Director, Talent Strategy

Excel Sports Management is an industry-leading sports agency representing top-tier talent, blue-chip brands and marquee properties. Our success is rooted in our people, our high character reputation and our commitment to creating a diverse and welcoming workplace. We focus on team chemistry, collaboration, strong relationships, valuable networks, and ambitious ideas to deliver innovative solutions that keep our clients and agency ahead of the curve.

Excel Sports Management is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE).

Position Summary: Excel Sports Management is seeking a Director of Talent Strategy help brands navigate the talent landscape and build impactful partnerships across sports, entertainment, music and culture. This role sits within our Talent & Creator Marketing division, with a primary focus on traditional talent including professional athletes, celebrities, musicians and other prominent personalities. 

You will lead strategic talent workstreams across ongoing agency-of-record (AOR) relationships and standalone client projects, from defining the role of talent in a brand’s broader marketing strategy to identifying opportunities, evaluating talent, developing recommendations and negotiating partnerships. We’re looking for someone who brings strong strategic instincts, deep knowledge of the talent marketplace and the confidence to advise clients while managing multiple complex priorities. Experience working on Olympic partnerships is strongly preferred.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

Talent Strategy & Advisory

• Develop talent strategies aligned to clients’ business objectives, target audiences, brand positioning and broader sports, entertainment and cultural marketing priorities.
• Identify and evaluate athletes, celebrities, musicians and other talent based on brand fit, audience relevance, cultural impact, commercial value and potential risks.
• Build strategic frameworks, talent shortlists, partnership recommendations and compelling client presentations that clearly articulate the rationale and opportunity.
• Advise clients on how talent can support long-term brand platforms, sponsorships, experiential programs, content, ambassador relationships and other marketing initiatives.
• Stay ahead of emerging talent, cultural trends, representation dynamics and the evolving economics of talent partnerships.

Talent Procurement & Partnerships

• Lead talent outreach, availability and interest checks, fee assessments, offer development and negotiations with agents, managers and other representatives.
• Structure and manage deals across appearances, endorsements, ambassador programs, content, usage, exclusivity and other partnership rights.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships across agencies, management companies, talent representatives and the broader sports and entertainment industry.

Client & Project Leadership

• Own day-to-day talent strategy workstreams across multiple AOR accounts and project-based engagements, balancing ongoing advisory needs with time-sensitive opportunities.
• Serve as a confident client-facing lead, presenting recommendations, navigating feedback and proactively identifying opportunities to add value.
• Collaborate with account leadership, sponsorship strategy, creative, social and experiential teams to ensure talent recommendations connect to broader client priorities.
• Manage projects from strategic brief through recommendation, procurement and handoff to activation teams, maintaining clear timelines, budgets and communication.
• Contribute to new business pitches, scopes of work and proposals, helping articulate Excel’s talent expertise and approach.

Collaboration & Team Contribution

• Support the continued growth and scalability of the Talent & Creator Marketing division by helping refine internal processes, workflows and resources to drive operational efficiency and consistency across client engagements.
• Provide guidance and thoughtful feedback to junior team members as needed, while remaining hands-on in the work.
• Help strengthen talent research, evaluation tools, negotiation practices and processes across the division.
• Partner with senior leadership to identify and pursue new business opportunities, contributing strategic thinking, talent insights and recommendations to pitches and proposals.
• Support the development of new business materials that showcase the divisions expertise and help drive growth across existing and perspective clients.

Minimum Qualifications 

• 7+ years of relevant experience in talent strategy, talent partnerships, endorsements, sports or entertainment marketing, or talent representation
• Experience running talent strategy and brokering deals for Olympic athletes and partners is ideal
• Agency experience strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience developing talent recommendations and advising brands beyond individual campaign execution.
• Strong knowledge of professional sports, entertainment and music talent, including representation structures, deal economics and partnership considerations.
• Hands-on experience negotiating talent deals and evaluating fees, deliverables, usage rights and exclusivity.
• Ability to translate broad client business challenges into sharp strategic recommendations and polished, persuasive presentations.
• Established relationships with talent agents, managers and industry partners, or a proven ability to build them.
• Excellent client management, communication and project leadership skills, with the judgment to manage multiple accounts and priorities independently.
• Collaborative, resourceful and detail-oriented, with strong commercial instincts and a willingness to roll up your sleeves.
• Experience supporting new business development and developing talent strategies for brands across different industries.

The pay range for this position is: $140,000 - $155,000 per year. This position is also eligible for benefits and discretionary bonus.

Please note that the foregoing compensation information is a good-faith assessment associated with this position only and is provided pursuant to the New York City Salary Transparency Law. 

Ultimately, the salary may vary based upon, but not limited to, relevant experience, time in role, business sector, and geographic location, among other criteria.

This position is not eligible for sponsorship.

Excel Sports Management provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.  This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, leaves of absence, compensation and training.