Head of Strategic Partnerships and Business Development

Sustain.Life is a high-energy, early-stage, VC-backed Climate Tech start-up. Our industry leading sustainability platform specializes in B2B SaaS software for corporate sustainability efforts, offering innovative technology solutions and industry experience to support business and their supply chain with a vision of a sustainable future for everybody on the planet. 

• We are on a mission to create best-in-class software that changes the world, and we are looking for like-minded individuals to join us and help us grow. We are building a team that will help our users launch sustainability programs, benchmark their ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) performance, measure carbon emissions, set meaningful goals, execute reduction strategies, and ultimately share their progress with key stakeholders.
• We are a Certified B Corporation which is a private certification of for-profit companies that have met high standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency, and we were Pitch Finalists in the 2022 SXSW Social and Culture category.
• We are a fully remote workforce collaborating across US, UK, Ireland, Australia, Singapore, and a growing list of other countries. We have an incredible team of world-class experts, designers and technologists developing our platform, and at Sustain.Life, we take our mission seriously. In 2022, our entire carbon footprint was 522.78 MT CO2e, which we offset through high-quality verified projects.  

We are looking for a Head of Strategic Partnerships and Business Development to lead the continued development of our partner strategy and execution, along with the day-to-day management of the growing Partner team.  An ideal candidate will be motivated by developing new channels to revenue, creating and nurturing strategic relationships, and is energized by playing a pivotal role in an ambitious, mission orientated start up. 

As the Head of Strategic Partnerships and Business Development, you will use your strong understanding of B2B SaaS sales and climate-tech industry, as well as proven experience in developing partnership strategies, evaluating potential partners, negotiating, and nurturing partner relationships across new verticals to grow revenue. This is a player coach role that includes pursuing and developing new strategic opportunities individually and leading the partner sales team. You will play a significant role in shaping the culture and operational processes for a growing department and be a key driver of revenue for the wider organization. This role is vital to developing a partner community that will help Sustain.Life to achieve the growth targets in place. 

You will work in close collaboration with the entire Revenue team and GTM leaders across direct sales, marketing, customer success and product to provide market feedback and input that influence our strategies to drive partner acquisition and activation. You will also research and track emerging markets and trends, identify and recommend sponsorship opportunities, partner events, and engagement channels. 

This role reports to the Chief Revenue Officer. 

• Develop partner networks and strategic alliances in North America, and other regions as part of internationalization initiative 
• Utilize scalable, method driven approaches and processes to drive results through partner channels
• Conceptualize and conduct analysis of new strategic initiatives that could be built around, or benefit from, corporate sustainability, supply chains, carbon accounting, climate-tech, energy transition, or other partnerships.
• Coordinate the enablement and management of ongoing relationships with existing partners and leverage those relationships to increase revenue for both parties through a deep understanding of the partner’s business
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to structure and execute business initiatives, lead analysis, and develop and communicate final recommendations for growing revenue through partnerships
• Develop systems and procedures in support of the identification, engagement and development of new partnership channels and strategic alliances.
• Oversee end-to-end acquisition of strategic opportunities from prospecting through implementation, engaging and collaborating across internal divisions to ensure partner implementations are delivered against the plan
• Manage and support Sustain.Life’s growing partner sales team
• Analyze and track key metrics to identify trends and highlight issues in partner and customer acquisition, and relationship management  
• Project and promote Sustain.life business initiatives to new audiences and partners
• Manage reporting and financial tracking of partnership activities
• Deliver professional sales presentations to potential partner organizations and customers with the ability to persuade and close business
• Provide timely and accurate reporting of pipeline, strategic partnerships, and management activities
• Research trends and competitive landscape to strategically drive the Sustain.Life business development pipeline
• Conduct analysis of strategic opportunities for Sustain Life’s capabilities in new verticals that increases revenue for both parties through a deep understanding of the partner’s business 

• Bachelor’s degree required; master's in business administration, marketing, or a similar field preferred
• At least 7 years of experience in strategic sales and/or business development 
• 3+ years of supervisory or team management experience
• Existing network and understanding of technology buyers, corporate sustainability, or supply chain management, as well as partnering with MSPs, VARs, technology integrators, and accounting/consulting firms to grow customer acquisition and collective revenue
• Proven ability to find strategic partnerships that have led to scalable revenue streams
• Proven ability to negotiate and work with C-level executives and navigate procurement in large enterprises
• Demonstrated success and tangible experience of having expanded and cultivated existing partnerships over time
• Demonstrated drive to solve problems in a creative and collaborative team environment while leading with high energy and a positive attitude
• Strong analytic skills (financial, planning, operational)
• Strong relationship building skills and an entrepreneurial approach that leverages further opportunities
• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral  
• Strong critical thinking, problem solving, and analytical skills including business case modeling, Excel modeling, and integrated work planning  
• Strong presentation skills and ability to articulate product vision to stakeholders  
• A genuine passion for making other people successful, both our customers and your fellow teammates  
• Demonstrated ability to deliver presentations in a way that establishes credibility and reinforces the value of the Sustain.Life solution  
• Experience in and comfort with working in an agile, fast-paced environment  
• Background in and/or passion for working in sustainability or climate-tech.
• Ability to travel domestic and international (limited/as required)
• Fast learner
• Entrepreneurial mindset, energy, and sincerity 

Base Salary: $140,000 - $170,000

The base salary range represents the low and high end of the anticipated salary range for this position. The actual base salary offered for this position will depend on numerous factors including individual experience within the salary band and business objectives. Our base salary is just one component of Sustain.Life's competitive total compensation package that also includes quarterly commissions based on performance against sales quotas, an Employee Stock Purchase Plan as well as other region-specific health and retirement benefits. 
 
As an organization, one of our top priorities is to maintain the health and wellbeing for our employees and their family. To achieve this goal, we offer robust and comprehensive benefits including: 

• Medical, dental, vision, Life/AD&D, short-term and long-term disability insurance  
• Unlimited paid time off policy 
• 401k plan 
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan 
• Generous parental leave policy 
• Annual Learning & Development and Sustainable Goods Purchase Stipends 

Interested? Great - we'd love to talk to you!    Please apply directly to the role on our website: Sustain.Life Careers. If you don’t check every box, don’t let that stop you. We prioritize talent, passion, and drive over what looks good on paper. If you are on the fence, we encourage you to hit the apply button and highlight what draws you to Sustain.Life.  

Sustain.Life is an Equal Opportunity Employer - Minority/Women/Disability/Veteran/Gender Identity/Sexual Orientation/Age 

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