Festival & Events Manager

Salary: €34,212 per year

Location: Crosses Green House, Cork (in person)

Job type: 32 hours per week, contract of indefinite duration (subject to continued funding)

Closing date: Midnight, Sunday 18 October 2026

Meitheal Mara, Cork's community boatyard and maritime training centre, invites applications for the position of Festival & Events Manager for the annual Ocean to City – An Rás Mór and Cork Harbour Festival. The position is for the equivalent of 32 hours per week, with an annual salary of €34,212. Flexibility will be required in the annual distribution of hours, with a higher proportion worked during the periods leading up to events.

The role is based at Meitheal Mara's offices at Crosses Green House, Cork and is offered on a contract of indefinite duration, subject to continued funding.

Cork Harbour Festival

Cork Harbour Festival is the largest annual event in Cork Harbour offering a 10-day celebration of Ireland's maritime culture. The festival features over 100 different events, organised by 50+ cultural, community, sporting and maritime event partners across Cork City and County.

The festival is coordinated and promoted by Meitheal Mara, attracting approximately 30,000 visitors annually. Funded by Fáilte Ireland, Cork City Council, Cork County Council and the Port of Cork, the festival provides an important platform for Meitheal Mara's wider work: celebrating Ireland's maritime culture, connecting people with our waterways and creating opportunities to participate on the water.

Ocean to City – An Rás Mór

Ocean to City – An Rás Mór is the flagship event of Cork Harbour Festival and the largest event directly organised and delivered by Meitheal Mara. It is Ireland's largest multi-craft rowing and paddling race, attracting 600+ participants annually – of which a third are international.

The Festival & Events Manager will have overall responsibility for the planning and delivery of the Ocean to City race, from initial planning, stakeholder engagement and participant promotion through to event delivery, evaluation and reporting.

The Festival & Events Manager

The successful candidate will coordinate all aspects of Ocean to City – An Rás Mór, working closely with Meitheal Mara staff, volunteers, participants, partners, sponsors, suppliers, agencies, funders and other stakeholders to ensure the successful delivery of a safe, inclusive and well-managed event.

The role also oversees Meitheal Mara's coordination of Cork Harbour Festival, with overall responsibility for the successful delivery of the programme. The Festival Manager will support and line-manage the Marketing, PR & Programme Coordinator, who will focus on festival programming, event partner liaison, marketing and communications.

The role will also coordinate and deliver Meitheal Mara's Dragon Boat Challenge corporate fundraiser, held at regular times throughout the year.

The successful candidate will have strong event management experience coupled with experience in managing and coordinating a mixed team of staff and volunteers in a community setting.

Main duties:

• Work with the Ocean to City Director, the Race Operations Task Group (Volunteer Team Leaders), the Operations Manager of Meitheal Mara and other staff members to ensure the delivery, operation and sustainability of Ocean to City and Cork Harbour Festival
• Maintain and develop relationships with existing funders
• Work collaboratively with existing event partners to promote and manage the event; identify new partners and build relationships
• Provide line management to all Events Office staff
• Budget management, assist with forecasting and ensure that sponsorship, income and expenditure falls within targets
• Monitor and analyse event performance and effectiveness
• Prepare post-event reports for programme funders and the Meitheal Mara Board
• Provide assistance with other Meitheal Mara activities as required

The ideal candidate will have:

• Significant experience working in event management, ideally in the cultural, community and voluntary sector
• Relevant qualifications
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
• Excellent organisational and prioritisation skills
• Strong IT and social media skills
• Experience in marketing and PR
• Ability to work well under pressure, multi-task and meet deadlines
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to deal calmly and effectively with the unexpected
• Ability to work well both independently and in a team environment
• Ability and flexibility to work overtime and alternate shifts as job needs require
• Experience of budget management and meeting income and expenditure targets
• Experience of meeting funder requirements and preparing funder reports
• Experience or understanding of maritime and/or sporting events and activities would be an advantage
• Hands-on team leadership skills with line management experience
• A strong commitment to the community development ethos of Meitheal Mara

Benefits

• Bike to work scheme

Applications

Applications enclosing a maximum two-page CV with a cover letter highlighting relevant experience for this position may be sent to: Jan Harte at jan@janharteassc.ie

Closing date for applications: Midnight on Sunday 18 October 2026

Interviews for those successfully shortlisted will be held in the week 26-30 October. The ideal start date is mid-November 2026.