Government Relations & Partnership Specialist

Capital Factory•Austin, TX

23h•Hybrid

About The Position

The Government Relations & Partnerships Specialist serves as a key connector between STATION Austin and government, defense, and national security innovation partners. This role is responsible for developing and maintaining strong relationships with government partners, understanding their priorities and objectives, and translating those needs into meaningful engagement across the STATION Austin ecosystem. You’ll work closely with government innovation organizations, founders, mentors, investors, industry partners, and the broader STATION Austin team to create opportunities for collaboration—from curated introductions and roundtables to office hours, programming, events, and strategic partnerships. Success in this role means our government partners see STATION Austin not simply as a place to attend events, but as a year-round resource for accessing founders, technology, expertise, capital, and the broader innovation ecosystem. STATION Austin’s Community Engagement Team connects the defense innovation ecosystem in Texas (and beyond) to the most innovative startups and technology in Texas. Defense Secretaries, Four-Star Generals, Presidents, and delegations from other countries regularly interact with members of our Federal team. Notable government partners include Army Applications Laboratory, AFWERX and DIU.

Requirements

Experience working with government, defense, national security, economic development, startups, or innovation ecosystems.
Understanding—or high capability to learn—how federal organizations and defense innovation organizations operate.
Exceptional relationship building skills, comfortable engaging everyone from early-stage founders to senior government and military leaders.
Naturally curious and asks good questions to uncover what a partner actually needs.
Ability to understand why two people should meet and work to create meaningful connections.
Ability to turn broad partner objectives into actionable programming, introductions, and opportunities.
Comfort navigating contracts, deliverables, timelines, and multiple stakeholders.
Highly organized and documents conversations, commitments, and follow-up.
Ability to move seamlessly between strategy and execution.
Comfortable representing STATION Austin externally and understanding the importance of being a thoughtful steward of its relationships.
Ability to thrive in an environment where priorities can shift quickly and expected to find solutions rather than wait for instructions.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Professional and presentable, greeting everyone cheerfully.
Able to deal with a diverse range of individuals, from students to high-ranking officials.
Excited to work in downtown Austin and have reliable transportation.
Able to work remotely from a quiet place with fast internet.
Security aware (passcode on computers/phones, use of password manager).
Able to efficiently use the Google suite of productivity tools (Gmail, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides).
Available to work during SXSW (Spring Break), DREAMCON (two week-long staff summits annually), and Startup Week.
Able to get to Inbox Zero every day.

Nice To Haves

A priceless network

Responsibilities

Serve as a primary relationship manager for assigned government and defense innovation partners.
Establish recurring touchpoints with partners to understand their priorities, problem sets, upcoming initiatives, and engagement needs.
Develop strong relationships across organizations such as DIU, AFWERX, Army Applications Laboratory, SOFWERX, Marine Innovation Unit, and other federal, state, and local government entities.
Identify opportunities to deepen partner engagement with STATION Austin throughout the year.
Maintain a clear understanding of partner agreements, deliverables, timelines, and expectations.
Ensure partners consistently experience STATION Austin as responsive, organized, and easy to work with.
Translate government partner needs into opportunities for engagement with STATION Austin founders, member companies, mentors, investors, and other partners.
Work across the STATION Austin team to identify and curate the right people for government partners to meet.
Facilitate targeted introductions between government stakeholders and relevant startups, subject-matter experts, investors, and ecosystem leaders.
Help government partners navigate STATION Austin's broader network and identify resources that can advance their objectives.
Track connections and outcomes to understand where STATION Austin is creating meaningful value.
Help develop a consistent cadence of government-focused programming, including roundtables, happy hours, speaker sessions, office hours, working sessions, and other targeted gatherings.
Support the activation of STATION Austin's government and defense-focused spaces by bringing the right people into the room, rather than measuring success solely through attendance.
Work with partners to identify relevant topics, problem sets, speakers, founders, and participants.
Coordinate with the Events and Community Engagement teams to execute partner programming.
Support major STATION Austin programs and events, including Fed Supernova and other defense and national security innovation initiatives.
Identify opportunities to expand existing government relationships and develop new strategic partnerships.
Monitor government funding, grant, and partnership opportunities relevant to STATION Austin and its mission.
Support the development of proposals, presentations, partnership materials, and other strategic documents.
Surface government priorities and ecosystem trends internally so they can inform STATION Austin programming and strategy.
Help leadership understand where STATION Austin can uniquely add value within the Texas and national defense innovation ecosystems.
Document partner meetings, priorities, commitments, introductions, and next steps.
Maintain accurate partner information and engagement activity within STATION Austin's systems.
Track contractual obligations and coordinate internally to ensure commitments are delivered.
Develop reporting around partner engagement, ecosystem connections, programming participation, and outcomes.

Benefits

4 weeks paid time off (one week is between Christmas and New Year’s)
Personal health, vision and dental insurance paid 100% by Capital Factory
401k program (50% company matching)
Life insurance
Short & long term disability
Employee assistance program
Parental leave including 10 weeks paid leave for birthing parents and 4 weeks paid leave for non-birthing parents
$1,000 personal innovation budget on your first year anniversary and then an additional $500 each anniversary thereafter
Coworking membership at STATION Austin with garage parking space, metro pass, or rideshare credits
Access to the onsite gym