THE COMPANY
John Force Racing, Inc. (JFR), is one of America's great sports dynasties with multiple championships, hundreds of wins and a huge fan following from around the world. JFR remains the sport's undeniable "Home to Champions" as the winningest team in motorsports history.
Starting in 1993, John Force won 10 straight NHRA titles, dominating like no other driver or athlete in history. JFR became the first multi-car team with a lineup of talented young drivers throughout the years including Force’s daughters who followed in his footsteps. They were featured on their own reality show, Driving Force on A&E, and their fanbase grew as fans, sponsors and the media loved the family dynamic of the team.
In 2017, JFR rewrote their own record books winning both the Top Fuel and Funny Car championships in the same season. Brittany Force broke through for the first JFR Top Fuel championship and Robert Hight took home his second Funny Car title. Both drivers dominated in the Countdown.
The company has offices located in both Yorba Linda, Calif. and Brownsburg, Ind. In total, JFR has earned 21 NHRA championships and claimed 282 professional victories in Funny Car (271) and Top Fuel (10). The team is comprised of owner and driver John Force, Robert Hight, and Brittany Force. John is a 16-time Funny Car world champion, 1996 Driver of the Year for all of American motor racing, 2011 International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee, and driver of the PEAK / BlueDEF Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, JFR is additionally comprised of Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS driver Robert Hight is the 2019, 2017 and 2009 Funny Car world champion and 2005 NHRA Rookie of the Year driving in the Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camero SS. As well, 2017 Top Fuel world champion and 2013 NHRA Rookie of the Year, Brittany Force, drives the Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac car.
THE POSITION
The Manager/Director Business Development will focus on new revenue across the JFR portfolio of racing assets. The position requires an accomplished sales professional who has experience in sports and/or event sponsorship sales and, preferably, some exposure or experience in motorsports. As part of a relatively small front office, this person has the opportunity to develop within the dedicated sales team by devoting their time and energies towards driving sponsorship revenue against any and all of the JFR racing programs and marketing platforms. This will include the ability to forge relationships on race weekends at NHRA tracks but focus the majority of their energies on prospecting across the country to develop partner relationships with national and regional advertisers and sports sponsors to sell the ROO and ROI of motorsports sponsorships. This position will report directly to the Chief Commercial Officer.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
Serve as a key team contributor in the sales and business development for John Force Racing (JFR) sales operation, ensuring revenue growth aligned with company objectives and values.
Establish and qualify John Force Racing value proposition to sponsors and ensure consistency in messaging across all sponsor interaction.
Identify and pursue qualified prospects for race team sponsorship.
Establish and implement sales and business development strategies, including use of social media and other platforms, to develop leads and close sales with large partners, often Fortune 500 corporations.
Creatively conceptualize and pitch customized and unique activation programs to prospective partners to show value‐added elements of sponsorship deals with JFR.
Prospect and develop new client relationships as well as maintain and grow relationships with corporate partners personally responsible for developing.
Prospect and qualify leads on an ongoing and consistent basis. Provide weekly reports and participate in weekly sales meetings at the direction of the Chief Commercial Officer.
Willingness to travel to wherever a qualified prospect is headquartered to present in person and follow-up to facilitate partnership. Ability to dedicate time on weekends, as needed, to attend NHRA races to meet with and/or entertain prospects and support JFR with client hospitality as needed.
Work out of JFR’s Indianapolis, IN offices.
QUALIFICATIONS:
A. Experience
Four (4) to Seven (7) years plus of business development, marketing, and/or sales experience
Ability to work with MS Office Suite and Google
Broad understanding of the sports marketing industry and where motorsports fits in the landscape
Strong written and oral communications skills
Ability to develop relationships and work well with others in a fast-paced, dynamic environment
Takes initiative with the ability to self-manage as well as jungle multiple projects
Detail oriented with strong organizational skills
Must be able to maintain the confidentiality of sponsor information with sensitivity and discretion
Must have working knowledge of CRM systems (SalesForce preferred)
Self-starter with a strong work ethic
Excellent time-management skills
Passion for motorsports preferred
Must be available to work evenings, weekends, and holidays when needed
Must be available for travel as needed
B. Education
Bachelor’s Degree in Communications, Business Administration, Sports Management or a related field preferred
