Los Angeles Lakers
Senior Director, Business Solutions
Job Title: Senior Director, Business Solutions
Department: Global Partnerships
Reports to: Head of Global Partnerships
Position Summary: The Senior Director, Business Solutions will be an integral member of the LA Lakers Global Partnership team responsible for leading the Business Solutions vertical. This role maximizes a combination of creative, strategic, and analytical skills to support our Partnership Sales and Activation team to drive short & long-term partnership revenue success.
Responsibilities to include but not limited to: Overseeing ideation and storytelling of potential and existing partnerships, building/leading CRM & sales management system, leading all elements of audience research and ROI metrics (broadcast performance, social/digital impact, brand sentiment reporting, etc.) and assisting with prospect lead list development rooted in bespoke brand research, industry trends and emerging categories.
Essential Functions (Duties & Responsibilities**):
- Lead the Business Solutions team overseeing the development of integrated partnership strategies, commercial packaging, pricing, and proposal development that drive new business.
- Manage and develop the Business Solutions team, establishing priorities, mentoring staff, optimizing workflows, and ensuring high-quality deliverables across all sales initiatives.
- Partner closely with Partnership Sales leadership to develop customized, client-centric solutions that align partner marketing objectives with Lakers assets, intellectual property, and fan engagement opportunities.
- Develop the department's commercial strategy, including sponsorship packaging, inventory optimization, asset valuation, pricing recommendations, and go-to-market approaches for premium opportunities
- Assist the Department in navigating potential current partner considerations/conflicts and recommend potential deal structures and assets based on deep understanding current contracts and assets.
- Drive innovation across the Global Partnerships department by identifying new sponsorship categories, developing scalable sales tools and best practices, and fostering collaboration across Sales, Activation, Marketing, Finance, Legal, Operations, Game Presentation, Community Relations, etc.
- Support the Partnership Activation Team in partner growth and retention by identifying metrics to measure client success, deliver on KPI’s, and maximize client investment.
- Manage CRM system (e.g., Salesforce/KORE) and build data sets for reporting and analytics in partnership with the BI Team
- Manage and select third party partners and research vendors to deliver data for prospecting materials, sales presentations, partner proposals, and recaps across:
- Broadcast Valuation Analysis and Impact Reporting
- Consumer Market Research
- Sponsor Impact Measurement
- Social Media Valuation
- Sales/Prospecting
- Support Global Partnership leadership in department/revenue management & tracking, reports to executive leadership, etc.
- Assist Global Partnership leadership in business calendar/revenue forecasting.
**Responsibilities subject to change based on organizational needs and direction from management.
Education: Bachelor’s Degree required, preferably in Marketing, Advertising, or related field
Previous Experience:
- A minimum of nine (9) years of experience in business development, strategic planning or partnership management, preferably within the sports or entertainment industry
- A minimum of two (2) years managing a team
Technology Capabilities: CRM (e.g., Salesforce/KORE), Microsoft Office, Adobe Suite, Tableau
Knowledge, skills, and abilities:
- Results oriented, self-starter with strong work ethic and ability to handle multiple projects and deadlines in a fast-paced environment
- Broad knowledge of partnership activation, sponsorship sales, and sports/entertainment marketing partnerships standard methodologies
- History of managing and tracking inventory, budget, and developing category approach strategy.
- Team player with a passion for problem-solving and willingness to learn
- Proven ability to foster collaboration across departments and build consensus around strategies and initiatives
- Strategic and critical thinker with outstanding verbal and written communication skills
- Experience in receiving brand objectives/KPIs and developing compelling and impactful integrated marketing partnership presentations
- Working knowledge of third-party research and data sources to create data-backed sales narratives
- Familiarity with the Los Angeles Lakers and/or sports industry preferred
- Possess excellent organizational, interpersonal, and time management skills
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 Area for select Lakers 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 game/client events
The pay range for this role is $155,000 - $170,000 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.
We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, gender identity, marital or veteran status, or any other protected class.
