Associate, Strategic Partnerships

UMT - Internal•New York, NY

2d•$83,000 - $98,000

About The Position

UnitedMasters is building a marketplace that connects artists, brands and fans - empowering artists to earn and grow. UnitedMasters has taken the bold step of building a music distribution service that, radically, puts artists first - disrupting the legacy music business by letting up-and-coming artists distribute their music directly to fans through streaming services while maintaining ownership of their master recording rights and up to 100% of royalties. Through the combination of UnitedMasters' music distribution platform and its deep ties to brands, UnitedMasters enables independent artists and change-makers to grow and earn unlike any other platform. The UnitedMasters team is made up of musicians, marketers, engineers, and storytellers with backgrounds from YouTube, SoundCloud, Pandora, Facebook, Uber, Dropbox, Complex, VICE, and more. We work hand in hand with the award-winning creative teams that forge those innovative partnerships at Translation (our in-house creative advertising agency). We are looking for an Associate, Strategic Partnerships to join UnitedMasters!

Requirements

Operates with rigor: clean trackers, clear next steps, follow-through that doesn't require chasing
Comfortable supporting commercial negotiations on partnerships with established baseline terms, including building economic and term comparisons, redlining to guidance and prepping materials
Exposure to DSP economics and digital licensing concepts (rev share, MG, MFN, PSM, rate cards) or a track record of ramping fast on adjacent commercial domains
Proactive relationship builder; stays in front of partners rather than waiting for issues to surface
Coordinates outcomes across Product, Legal, Finance, Operations, Music, and Label Services; keeps workstreams moving and escalates blockers
Strong written and verbal communicator; can assist in framing partnership status, renewal recommendations, and commercial trade-offs concisely for leadership
2-4 years of experience in strategic partnerships, business development, account management, licensing, or a closely related commercial function
Experience supporting partner relationships and/or deal processes, including involvement with diligence, redlines, trackers and cross-functional coordination
Strong written, verbal, and presentation skills

Nice To Haves

Direct exposure to DSP, music licensing, or music-tech platform partnerships
Familiarity with music distribution operations and tooling (e.g., FUGA, 7digital, Merlin, iTunes Connect, Ironclad)
Exposure to contract/renewal processes or CRM/pipeline tooling

Responsibilities

Support the day-to-day management of UnitedMasters' existing partnership portfolio across DSPs, sub-DSPs, label services partners, distribution infrastructure providers, and product/tooling partners
Support VP in negotiating commercial renewals and term updates, including rate cards, MGs, MFNs, term length, and reporting obligations. Build benchmarking and comparisons, redline to guidance, and gather applicable Legal and Finance inputs.
Proactively track renewal milestones and tee up negotiation cycles for VP well ahead of expiration
Help translate signed agreements into clear implementation plans across Product, Legal, Finance, Music, Operations, and Marketing, and help drive accountability through to delivery by tracking tasks to completion
Serve as the first internal point of contact for partner questions, escalations, and ongoing requests, and escalate to the VP as appropriate
Support a regular partner relationship cadence by scheduling and prepping check-ins, business reviews, and proactive engagement, and capturing and tracking follow-ups.
Own the DSP tracker, BD pipeline, contract calendar, and partner contact records as live operating tools and sources of truth
Research and help identify prospective partners across the music and tech ecosystem, providing initial evaluation, and supporting the VP in negotiating initial commercial terms by assembling briefs and comparisons, and coordinating input from Legal and Finance
Run the mechanics of weekly pipeline reviews: Prep the agenda, capture decisions, track owners and coordinate action items across active workstreams
Compile market and partner signal into summaries for the VP and team to inform broader strategy
Represent UnitedMasters externally as a credible, articulate face of the company with existing partners