Director, Strategic Partnerships & Business Development

Outschool

1d•$172,800 - $220,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Outschool is seeking a commercially accountable, relationship-driven Director, Strategic Partnerships & Business Development to build and grow commercial relationships that expand access to educational opportunities and generate revenue growth. The role develops partnerships across the education ecosystem, including state education funding programs, Education Savings Account (ESA) wallet providers, scholarship-granting organizations, curriculum publishers, schools, education organizations, and distribution partners. The Director owns the business development process from identifying prospective partners and establishing relationships through negotiation, agreement execution, activation, and ongoing growth. The role works cross-functionally with Strategy, Product, Growth, Marketing, Finance, Legal, and Operations to launch successful programs, expand distribution, and deliver measurable commercial results. It is accountable for building a strong partnership pipeline, establishing mutually valuable agreements, and meeting partner-driven revenue objectives.

Requirements

At least 8 years of experience in business development, strategic partnerships, channel development, or related commercial roles.
At least 5 years of direct accountability for partnership or channel revenue targets.
Demonstrated success identifying, negotiating, launching, and scaling strategic partnerships that generate meaningful revenue.
Strong relationship-building and negotiation skills, including experience engaging senior executives, institutional partners, and complex organizations.
Strong commercial judgment and experience developing partnership economics, revenue models, business cases, and commercial agreements.
Understanding of the K–12 education market, including schools, educational organizations, curriculum providers, and alternative education models.
Experience managing a business development pipeline, forecasting revenue, and growing partnerships from initial agreement through commercial success.
Ability to work effectively across Product, Growth, Marketing, Strategy, Finance, Legal, Compliance, and Operations.
Entrepreneurial mindset, strong execution skills, and demonstrated ability to turn relationships into measurable business results.

Nice To Haves

Direct experience with ESA programs, state education agencies, scholarship-granting organizations, or education funding platforms.
Existing relationships with education funding administrators, wallet providers, school networks, curriculum publishers, or education distribution partners.
Experience with curriculum licensing, distribution agreements, channel partnerships, or education marketplace businesses.
Experience developing partnerships across multiple states or education markets.
Familiarity with accredited schools, homeschool programs, and tuition-based education models.
Previous experience in startups, high-growth companies, or consumer marketplaces.

Responsibilities

Identify, pursue, negotiate, and establish commercial partnerships that expand distribution, market access, educational offerings, and revenue opportunities.
Build and maintain trusted relationships with senior leaders at state education agencies, ESA wallet providers, scholarship-granting organizations, curriculum publishers, schools, education organizations, and other strategic partners.
Develop and grow relationships with funding program administrators, wallet providers, SGOs, and other organizations that help families access Outschool through public and scholarship-based education funding.
Establish relationships with curriculum publishers, educational content providers, and other organizations to strengthen offerings and support new educational programs.
Build distribution channels through partnerships with schools, school networks, homeschool organizations, education service providers, and other institutions.
Develop partnership business cases, revenue models, and commercial terms, including licensing, distribution, referral, revenue-sharing, and other structures.
Coordinate with Product, Marketing, Growth, Finance, Legal, and Operations to launch partnerships, develop joint business plans, increase adoption, and grow revenue from existing relationships.
Establish revenue targets, forecasts, and performance metrics for strategic partnerships; monitor results, identify expansion opportunities, and drive measurable commercial growth.
Maintain a prioritized pipeline of prospective and existing partners, manage opportunities from outreach through negotiation and launch, and provide regular revenue forecasts and performance updates to executive leadership.

Benefits

Equity and benefits in addition to base compensation.
Competitive salaries, stock options, and retirement plans.
Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance.
Annual wellness stipend, access to coaching and therapy, and pet wellness plans.
Generous PTO and family leave policies.
Commute-related benefits for Bay Area-based employees working in the office part of the week.
Support for expensable home office setup and internet for team members outside the Bay Area.
Annual budgets for professional development and DEI learning.
Budgets for children to take Outschool classes.
Matching of employee donations to eligible charities and support for Outschool.org nonprofit programs.