Director, Partnership Sales

About LOVB AustinLOVB Austin is a premier professional women's volleyball team and back-to-back champion of League One Volleyball (LOVB), playing its home matches at HEB Center in Cedar Park. Backed by Spurs Sports & Entertainment, LOVB Austin is building an independent local commercial and community presence as it heads into Season 3 (Dec 2026–Apr 2027).Position OverviewThe Director, Partnership Sales owns new corporate partnership revenue for LOVB Austin: building the prospect pipeline, crafting tailored proposals, and closing multi-asset sponsorships across jersey placements, on-court and LED signage, VIP suites, theme nights, watch parties, digital and social integrations, and in-match activations. Most of the brands you'll talk to have never bought volleyball before, so this role is as much about telling the story of our audience (a young, affluent, family-driven fan base) as it is about selling inventory.You will report directly to the VP of Growth and work hand-in-hand with the Director, Partnerships Activation, who takes each partner from signature through delivery and renewal. This is an exciting opportunity for a builder who wants to set the commercial foundation for a brand new professional sports team in one of the country's most exciting sports markets!Key ResponsibilitiesBusiness Development & PipelineBuild and manage a pipeline of prospective partners across local, regional, and national brands, with a focus on Austin-area companies whose customers overlap with the LOVB Austin fan baseResearch prospects' marketing priorities, current sponsorships, and campaigns to lead with a relevant, audience-first pitchSource opportunities through outbound outreach, personal network, agencies, and the broader Austin business communityOwn a new-revenue target for Season 3 and beyond, maintaining a CRM or pipeline tracker and reporting weekly to the VP of Growth on pacing, forecast, and win/loss insightsProposals & Deal ExecutionDevelop tailored pitch decks, one-pagers, and proposals that curate the right assets for each brand's marketing goals rather than presenting the full inventoryStructure tiered offerings with multiple entry points so every qualified prospect has a path to "yes," while protecting the value of marquee assets like front-of-jerseyMaintain and refine the rate card, packaging logic, and pricing strategy in partnership with the VP of GrowthNegotiate and close partnership agreements, working with legal to finalize termsConfirm category eligibility up front, operate within ACOM (Annual Commercial Opportunities Memo) guidelines, and build league office approval into every deal timelineTrack production and league deadlines, and coordinate with our home venue(s) on venue-dependent inventoryPartner Handoff & Team BuildingPartner with the Director, Partnerships Activation on creative activation concepts during the sales process and deliver clean handoffs after signature, including contracted deliverables, partner goals, and key contactsCollaborate with Activation on renewals and upsells where sales relationships add valueEstablish sales playbooks, collateral templates, and outreach sequences as the first person in this functionPartner with the VP of Growth on org design and hiring as the partnerships team scalesQualifications6+ years in sponsorship sales, partnership development, or media/brand partnership sales, ideally in sports, live events, or entertainmentProven track record closing six-figure, multi-asset partnership deals and consistently meeting or exceeding revenue targetsStrong storytelling and presentation skills; able to sell an audience and an emerging property to marketers who are new to the sportExperience building pipeline from scratch in a lean, fast-moving organizationFamiliarity with sports sponsorship conventions (FOJ/uniform placement, signage, hospitality, theme nights, category exclusivity) strongly preferredExisting relationships within the Austin or Texas business community a plusExcellent negotiation, written, and verbal communication skillsComfortable working some evenings and weekends for home matches and client hosting during the season (Dec–Apr)LOVB Austin is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Nothing contained in this job description is intended to be a contract of employment, nor does any information contained herein represent a guarantee of employment for a specific duration. Employment with LOVB Austin is on an at-will basis. This means that if hired, either the employee or LOVB Austin may terminate the employment relationship at any time, with or without cause, and with or without notice.The pay range for this role is:110,000 - 115,000 USD per year (LOVB Pro Austin)