Senior Director, Hospitality Full Time NEW

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: As a Senior Director, Hospitality, you are the strategic and executional lead for client hospitality programs, responsible for designing, developing, and delivering best-in-class experiences that drive meaningful business impact. You bring deep expertise in hospitality, events, and experiential environments, combining strong industry relationships with creative thinking to build differentiated, high-quality programs.

You partner closely with Account teams to shape strategies that align with client objectives, while leading the end-to-end execution of those programs. You serve as both a subject matter expert and operator bringing ideas to life through strong vendor partnerships, disciplined planning, and operational excellence.

This role requires a balance of strategic thinking, creative ideation, and hands-on leadership, with a focus on delivering seamless experiences that strengthen client relationships and unlock new opportunities for growth.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Hospitality Strategy & Experience Design

• Lead the development of client hospitality strategies, including annual hosting plans and event calendars aligned to business objectives.
• Identify and recommend high-impact hospitality opportunities, experiences, and environments that drive client engagement and brand impact.
• Bring forward innovative, culturally relevant ideas that elevate the quality and uniqueness of hospitality programs.
• Conduct event portfolio analysis to inform strategic recommendations and optimize program performance.

Program & Event Leadership

• Oversee end-to-end planning and execution of hospitality experiences, ensuring programs are delivered with excellence from concept through recap.
• Lead the design and development of event concepts, branding, guest experience, and on-site execution plans.
• Provide on-site leadership for key events, ensuring seamless delivery and high-quality execution.
• Ensure all experiences are aligned to client expectations, brand standards, and program goals.

Client & Business Partnership

• Build and maintain strong client relationships, serving as a trusted partner on hospitality strategy and execution.
• Partner with Account teams to align hospitality programs with broader account goals and growth opportunities.
• Contribute to identifying opportunities to expand scope, deepen partnerships, and drive incremental revenue.
• Ensure hospitality efforts are connected to overall sponsorship, marketing, and business strategies.

Vendor & Experiential Ecosystem Leadership

• Leverage deep vendor relationships across venues, hotels, catering, transportation, and experiential production partners to deliver best-in-class experiences.
• Negotiate contracts and secure services that align with both creative ambition and financial parameters.
• Collaborate closely with experiential production teams and other internal resources to bring complex programs to life.
• Manage vendor performance to ensure accountability, quality, and consistency across all programs.

Financial Management & Program Performance

• Develop, manage, and reconcile budgets across hospitality programs with strong financial discipline.
• Provide clients with ongoing visibility into budgets, forecasting, and program performance.
• Lead ROI tracking and measurement efforts to evaluate program effectiveness and inform future planning.
• Ensure scope is well-managed and opportunities for efficiency or optimization are identified.

Team Leadership & Operational Excellence

• Lead and mentor hospitality team members, ensuring high standards of execution and client service.
• Manage internal resources and cross-functional teams to deliver programs at the highest level.
• Establish and reinforce best practices, tools, and workflows to improve efficiency and consistency.
• Contribute to a culture of collaboration, accountability, and excellence across teams.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required
• 6–8+ years of experience in hospitality, event planning, experiential marketing, or related field
• Proven experience leading high-level corporate hospitality programs and events
• Experience managing client relationships, vendors, budgets, and cross-functional teams
• Strong vendor network across hospitality and experiential environments
• Agency, sports marketing, or sponsorship experience preferred

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Deep expertise in hospitality, event planning, and experiential program execution.
• Strong network of vendor and industry relationships across hospitality and production.
• Ability to think strategically while executing with precision and attention to detail.
• Strong financial acumen, including budgeting, forecasting, and contract negotiation.
• Exceptional client service and relationship management skills.
• Strong leadership presence with the ability to guide teams and influence stakeholders.
• Excellent communication and organizational skills in fast-paced environments.
• Ability to manage multiple complex programs simultaneously.
• Passion for creating high-quality, memorable experiences that drive business results.

Ability to travel frequently and work nights, weekends, and holidays

The pay range for this position is: $150,000 – $170,000 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.