Director, Partnerships

Sprout Social is looking for a Director of Partnerships to lead and drive the company’s most critical and strategic partners. This role is responsible for growing and strengthening the relationships of our existing and new social network platform and technology partner relationships.

A strong candidate will have a proven track record of navigating new waters, networking, and building new and existing relationships at large and small external organizations. You’re comfortable supporting everything from collaborating with senior stakeholders to project management to pitching new ideas. The ability to travel (at a minimum quarterly) and previous experience managing relationships with social networks or other technology companies is required.  

We pride ourselves on exceptional people and relationships and this role is about the ability to orchestrate, support and navigate multiple relationships and partnerships. The strength of our partnerships is a competitive advantage.

Sprout Social is used by over 30,000 brands worldwide. These businesses rely on Sprout to create stronger relationships with their customers through social media. This role will ensure we can continue to deliver innovative products to our customers and elevate our brand value around the world.

Why join Sprout’s Partnerships team?

Sprout’s partnerships are essential to running and scaling the business. Joining our Partnerships team means you’ll be at the intersection of many parts of the company, with high visibility and impact of your work. As part of this team, you’ll have the opportunity to build and support the company’s most critical partnerships and leverage those relationships to give Sprout a competitive advantage, and drive revenue. And as a relatively small team, there is a ton of opportunity to work and grow together as we explore new areas of impact. 

What you’ll do

• Lead a team of Partnerships Managers to drive win-win outcomes with partners.
• Manage and advance ongoing relationships with existing partners and leverage those relationships to make sizable impact to both companies
• Conceptualize and build new strategic initiatives that could be include sales, marketing and product initiatives
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to structure and execute business initiatives, lead analysis and develop and communicate final recommendations for growing partner relationships
• Build and nurture ongoing internal cross-functional relationships to enhance understanding of internal projects and to provide strategic input to those projects
• Develop and manage reporting and financial tracking of strategic partnership activities
• Develop and manage partner agreements
• Deliver presentations to external partner organizations with the ability to persuade
• Research trends, competition, and other industry insights
• Represent Sprout Social at select external events including industry forums, partner conferences, or events.

Qualifications

These are the minimum qualifications that our hiring team is looking for in this role:

• 10+ years experience forming and managing relationships with large strategic partners 
• 3+ years managing high performing teams 
• Demonstrated success in a Partnerships/Business Development role and tangible experience of having expanded and cultivated existing partnerships over time

Additionally, these are the preferred qualifications that would indicate a particularly strong candidate:

• B2B SaaS experience 
• Experience with social media companies such as Meta, Twitter, LinkedIn and TikTok
• Demonstrated drive to solve problems in a matrix team environment and leading with high energy and a positive attitude
• Strong analytical skills

Within 1 month, you will…

• Complete Sprout Social’s new hire training & onboarding program alongside other new Sprout team members. You’ll gain a broader understanding of our products and how your role fits into the organization.
• Understand the ins and outs of our partner relationships, how we work together with each partner, and how each partner differs from one another.
• Develop relationships with our key points of contact throughout the organization.
• Become introduced to our key points of contact throughout our partner organizations.
• Understand how the Partnerships Team operates and the goals and objectives for our team and our different partnerships.

Within 3 months, you will…

• Fully own one or more partner relationships.
• Create a cross-functional strategy for what the teams will focus on
• Become well versed in our partner plans, goals and KPIs to increase internal adoption and drive external partner success.
• Help to maintain a framework to track and increase visibility into the status of open co-marketing initiatives.
• Maintain and update the Partnerships internal Wiki page.
• Support discovery conversations with companies that reach out to Sprout with an interest in partnering together.
• Develop senior-level relationships across the organization in order to better collaborate cross-functionally.

Within 6 months, you will…

• Liaise with Marketing and Sales/Success participants on respective partner initiatives and influence priorities.
• Help coordinate internally and with our partners to track our Objectives & Key Results.
• Become an expert on Partner Compliance.
• Coordinate with internal teams to prepare for the Partner Quarterly Business Reviews.
• Drive discovery conversations with companies that reach out to Sprout with an interest in partnering together.

Within 12 months, you will…

• Drive decisions internally and with our Partners and implement realistic, challenging and strategic Objectives & Key Results.
• Be an onboarding mentor for future Partnerships team hires.

Of course what is outlined above is the ideal timeline, but things may shift based on business needs and other projects and tasks could be added at the discretion of your manager.

About Sprout Social
Sprout Social powers open communication between individuals, brands and communities through elegant, sophisticated software. We are relentless about solving hard problems for our customers and committed to both customer and team success. Our team’s shared belief in Sprout’s mission promotes a culture of openness, empowerment and fun. 

We’re proud to regularly be recognized for our team, product and culture. Our benefits program includes:

• Insurance and benefit options that are built for both individuals and families
• Progressive policies to support work/life balance, like our flexible paid time off and parental leave program 
• High-quality and well-maintained equipment—your computer will never prevent you from doing your best
• Wellness initiatives to ensure both health and mental well-being of our team
• Ongoing education and development opportunities via our Grow@Sprout program, employee-led diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and mentorship programs for aspiring leaders
• Growing corporate social responsibility program that is driven by the involvement and passion of our team members
• Beautiful, convenient and state-of-the-art offices in Chicago’s Loop and downtown Seattle, for those who prefer an office setting

Whenever possible, Sprout wants to provide our team with the flexibility to work in the location that makes the most sense for them. For those that prefer an office setting, this role may be based in our Chicago or Seattle locations. If you prefer to work from your home, we can accommodate that for many locations across the United States. We are not set up in all states, however, so please take a look at the drop down box in our application to see whether your state is listed.

Sprout Social is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and an Affirmative Action Employer. We do not discriminate based on identity- race, color, religion, national origin or ancestry, sex (including sexual identity), age, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, veteran or military status, unfavorable discharge from military service, genetic information, sexual orientation, marital status, order of protection status, citizenship status, arrest record or expunged or sealed convictions, or any other legally recognized protected basis under federal, state, or local law. Learn more about our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion in our 2021 DEI Report.

If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process, please contact us by email at [email protected] and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information. We'll do all we can to ensure you're set up for success during our interview process while upholding your privacy, including requests for accommodation. Please note that only inquiries concerning a request for reasonable accommodation will be responded to from this email address.

For more information about our commitment to equal employment opportunity, please click here (1) Equal Opportunity Employment Poster  (2) Sprout Social's Affirmative Action Statement (3) Pay Transparency Statement. 

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