Senior Director, Partnerships

About the Position

Ownership Works is looking for an experienced, driven, and mission-oriented professional to lead our Partnerships team. This is an exciting opportunity for a self-starter who wants to leverage their skills, experience, and creativity to make a difference in the lives of thousands (and potentially millions) of hard-working people and develop subject matter expertise in employee ownership. The Senior Director will report to the Executive Director and serve on the organization’s Management Team.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop O.W.’s partnerships strategy as a key driver of the shared ownership movement
  • Work with O.W.’s Board, team, and advisors to create a strategy to leverage a wide network of partners to increase demand for shared ownership by public and private companies.
  • Develop an engagement strategy, value exchange, and theory of change for each stakeholder group within the O.W. partner consortium to move the firms and individuals we work with from passive supporters to active champions.
• Expand the O.W. partner consortium
  • Form new partnerships with private equity firms, financial services firms, professional services firms, pension funds, nonprofits, and labor advocates.
  • Develop and oversee partnership pipeline management processes.
  • Develop partnership pitches and proposals.
• Engage the O.W. partner consortium
  • Develop account plans for partners.  
  • Manage a portfolio of partner relationships.
  • Create and manage networks and events (virtual and in-person) to connect the consortium and build engaged communities of learning and practice.
  • Develop account management processes, including account planning and reporting.
  • Develop collateral materials (decks, brochures, FAQs, etc.) to onboard and engage partners.
• Build and manage the O.W. Partnerships team
  • Build and lead a team of high-performing partnership account managers to execute our strategy for building and engaging the O.W. partner consortium.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree (required). MBA or relevant advanced degree (preferred).
• 15+ years of professional experience in partnerships, business development, or strategic alliances. 5+ years in leadership roles, including managing high-performing teams.
• Proven success in developing and executing partnership strategies that drive measurable outcomes.
• Experience negotiating complex and long-term strategic partnerships.
• Experience working cross-functionally with program, marketing, legal, and executive teams.
• Global partnerships experience is a plus.

Functional Expertise & Key Competencies

• Stakeholder engagement. Proven relationship builder with executive presence and experience influencing C-suite stakeholders. Strong understanding of partner ecosystem development and experience with various partnership models.
• Effective communication. Clear, persuasive communicator. Actively listens and effectively tailors messaging for diverse audiences.
• Strategic thinking. Visionary yet practical; sees patterns, gaps, and opportunities and develops fit-for-purpose solutions.
• Analytical rigor. Uses data and CRM tools (e.g., Salesforce, Tableau) to drive decision-making.
• Project management & execution. Skilled at planning, prioritization, and leading cross-functional teams to deliver high-quality results.
• Collaboration. Inclusive, open-minded team player who values diverse perspectives.
• Operational excellence. High attention to detail and commitment to quality.        
• Talent development & people leadership. Empowers and develops talent; sets high standards while fostering a supportive team culture.      

Ownership Works is dedicated to building a diverse and inclusive workplace. If you’re excited about this position but your experience doesn’t precisely align with every qualification, we still encourage you to apply. 

Base Salary Compensation Range

The compensation available for the role considers various factors, including, but not limited to, work location, individual skill set, previous/applicable experience, and other business needs. The estimated salary range for individuals who work in New York City is $240,000 - $265,000 plus bonus.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Ownership Works is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Benefits

We offer a comprehensive benefits package aligned with the professional services sector, which includes excellent health, vision, and dental coverage for you and your family, unlimited paid time off, a 401(k) plan with generous employer contributions, and 18 weeks of fully paid parental leave.

Location

O.W. is building a New York City-based team. The team works from our brand-new Midtown Manhattan office space two days per week.

About Ownership Works

Founded in 2021, Ownership Works (O.W.) is a fast-growing nonprofit organization with a mission to increase prosperity through shared ownership at work. O.W. helps companies and investors implement shared ownership programs that make every employee an owner and honor the collective effort behind a company’s success. At scale, employee ownership can help millions of workers build savings and wealth, often for the first time, at businesses that are more dynamic, resilient, and successful.

O.W. has set an ambitious goal of creating at least $20 billion of wealth for workers by 2030 and, over the long term, making broad-based employee ownership the new norm at work. To achieve these goals, O.W. has two areas of focus:

Movement Building. Through partnerships, network-building, education, data, and storytelling, O.W. is building a movement to increase the adoption of shared ownership by private and public companies. Over 90 private equity firms, financial institutions, foundations, labor advocates, and pension funds have joined the O.W. consortium as Founding Partners and made unprecedented commitments to advance the shared ownership movement.

Hands-on Guidance. In collaboration with its Founding Partners, O.W. helps public and private companies implement broad-based employee ownership programs that improve corporate cultures, increase employee engagement and satisfaction, and create an alignment of interests between employees and employers, all of which can support better outcomes for companies and workers. Since O.W.’s founding, over 145 companies have implemented shared ownership programs, reaching over 236,000 workers.
 

Ownership Works is certified as a Great Place to Work.

For more about O.W.’s programs and impact, visit https://ownershipworks.org.