
Taken together, the evidence points to a “majority workforce, minority leadership” paradox for events: many entry and mid-level roles are staffed by women, but men are overrepresented among senior titles and higher-paid positions. That pattern matters because it helps explain why overall average pay is depressed while leadership pay stays strong.
If you’re an event professional concerned about compensation or career trajectory, here are evidence-based strategies that can help:
For organisations and industry bodies wishing to close the gap and retain talent, steps include:
Closing: Facts First, Action Second
Event professionals do work that is complex, cross-disciplinary and often high-stakes. The evidence we have shows a persistent mismatch between the responsibilities event professionals carry and the pay and leadership representation they receive. That mismatch is not a simple single-cause problem; it’s a structural issue involving job classification, measurement challenges, and historic occupational patterns.
For event professionals, the most practical route to narrowing the gap is measuring and communicating impact, growing scarce technical and commercial skills, and using market data in salary conversations. For employers and industry bodies, the priority is to make value visible and create transparent career pathways so those who design and deliver experiences are rewarded proportionately.
At Joi, we believe the future of events depends on how well we value the people who make them possible. Because when event professionals are given the recognition, resources, and respect they deserve, the entire industry shines brighter. We can’t have meaningful experiences without meaningful change and that starts with supporting those who make them possible.
It’s time to empower and refocus the value of our event professionals — so we can all continue to experience the Joi of events.
Sources & further reading: