About the role
Working with a leading sports business in Manchester, we are looking to recruit a Sponsorship Strategy Manager with experience across the following:
Key Responsibilities
* Strategy Development: Define and implement the overarching sponsorship strategy to maximise brand exposure, engagement, and revenue, ensuring alignment with the organisation's goals and values.
* Opportunity Identification: Conduct market research and data analysis to identify and target potential new sponsors and partnership opportunities, staying updated on industry trends and competitor activities.
* Proposal and Negotiation: Develop compelling, tailored sponsorship proposals and presentations. Lead contract negotiations to secure high-value, mutually beneficial agreements and manage all legal and financial documentation.
* Relationship Management: Build, nurture, and maintain strong, long-term relationships with existing sponsors and partners, acting as the main point of contact and ensuring their needs and contracted benefits are met (e.g., branding, event activation, ticketing).
* Cross-Functional Leadership: Collaborate with internal teams (marketing, events, finance, legal, digital) to ensure seamless execution of sponsorship programs and integrated marketing campaigns, leading cross-departmental stakeholders without necessarily being their direct manager.
* Activation and Fulfilment: Coordinate the implementation and activation of all sponsor rights and benefits, ensuring high-quality delivery of all agreed-upon components.
* Performance Analysis and Reporting: Monitor, track, analyse, and report on the performance of sponsorship activities against key performance indicators (KPIs) and budgets. Use data-driven insights to provide recommendations for improvement and support renewal discussions.
* Budget Management: Manage sponsorship revenue and expenditure budgets, ensuring efficient use of resources and maximizing ROI.
Required Skills and Qualifications
* Experience: A minimum of 4–6 years of professional experience in sponsorship, partnership management, sales, or a related marketing field, with a proven track record of securing and managing significant sponsorships and delivering measurable results.
* Education: A bachelor's degree (or equivalent experience) in Marketing, Business, Communications, or a related field is often required; a postgraduate degree can be an advantage.
* Strong negotiation, presentation, and communication skills (verbal and written).
* Excellent organisational, project management, and time management abilities, with high attention to detail.
* Strategic and creative thinking to identify opportunities and develop innovative solutions.
* Strong commercial awareness and business acumen.
* Analytical skills and proficiency in using data to drive decisions and measure ROI.
* Relationship-building and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence and collaborate effectively across teams.
* Proficiency with CRM software (e.g., Salesforce) and Microsoft Office Suite.
Seniority level
Mid‑Senior level
Employment type
Full‑time
Job function
Sports Teams and Clubs
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