Vice President, Government Affairs, Partnerships & Business Development

Autura•Boston, MA

About The Position

Autura is a vertical SaaS platform purpose-built for the towing and recovery industry. We provide integrated software that helps towing operators, dispatchers, law enforcement agencies, and state and local governments manage impounds, abandoned vehicles, liens, and roadside operations. With customers across North America and a rapidly expanding platform, Autura is changing how the industry and the agencies it serves operate. The VP of Government Affairs, Partnerships & Business Development owns four connected areas: government affairs and industry advocacy, government business development and procurement, partnerships and alliances, and corporate development sourcing. The role reports directly to the Chief Executive Officer. You work alongside Autura’s government sales team, not above it and not separate from it. Your first job is to get Autura into the deal and set it up to be won: shape the statute, the funding, the requirements, and the relationships before a solicitation exists. Your second job is to help win it, staying hands-on through proposal, negotiation, and award as the senior relationship and political owner. You are measured and compensated on government and partnership revenue, the same outcome the sales team carries. You are a senior leader who works comfortably at the intersection of policy, procurement, and technology adoption. You will build this function from zero. You will shape the regulatory environment Autura operates in, open statewide agency programs before they go to solicitation, build the partner and channel infrastructure that makes Autura easy for a government to buy, and source acquisition targets that expand Autura’s position in government towing.

Requirements

12+ years in government relations, business development, sales leadership, or policy, with significant experience in complex legislative, regulatory, and government procurement environments
Proven record building and managing relationships with government agencies, elected officials, regulatory bodies, and public sector stakeholders
Demonstrated success closing government contracts, managing government pipelines, and driving revenue from federal, state, or local markets
Experience selling enterprise software to state agencies through multi-year, statute-driven procurements (revenue, transportation, public safety, or motor vehicle departments)
Experience selling through government channel partners and contract vehicles, including GSA schedule, state term contracts, and cooperative purchasing
Experience with hyperscale public sector partner programs (AWS, Azure, or GCP), including co-sell and marketplace
Track record building technology or integration alliances with platform vendors
Working knowledge of federal and state grant funding mechanisms for public sector technology purchases
Experience managing outside lobbyists or government affairs consultants
Experience sourcing or supporting acquisitions, ideally inside a private equity backed platform pursuing add-ons
Deep understanding of government procurement, policy development, and regulatory decision-making
Ability to learn and quickly master the towing, recovery, transportation, and public safety industries
Strong executive presence with C-suite executives, government officials, elected representatives, and industry leaders
Bachelor’s degree in business, public policy, law, economics, public administration, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience
Excellent communication, presentation, negotiation, and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to translate complex policy into business impact

Responsibilities

Develop and lead Autura’s government affairs and industry relations strategy at federal, state, and local levels, aligned to business development and revenue objectives
Build and maintain relationships with government agencies, elected officials, regulatory bodies, industry associations, and community leaders who influence policy adoption and industry direction
Retain, direct, and hold accountable outside lobbyists and policy consultants, including scope, budget, priority setting, and measurement of results
Own Autura’s relationships with national and state towing and recovery associations (TRAA, state associations, and regional groups), including membership, sponsorship, board and committee participation, and coordinated advocacy on legislation affecting the industry
Work with and through the associations to shape model legislation, licensing and rate regulation, consent and non-consent tow rules, and compliance standards, and to mobilize operator support for Autura’s policy positions
Serve as Autura’s senior representative at public hearings, legislative sessions, regulatory proceedings, association conferences, legislative days, and committee meetings
Monitor and advise the executive team on political developments, regulatory changes, policy risks, and legislative opportunities that affect strategy and market positioning
Develop Autura’s government and industry narrative, positioning the company as a modernization leader and connecting product capability to priorities in transportation, infrastructure, emergency response, and public safety
Coordinate with Marketing and Market Engagement so association presence, event strategy, and sponsorship spend are aligned rather than duplicated
Set the government market strategy across federal, state, and local agencies, including which markets Autura pursues, in what sequence, and through what approach, in partnership with Sales leadership
Lead pre-solicitation engagement to understand procurement processes, influence how funding opportunities and RFPs are scoped, and position Autura as the strategic partner before a solicitation is published
Own the front end of the government opportunity: identification, early engagement, requirement shaping, and qualification, and bring the government sales team in with full context on stakeholders, funding source, requirements, competitive position, and timeline
Work the opportunity jointly with the sales team through proposal, negotiation, and award: open doors, carry the executive and elected relationships, resolve stakeholder and policy obstacles, and close alongside the team
Identify, develop, and close opportunities with public sector customers and intermediary organizations such as associations and consulting firms working with government, in partnership with the sales team
Partner with Sales, Product, and Operations to convert government engagement into pilots, proofs of concept, and major procurements, and make sure the sales team has the political and policy context to win them
Own Autura’s statewide agency motion regardless of which department holds the mandate: revenue and titling, transportation, highway patrol or state police, motor vehicle divisions, and law enforcement impound programs
Identify states where abandoned vehicle, lien, salvage, or title processing statutes create a mandate or funding trigger, determine which agency owns the workflow in that state, and engage before solicitations are scoped
Build the repeatable playbook off recent wins, including legislative mandate to procurement to go-live sequencing, hosting and security requirements, and integration with state title, registration, and dispatch systems
Track state legislative sessions for abandoned vehicle and titling reform, and work with associations and lobbyists to shape bills so that compliance requires the capabilities Autura already has
Maintain a ranked target list of states by statutory posture, agency ownership, vehicle volume, and incumbent vendor exposure, and own accountability for opening those states and converting them to revenue
Own Autura’s government and industry partnership strategy, including contract vehicles, channel, technology alliances, and adjacent market entry
Establish and manage relationships with government reseller and distribution partners, and own Autura’s positioning on GSA schedule, state term contracts, and cooperative purchasing vehicles
Own the cloud partner relationship, including co-sell, marketplace listing, partner funding programs, and joint pursuit of public sector opportunities
Build Autura’s funding capture capability: identify federal and state grant programs, incentive funds, and appropriations that agencies can use to purchase Autura, and manage internal or contracted grant writing resources
Develop technology alliances with CAD, RMS, and dispatch platform providers to make Autura the default towing layer in the public safety software stack
Evaluate and lead entry into adjacent markets, starting with parking and mobility, including partner and channel strategy for those segments
Source and qualify acquisition targets in government towing, impound management, and adjacent public sector services, and maintain a target pipeline with a clear strategic rationale for each
Own first contact and relationship development with target owners and operators, often well ahead of any transaction
Support the CEO, CFO, and board on evaluation, diligence in areas of contract and regulatory risk, and integration planning for acquired government contracts and agency relationships
Assess government contract portability, novation requirements, and re-procurement risk in any target under consideration
Serve as strategic advisor to the CEO and executive team on government relations, policy risk, the regulatory landscape, and growth opportunities in public sector markets
Provide market intelligence, competitive insight, and customer feedback on government procurement priorities to inform the product roadmap
Establish KPIs and reporting for government affairs, business development, and partnerships, carrying accountability for government and partnership revenue alongside states and accounts opened, contract vehicles and partnerships in place, and legislative and regulatory outcomes
Build and manage government affairs and partnerships capability as the organization scales, working through the existing government sales team rather than building a parallel one