Manager, Partnership Success

OVERVIEW

The Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) is an MLS soccer club serving the greater Los Angeles area. LAFC is dedicated to building a world-class soccer club that represents the diversity of Los Angeles and is committed to delivering an unrivaled experience for fans. LAFC’s ownership group is comprised of local leaders and innovators of industry with intellectual capital, financial prowess, operations expertise, and success in the fields of entertainment, sports, technology, and media. LAFC is invested in the world’s game and Los Angeles, constructing, and developing the 22,000 seat BMO Stadium and a top-flight training center on the campus of Cal-State Los Angeles.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Manager, Partnership Success, is responsible for relationship building, execution and overall management of the teams’ partnerships and is expected to drive revenue through upsells and renewals of partnerships. The person will oversee a portion of LAFC’s partnership portfolio (estimated $3M - $6M revenue), all contractually obligated income (COI) of assigned accounts, and the sole execution of assigned account assets. Thus, the ideal candidate is an industry expert within their book of business, who is solution-oriented, has a partner-first mentality, and is results oriented with a passion for driving revenue to meet departmental and team goals. As a result, this role’s compensation is composed of a base salary with additional competitive commission opportunities. 

LAFC is currently operating on a hybrid work model with a minimum of 2 in-office days per week. Please note that this may vary by role, and your scheduled in-office days are up to the discretion of your supervisor. 

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Serve as the primary liaison between LAFC and assigned partner accounts to ensure and maintain positive relationships between both parties.
• Manage the execution of a partner’s contractual obligations, including media assets, promotions, in-stadium activation, hospitality, experiential and community programs.
• Proactively develop and seek to strengthen a deep understanding of each partner’s business and industry to better align with the goals and objectives for the partnership.
• Lead the development and management of a strategic plan for all partners renewals and upsell opportunities each year.
• Collaborate with our business development team to manage key category development, platform ideation for new and existing partners, design high level vision decks, and interactive pitch meetings.
• Partner with the marketing team to leverage existing programming by creating and implementing innovative platforms and assets that will provide incremental revenue opportunities for LAFC.
• Develop and track revenue retention and organic growth pipeline along with providing weekly pipeline updates to senior leadership.
• Generate and present mid-year and end-year partnership recaps to exhibit ROI.
• Maintain accurate reporting processes, partnership trackers and partner database management for all partner assets.
• Create case studies of highly successful activations for reference internally and externally
• Provide weekly reports indicating status of all current partner and department administrative action items.
• Other duties as assigned by Supervisor / Management.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, communications, sports management, or a related field from an accredited college or university.
• Minimum of six years of experience in partnership marketing, partnership activation, account management, or client services, preferably with a professional sports organization, league, agency, entertainment property, or major brand.
• Demonstrated success managing high-value, complex corporate partnerships and delivering against partner objectives, contractual obligations, and organizational revenue goals.
• Proven track record of retaining and renewing corporate partners, identifying incremental opportunities, and generating upsell revenue from existing accounts.
• Strong commercial acumen and the ability to develop account strategies, manage revenue pipelines, forecast opportunities, and lead renewal presentations and negotiations.
• Executive presence and the ability to build trusted relationships and communicate effectively with senior-level partner stakeholders, agencies, vendors, and internal leadership.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams and influence stakeholders across marketing, content, digital, communications, community relations, events, hospitality, operations, finance, and legal.
• Strategic and creative problem-solver with the ability to anticipate partner needs, navigate complex challenges, and develop solutions that deliver value for both the partner and LAFC.
• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with the ability to manage multiple high-priority accounts, projects, deadlines, and live events in a fast-paced environment.
• Exceptional verbal, written, presentation, negotiation, and proofreading skills.
• Self-motivated and results-oriented, with the ability to exercise sound judgment, take ownership, and operate effectively with limited supervision.
• Proficiency in using Salesforce. Experience with KORE Software is strongly preferred.
• Ability to manage sensitive partner, contractual, financial, and organizational information with discretion and confidentiality.
• Fluency in Spanish is a plus, but not required.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including nights, weekends, holidays, and LAFC home matches and events, as required.

SALARY RANGE 

At LAFC, we carefully consider a wide range of factors to determine a fair and equitable compensation package. The final offer amount will consider a wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including, but not limited to skill sets; relevant experience and training. Pursuant to state and local pay disclosure guidelines, the base compensation for this role is $72,000 per year. This position is an exempt position with additional compensation available through competitive commission opportunities.

HIRING PRACTICES

The preceding job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees assigned to this job.  

LAFC strongly supports equal employment opportunity for all applicants regardless of race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, pregnancy, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, marital status, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, sexual orientation, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law. 

Applicants for employment in the U.S. must possess work authorization, which does not require sponsorship by the employer for a visa.