Sr/Manager VC & Ecosystem Partnerships - United States

About the Team:

The Partnerships Team focuses on identifying, building, and managing long-term strategic partnerships to drive sustainable customer growth for Aspire. The team engages potential clients, ensures smooth onboarding, and cultivates enduring relationships. By providing tailored support and solutions, they empower businesses to maximize Aspire's benefits and achieve their strategic goals, enhancing Aspire's presence within the US startup ecosystem.

About the Role:

The Startups & Ecosystem Partnerships (Senior) Manager, US, will spearhead Aspire's expansion into the US market as GTM employee #1. This role's primary responsibility is to establish and manage strategic relationships across the larger start-up ecosystem including leading accelerators, VCs, founder communities / networks and key service providers and position Aspire as the go-to financial operating solution in the market. The incumbent will report to the  VP of Global Partnerships and will be an essential part of Aspire’s US GTM team.

Responsibilities:

• Develop & Execute US Ecosystem Strategy: Formulate, design, implement, and manage Aspire's comprehensive partnership strategy.
• Build & Nurture Key Partnerships: Identify, acquire and actively manage high-impact partnerships to position Aspire as financial operating solution of choice for startups.
• Drive Startup Growth via Partners: Develop and implement innovative partner engagement initiatives (co-marketing, co-selling, joint events, integrations, referral programs).
• Establish Aspire as a Thought Leader: Position Aspire as a recognized authority and indispensable partner within the US startup landscape. Represent Aspire at significant industry events, conferences (e.g., TechCrunch Disrupt, SXSW, ecosystem partner events), and within partner communities.
• Performance Measurement & Optimization: Define, track, analyze, and report on critical partnership performance metrics. Utilize data-driven insights to continuously refine partnership strategies and methodologies.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate closely with Marketing, Sales, Product, and Customer Success teams to align partnership activities, exchange market intelligence, ascertain market needs, and ensure a seamless partner and customer experience.
• Market Intelligence: Maintain comprehensive knowledge of the US startup ecosystem, competitive landscape, key stakeholders, trends, and funding environment.
• Requires minimum 50% travel to the Bay Area for in-person partner meetings.

Minimum Requirements:

• 6-8 years of experience in partnerships, business development, Channel partnerships or ecosystem development within a banking, fintech, B2B SaaS, or major technology (Cloud/SaaS) context. Direct experience working with or within startups, accelerators, incubators, or venture capital entities is highly preferred.
• Proven expertise in establishing and managing partnerships within the US startup ecosystem, including a thorough understanding of key participants.
• Bring an established network within the US startup community.
• History of driving measurable business growth through strategic partnerships and ecosystem development.
• Exceptional interpersonal, negotiation, and presentation capabilities, with the capacity to engage and influence senior stakeholders both internally and externally.
• Exhibit a highly self-motivated, entrepreneurial mindset with a strong disposition towards action and results. Display comfort in working autonomously and assuming responsibility.
• Possess strong analytical and problem-solving skills; ability to leverage data to inform decision-making and optimize performance.
• Thrive within a dynamic, ambiguous startup environment.
• Hold a Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Marketing, or a related field. An MBA is plus.

Location: San Francisco Bay Area, CA (Open to CA candidates, but must be able to travel to the Bay Area minimum 50% for partner meetings)

Why Aspire?

Become a part of a high-growth fintech leader that is revolutionizing business finance. The opportunity to build something significant in the world's preeminent startup market and shape the growth strategy as the first GTM hire in the US, collaborate with passionate colleagues, and directly contribute to the success of numerous innovative companies is offered. We offer competitive remuneration, benefits, and a dynamic, collaborative corporate culture.

Pay and benefits:

The expected OTE for this role ranges from $180,000 to $240,000. This salary range may cover a number of levels at Aspire and will be narrowed during the interview process based on a number of factors, including the candidate’s experience, qualifications, performance in the interview process and final location. Actual starting pay will vary based on factors such as location, experience, skills, market conditions, and internal equity.