VP of Strategy and Corporate Development

Duolingo•Pittsburgh, PA

22h•Hybrid

About The Position

Our mission at Duolingo is to develop the best education in the world and make it universally available. It’s a big mission, and that’s where you come in! At Duolingo, you’ll join a team that cares about educating our users, experimenting with big ideas, making fact-based decisions, and finding innovative solutions to complex problems. You’ll have limitless learning opportunities and daily collaborations with world-class minds — while doing work that’s both meaningful and fun. Join our life-changing mission to develop education for our half a billion (and growing!) learners around the world. Read our blog to learn more. About the role... We’re looking for a VP of Strategy and Corporate Development to join Duolingo’s Senior Leadership Team and drive strategy, planning and our growth via M&A. Reporting to the Chief Business Officer, the VP of Strategy and Corporate Development will manage our Strategy and Business Operations and Corporate Development functions. Strategy and Business Operations at Duolingo is fast moving and iterative and represents the majority of this role. We’re seeking a leader who’s excited to work at a founder-led company, comfortable with ambiguity, and collaborates well with product and technical teams. Corporate Development at Duolingo supports key company priorities, with a focus on acqui-hires and targeted capability acquisitions rather than large transformational deals. We’ve used M&A to build functions, establish offices, and expand into new subjects. We’re excited to continue and expand our M&A activity. This role is based in our Pittsburgh, PA or New York, NY office on a hybrid (4+1) work schedule.

Requirements

20+ years relevant work experience in strategy, consulting, M&A, investment banking, or product management, and significant experience in technology companies.
A demonstrated understanding of Duolingo’s business and future growth opportunities.
A demonstrated track record of success in fast paced entrepreneurial work environments.
Experience working closely with product and engineering colleagues.
Excellent communication and analytical skills.
Team leadership experience with a track record of hiring, developing, and managing high‑performing teams.
Ability to work from our Pittsburgh, PA or New York, NY office on a 4+1 hybrid work schedule.

Nice To Haves

Significant experience using Duolingo, and opinions about how to improve it.
Leadership experience at a founder-led company.
Experience at a leading consumer app.

Responsibilities

Partner with leaders across the company to develop strategies spanning our main Pillars: Growth, Monetization, Language Learning, and New Subjects (Math, Music and Chess).
Generate insights that directly influence product experiments and drive impact.
Run company-wide strategy and planning, driving alignment on strategic direction and resource allocation, including leading planning for Duolingo Board of Directors meetings.
Support Duolingo’s growth through M&A, fully aligned with our strategy and key priorities, and working closely with Duolingo’s product and executive teams.
Own Corporate Development end-to-end: source, evaluate, negotiate, and close acquisitions; coordinate cross‑functional diligence; and drive thoughtful integration.
Lead and manage Strategy and Business Operations and Corporate Development teams (~10 people), setting the bar for your functional craft and empathizing with your team as people.
Encourage your team to continue embracing new tools and technologies for insight generation and analysis, automation, and communication.