Director, Corporate Partnerships (56788)

About the Louisville Bats:

The Louisville Bats, Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, combine rich baseball tradition with a lively game-day experience at Slugger Field. With a focus on player development and community pride, the Bats continue to be a key part of Louisvilles sports culture. As part of Diamond Baseball Holdings (DBH), the Bats are supported by a network of clubs focused on innovation, collaboration, and long-term success. DBH provides employees with opportunities for professional growth, development, and career advancement within a supportive and team-oriented environment.

Position Overview:

The Louisville Bats are seeking a results-oriented sales professional to generate and develop new sponsorship sales revenue across multiple products including but not limited to, entitlement and naming rights, stadium signage & experiences, in-game promotions, digital, print, radio, hospitality and promotional nights. Working closely with the broader DBH Sales organization, the Director will take a hands-on approach to selling & managing Bats' sponsorship and advertising products while providing some strategic and analytical support to the broader team.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

- Serve as department liaison with National Sales & Marketing team, other DBH member clubs and MiLB as it relates to sharing ideas, best practices, and sales strategies

- Strategize on overall direction of department to include sales, service, analytics, and development

- Charged with securing and renewing clubs cornerstone partners in partnership with the GM

- Research, identify, and track sponsorship prospects locally with a view to grow regionally, and nationally, within target industries and segments

- Work closely with the DBH National Partnerships organization to leverage and optimize sales on an individual and multi-property basis

- Prospect, pitch, and close new sponsorship deals in support of individual and department revenue goals

- Build and maintain a robust list of prospective sponsorship targets

- Develop a full suite of assets and packages for sale

- Lead and direct ongoing sponsorship sales presentations with internal and external partners; develop positive relationships with prospects to execute against short and long-term strategic sponsorship sales plans

- Lead contract negotiations for new business

- Renew & upsell/expand existing client base where applicable

- Lead the activation and execution of all sponsorship deliverables pre-game, in-game and post-game

- Responsible for ensuring property/local sales is up to date and accurate in CRM

- Provide weekly reporting of sales metrics including pipeline generation, account status, revenue and quota attainment, and relevant sponsor interaction

- Ensure execution of all contracts and other documents associated with partnerships. Oversee accurate fulfillment of sponsor benefits as appropriate to their respective agreements

- Ensure the Clubs sales efforts are being communicated and supported throughout the organization

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

- Bachelor's Degree preferred

- 5-8 years in sales and business development role; ability to demonstrate consistent history of exceeding sales goals preferably within professional sports organizations

- Demonstrable experience of developing and selling fully integrated sponsorship packages utilizing a variety of assets including

- Experience developing engaging and impactful sales plans and presentations, promotional campaigns, proposals and associated contract negotiations

- Proven ability to be a leader and generate revenue in a fast-paced environment

- Ability to provide exceptional customer service to varying levels of clients

- Strong understanding of strategic analysis as it pertains to the sales process

- Ability to think outside of the box when customizing a sales proposal

- Strong internal drive and work ethic; willing to go above and beyond to deliver for the organization

- Relentless dedication to consistently building meaningful business relationships

- Excellent written and verbal communication; ability to collaborate, influence and build positive relationships within a multitude of business environments

- A creative problem solver and strategic thinker

- Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite and CRM software, preferably KORE

- Ability to work independently, meet deadlines, and efficiently lead and prioritize multiple projects at once

- Ability to attend all Louisville Bats home games and special events; minimal travel also required

- Passionate about baseball!