Business Director, Sponsorship & Consultancy (6-month FTC)

This is a 6‑month Fixed Term Contract role. We are looking for a Business Director to join the MKTG team for 6‑month Fixed Term Contract to work on delivering and implementing some of the most exciting collaborations in Sport and Entertainment.

As a Business Director, your role is to lead and be accountable for client teams and provide senior level engagement, recommendations and resources to ensure client needs are met. You will support the SVP in implementing functional and departmental client and business plans as well as overall departmental strategies to drive success and end results for the Sponsorship & Consulting teams. You are viewed as a member of the Extended Management Team and hold senior level relationships with key decision makers within and outside of the MKTG Sports & Entertainment business. This role will report to the SVP, Sponsorship + Consultancy and is based in London.

We are hiring for an experienced Business Director to lead the client consultancy for two global brands, within football and Formula 1. This individual will oversee the team, provide strategic expertise and high‑profile client consultancy of a key UEFA partner across men & women’s properties, as well as a long‑standing partner within the motorsport space. As a senior lead within the agency, the Business Director will build strong relationships with client stakeholders, developing a deep understanding of their business goals and acting as a trusted advisor on partnership strategy and optimisation opportunities. The Business Director is expected to shape innovative partnership plans that deliver against objectives, connect with audiences and solve wider marketing challenges. Working closely with teams across the agency, they also help identify opportunities to introduce additional services that create measurable value for clients.

From a commercial perspective, the role demands a strong grasp of budgeting, profitability and commercial strategy. Business Directors are comfortable managing conversations around sponsorship investments, agency scopes and fee structures, while supporting senior leadership to ensure efficient resourcing and alignment across accounts. Beyond client work, the Business Director will contribute to wider agency initiatives, including supporting new business opportunities, pitch development and broader cultural and strategic projects.

• Own client relationships at a senior and strategic level, above day‑to‑day contacts with Client Directors.
• Act as a senior level lead partner to clients.
• Anticipate and proactively respond to clients’ needs by collaborating across service lines and enhancing the Sponsorship & Consulting team offering.
• Drive client’s business forward through a proactive and strategic approach.
• Accountable for client‑account fees and activation budgets by entrusting Directors and Senior Managers.
• Manage clients’ expectations through a consultative approach.
• Lead by example and coach client service excellence.
• Act as key point of escalation to solve client problems.
• Understand and report on the commercials of client responsibilities.
• Oversee client teams’ operational structure and delivery.
• Take ownership of client contracts, SOWs and master service agreements and manage amendments and renames.
• Ensure retained client work is delivered to high standards by empowering client teams to set timelines, expectations and meet deadlines.
• Maintain an overarching view of resources across client teams and manage pinch points, resource requirements and solution input changes where necessary.
• Be the point of escalation to solve project delivery problems.
• Informally understand how individual client teams’ time spent on retainers and projects informs resource decisions.
• Collaborate with Client Directors to accurately report on account time and team timesheets.
• Report on client and project revenue through forecasting and converted pipeline finance.
• Own client development plans and actively participate in client growth and development discussions across MKTG service lines.
• Demonstrate behaviours to champion our culture & values across Sponsorship & Consulting teams.
• Collaborate across service lines.
• Solve problems and deliver simple solutions.
• Takes responsibility and can make well‑informed decisions.
• Identify, upsell and cross‐sell opportunities for clients to deliver commercial value while generating additional profit for MKTG.
• Generate new client business by selling additional services across MKTG service lines.
• Lead new logo growth by owning new business briefs/projects.
• Have full understanding of MKTG capabilities to drive growth.
• See client development projects through from start to finish.
• Work seamlessly with the new business team and play integral role in brief responses and pitch teams.
• Lead marketing initiatives.
• Actively involve the team in marketing the agency.
• Participate in regular thought leadership in written, presentation and verbal format.
• Represent the agency at webinars and conferences and confidently discuss MKTG and its positioning.
• Strive for and display expertise in the industry.
• Understand and deliver our strategic and creative sponsorship processes in both client development and new logo work.
• Collaborate effectively with EMT and SMT across multiple projects and initiatives.
• Demonstrate consistent curiosity and knowledge‑building behaviours.
• Instill confidence, provide a trusted point of view and empower direct reports and wider team with clear expectations and ownership.
• Support shaping and implementing the Sponsorship & Consulting vision and direction.
• Act as a mentor and coach to direct reports to develop their role and career, promoting an inclusive environment where everyone’s voice can be heard.
• Provide regular feedback and structured 1:1s focusing on performance.

You are excited by the prospect of working on award‑winning sports and entertainment sponsorship projects and are passionate about delivering brilliant solutions for clients. You have the technical knowledge of sponsorships and partnership marketing, as well as attention to detail and drive to manage and develop existing activation programmes. You take pride in your work, thrive in managing projects and are comfortable with strategic thinking needed to develop campaigns, activations and integrated marketing solutions. You also thrive under pressure, enjoy working on sports/events and want to be part of a close‑knit team.

Proven, consistent experience in marketing either agency side, client side or with a rights holder. Proven, consistent experience working on sport, ambassadors, music or entertainment sponsorships and activation programmes. Demonstrable experience in strategically growing client accounts and nurturing senior professional client relationships. Outstanding communication and relationship‑building skills with the aptitude to foster long‑term relationships. Strong strategic and logical thinker who can provide counsel to clients and suppliers in delivering best‑in‑class solutions. Strong acumen to look at business performance for clients and how this can be measured to make sponsorship assets more accountable. Strong financial management skills, including budget planning, account profitability and resource allocation. Demonstrable experience in project management with ability to manage multiple projects across varied work streams. Deep understanding of brand ambassador management. Deep understanding of the wider marketing landscape. Team mentality, building high‑performing teams both through line management and exceptional project work. Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office tools.

MKTG Sports & Entertainment is a global integrated agency that helps brands and rights holders move at the speed of fans. For over 20 years, we have ignited fandom and innovated activation in the world of sports and entertainment. We have strategised, created and driven partnerships for some of the world’s biggest brands and up‑and‑coming power brands. With one aligned goal – make something worth noticing, engaging, liking, sharing and remembering.

At Dentsu, we embrace diversity and inclusion, valuing the unique perspectives and contributions of every individual. We welcome applications from all individuals, regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, marital status or any other protected characteristic. We believe diversity fuels creativity and innovation, benefiting our employees, partners and communities. We recognize the importance of work‑life balance and are open to discussing flexible working arrangements for all roles. If you need reasonable adjustments during our recruitment process, please contact accommodations@dentsu.com specifying the role reference number.

Location: London

Brand: MKTG Sports

Time Type: Full time

Contract Type: Fixed Term Contract (Fixed Term)