National Basketball Association

Senior Manager, Partner Activation

National Basketball Association$90K — $105K *
Business Services
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's Degree in Marketing, Sports Management, or Business Administration preferred
  • Minimum of 5 years full-time work experience, ideally with sports team activation
  • Leadership and people management experience preferred
  • Strong interpersonal and solution-oriented skills
  • Proficiency with CRM, Microsoft Office, and Adobe Suite

Responsibilities

  • Create and manage strategic activation plans for partners
  • Onboard new partners and build relationships with the Lakers brand
  • Coordinate partner contractual obligations including media and promotions
  • Prepare detailed recap presentations showcasing asset performance
  • Utilize market research to inform activation strategies
  • Identify innovative concepts to maximize sponsor ROI
  • Maintain daily relationships with agencies and partners to execute programs

Benefits

  • Opportunity for professional growth within a dynamic sports organization
  • Hands-on role with high visibility due to partnership complexity
  • Collaborative work environment promoting cross-departmental synergy
  • Involvement in major partnership accounts for an iconic brand
  • Flexibility in working conditions with a mix of office and arena responsibilities
Full Job Description
Job Title: SeniorManager, Partner Activation

Department: Global Partnerships

Reports to: SeniorDirector, Partner Activation

Position Summary: The Sr. Manager, Partner Activation is very hands-on, responsible for creating and managing comprehensive and strategic activation plans, measuring and data-storytelling the impact of asset performance, building meaningful relationships internally and with partners and generating revenue for the Global Partnerships team through growth on current business. This position will be responsible for managing several of the Lakers most complex accounts such as jersey patch, facility naming rights and other prevalent category partnerships.

This role drives departmental communication, operational efficiency and ultimately acts as a resource to help achieve department goals.

Essential Functions (Duties & Responsibilities**):

  • Own the life-cycle of the partnership:
    • Onboard new partners by getting them familiar with the Lakers brand, NBA guidelines and begin relationship building
    • Prepare contract breakdowns for each partner to provide details of assets and material deadlines as part of a proactive season planning process
    • Coordinate the fulfillment of partner contractual obligations including media, signage, print, digital, social media, in and out of arena promotions, emerging demographic marketing, community relations, tickets and hospitality
    • Prepare and develop thorough recap presentations for partners that showcase asset performance and strengths and opportunities that can be applied to future execution
  • Utilize market research/analytics to evaluate best practices, category/sponsor trends and the competitive landscape to contribute to best-in-class activation plans
  • Identify new solution-based concepts/ideas for potential and existing sponsors to maximize ROI
  • Research and identify vendors to amplify activations and deliver innovative opportunities
  • Maintain sponsorship rate card and show competency in ability to execute strategic, business minded asset pivots, as needed
  • Capable of pulling and interpreting performance metrics for partner campaigns
  • Maintain solid daily relationships with external agencies and partner contacts while executing all partner programs and promotions from conception through completion
    • Mindset should be relational vs transactional
  • Support the Sr. Director, Partner Activation in the creation of standardized processes for servicing agreements and fostering cross-departmental collaboration throughout the organization
  • Responsible for leading on partner renewal process and generating revenue for the organization
  • Ability to ideate unique and creative asset opportunities for partners that ladder up to their objectives
  • Be mindful of partnership revenue goals and find ways to contribute by being an expert on current book of business
  • Consideration for people management for a team of 2-5 emerging activation team members, candidate experience dependent


**Responsibilities subject to change based on organizational needs and direction from management.

Education (required/ preferred): Bachelor's Degree (Marketing, Sports management or Business Administration preferred)

Previous experience:

  • A minimum of five (5) years' full-time work experience (sports team activation experience preferred)
  • People management/leadership experience preferred

Technology Capabilities: CRM, Microsoft Office, Adobe Suite

Knowledge, skills, abilities:

  • Strong attention to detail and ability to drive operational efficiencies
  • Strong Interpersonal skills
  • Demonstrates solution-oriented mindset that leads to compromise during conflict
  • Natural mentorship skills
  • Demonstrated track record of cross-functional work and breaking down barriers of communication
  • Proven ability to meet deadlines and goals
  • Proven ability to navigate office politics and create internal buy-in around new ideas
  • Proven track record of prioritization, organization, and the ability to multi-task


Physical Demands: Ability to lift up to 25 lbs. and walk significant distances in the arena on game day

Location: El Segundo (offices M-F), downtown Los Angeles (Crypto.com Arena for select Laker home games), and other off-site client meetings

Travel: Up to 5% of the time for league meetings, conferences, and pre-season games

Hours: Regular office hours M-F plus nights & weekends for games/client events

The pay range for this role is $90,000 - $105,000 annually. Actual compensation packages are based on several factors that are unique to each candidate, including but not limited to skill set, depth of experience and certifications. In addition to those factors, we consider the relative pay of our current employees in similar positions when making a final offer.

About National Basketball Association

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a men's professional basketball league in North America, composed of 30 teams. It is one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada, and is widely considered to be the premier men's professional basketball league in the world. The NBA was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in New York City. The league's revenue comes from ticket sales, merchandise, sponsorships, and media rights. The NBA has a global following and is broadcast in over 215 countries and territories.
Learn more about National Basketball Association
Size
1,100 employees
Industry
Founded
1946

Similar Jobs

More Jobs at National Basketball Association

More Business Services Jobs

Find similar Senior Manager, Partner Activation jobs: