Director, Talent Strategy

The role

The Director of Talent Strategy will lead strategic talent workstreams for brands across sports, entertainment, music, and culture. This role involves identifying talent, developing recommendations, and negotiating partnerships to support client business objectives.

What you will do

• Develop talent strategies aligned to clients' business objectives and brand positioning.
• Identify and evaluate talent based on brand fit, audience relevance, and commercial value.
• Build strategic frameworks, talent shortlists, and partnership recommendations.
• Advise clients on how talent can support brand platforms and marketing initiatives.
• Lead talent outreach, fee assessments, and negotiations with representatives.
• Structure and manage deals across appearances, endorsements, and partnership rights.
• Maintain relationships across agencies, management companies, and the industry.
• Own day-to-day talent strategy workstreams across multiple accounts.
• Collaborate with account leadership, creative, social, and experiential teams.
• Manage projects from strategic brief through procurement and handoff to activation teams.

Required qualifications

• 7+ years of relevant experience in talent strategy, talent partnerships, endorsements, sports or entertainment marketing, or talent representation.
• 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.
• Collaborative, resourceful and detail-oriented, with strong commercial instincts.
• Experience supporting new business development and developing talent strategies for brands across different industries.

Nice to have

• Experience running talent strategy and brokering deals for Olympic athletes and partners is ideal
• Agency experience strongly preferred

Benefits

• eligible for benefits
• discretionary bonus

Before you apply

• This position is not eligible for sponsorship.

About the company

Excel Sports Management is an industry-leading sports agency representing top-tier talent, blue-chip brands and marquee properties.