Partnerships Manager

About WPP Media Sport & Entertainment

In a fragmented media landscape, audiences expect brands to show up meaningfully in the spaces they love. Cultural relevance is a key driver of growth—and partnerships are one of the most powerful ways to earn attention with credibility.

WPP Media Sport & Entertainment is WPP Media’s cultural marketing powerhouse and specialist partner for sponsorship, entertainment-led partnerships, and cultural engagement across the WPP network. For 15+ years, we’ve operated at the epicentre of Australian passion points—sport, music, fashion, gaming, and entertainment—delivering partnerships that cut through and create cultural moments that matter.

We are part of WPP Media’s Content Ecosystem:

• WPP Media Sport & Entertainment – cultural partnerships & sponsorship strategy
• WPP Media Influence – creator-led content & influencer partnerships
• Motion Entertainment – entertainment IP, production & content development

Role Summary and Impact

The Sport & Entertainment Partnerships Manager supports the planning, delivery, and optimisation of partnership activity across media partnerships, entertainment, live experiences, and cultural platforms. You combine deep cultural awareness, strong organisational skills, and operational excellence to ensure partnerships are delivered on time, on budget, and to a high standard.

You are a trusted day‑to‑day operator for internal teams, media, production partners, and clients—ensuring smooth workflows, clear communication, and strong delivery. This role reports into the Partnerships Director - Sport & Entertainment and is part of the engine room that ensures world‑class executions and high client satisfaction.

Three Best Things About This Job:

1. Culturally Impactful Work: Help deliver partnerships across Australia’s most culturally powerful passion points (sport, music, fashion, gaming, and entertainment).
2. Diverse Portfolio: Work across a rich mix of content, activations, live experiences, talent, and Intellectual Property (IP).
3. High-Visibility Execution: Be part of the engine room that ensures world‑class campaign execution and client satisfaction.

Core Responsibilities

Client & Internal Team Support

• Manage Day-to-Day Communication: Act as the primary day‑to‑day contact for clients on assigned projects, managing expectations and escalating issues to the Associate Director when necessary.
• Deconstruct Briefs: Translate client briefs into actionable deliverables, detailed timelines, and clear project next steps.
• Develop Pitch & Renewal Materials: Support the team in developing high-quality responses to client briefs, renewal proposals, and partnership pitches.
• Protect Brand Guidelines: Ensure all agency and client output strictly aligns with brand guidelines, approval processes, and stakeholder expectations.

Partnership Delivery (End-to-End Management)

• Cultivate Key Relationships: Build strong, trust-based relationships with clients, media partners, and production teams to deliver high-quality partnership campaigns.
• Asset & Rights Coordination: Coordinate and track partnership assets, intellectual property rights usage, and specific contract deliverables.
• Workflow Execution: Manage project timelines, run‑sheets, media flighting schedules, and physical production requirements.
• Support Physical Activations: Support content shoots, creator involvement, and on‑ground activations (includes occasional domestic travel).
• Ensure Compliance: Oversee and secure all necessary approvals, talent clearances, legal compliance checks, and internal documentation.
• Maintain Status Documentation: Keep internal WIPs, tracking documents, status reports, and budget files meticulously up to date.

Commercial & Operational Support

• Manage Financial Hygiene: Assist with budget tracking, invoicing, revenue forecasting, and final financial reconciliations.
• Value Tracking & Negotiations: Support value tracking and assist in commercial negotiations with rights holders under the guidance of the Associate Director.
• Procurement & Legal Liaison: Coordinate with procurement, legal teams, and external suppliers to finalise contracts and ensure supplier compliance.
• Mitigate Risks: Proactively identify project risks early and escalate them to leadership with clear, actionable recommendations.

Ways of Working & Team Culture

• Collaborate Across the Ecosystem: Work collaboratively with creative, strategy, influence, and production teams across the broader WPP Media Content Ecosystem.
• Promote High-Quality Standards: Actively support a proactive, high‑quality delivery culture within the immediate team.
• Share Best Practice: Champion knowledge-sharing, showcase great work examples, and suggest ongoing process improvements to drive workflow efficiencies.

Skills and Experience

What Makes You Great

• Partnership Experience: 2–4+ years in partnerships, sponsorship, branded content, or project management (gained within an agency, brand, rights holder, or media owner).
• Rigorous Project Management: Demonstrated capability in managing project timelines, tracking complex workflows, securing approvals, and maintaining documentation.
• Commercial Acumen: A solid understanding of commercial processes, including budget tracking, value analysis, and invoicing.
• Asset & Content Production: Practical experience managing the production of creative assets, content, and digital media.
• Excellent Communication: Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate ideas and updates clearly to clients and senior partners.
• Calm Under Pressure: A highly organised, solutions‑focused operator who can successfully juggle multiple workstreams and maintain strict attention to detail in fast-paced environments.
• Passion for Culture: A strong familiarity with sport, entertainment, talent management, content production, or creator ecosystems is highly regarded.

Life at WPP Media & Benefits

Our passion for shaping the next era of media includes investing in our employees to help them do their best work, and we’re just as committed to employee growth as we are to responsible media investment. WPP Media employees can tap into the global WPP Media & WPP networks to pursue their passions, grow their networks, and learn at the cutting edge of marketing and advertising. We have a variety of employee resource groups and host frequent in-office events showcasing team wins, sharing thought leadership, and celebrating holidays and milestone events.

WPP Media is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.

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