Account Specialist, Strategic Partnerships - Office Of Communications & Marketing - UTK

Reporting to the Director of Strategic Partnerships, the Account Specialist is a member of the Brand Partnerships & Licensing team within the Office of Communications & Marketing (OCM). This role supports the overall mission and goals of the University of Tennessee campus. Leads the service components of campus (non-athletics) partner projects to ensure consistent and first-rate partner experiences, while maintaining excellent lines of communication with internal stakeholders to ensure executional success.

• University partnership operations: manage day-to-day activation and fulfillment for a portfolio of university brand and corporate partnerships, ensuring commitments, timelines, deliverables, and expectations are executed in alignment with institutional priorities.

• Partnership project management: serve as project manager for partnership initiatives, overseeing activations, campus engagements, partner assets, and approvals from initiation through completion.

• Partnership planning and documentation: develop partnership briefs and documentation in collaboration with leadership, defining scope, milestones, deliverables, timelines, and success measures.

• Partner hosting and engagement coordination: plan, coordinate, and execute partner hosting and on-campus engagement experiences, including itineraries, logistics, approvals, and visit materials.

• Meeting coordination and facilitation: schedule, plan, and facilitate partner and campus stakeholder meetings; prepare agendas, lead discussions as needed, document outcomes, and manage follow-up communications.

• Campus partner engagement: serve as a primary liaison between external partners and campus stakeholders, facilitating clear, consistent communication throughout the partnership lifecycle.

• Issue resolution and judgment: exercise independent judgment and discretion to resolve complex partnership issues involving multiple stakeholders, institutional policies, and partner expectations.

• Partnership growth and renewal support: identify opportunities to enhance and expand partnerships; support renewals through reporting, year-end recaps, and preparation of leadership briefing materials.

• Partner research and analysis: conduct research on current and prospective partners; monitor relevant industry and account developments; communicate pertinent updates to internal stakeholders.

• Reporting and outcomes evaluation: prepare partner reporting, post-event analyses, and recap communications; gather outcomes to inform future partnership strategies and improvements.

• Asset and records management: organize and maintain partnership assets, documentation, and materials in accordance with university branding, accessibility, and records retention standards.

• Cross-team collaboration: collaborate with campus units, communications, creative, athletics, and administrative teams to support partnership initiatives and ensure alignment.

• Campus representation: represent the Office of Strategic Partnerships in campus meetings, planning sessions, and cross-functional committees, as appropriate.

• Other duties as assigned: perform additional responsibilities in support of departmental and institutional goals.

Required 

• Bachelor’s Degree and three years experience in sponsorship activation, marketing, or account management

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities 

• Ability to conduct themselves with a high level of initiative

• Ability to work independently

• Strong written and verbal communication skills

• Ability and willingness to initiate and maintain personal relationships

• Skilled at being highly organized; able to prioritize and execute multiple tasks

• Skilled at attention to detail

• Ability to maintain a positive, upbeat attitude under pressure

Preferred

• Five years experience in sponsorship activation, marketing, or account management
• Experience working onsite at a university or sports property
• Knowledge of University of Tennessee, Knoxville, campus, programs, & athletics

Work Location 

• Knoxville, TN

• This is an onsite position 

Compensation and Benefits 

• UT market range: MR09

• Find more information on the UT Market Range structure here

The university offers a highly competitive benefits package that includes health insuranc