Senior Director, Strategic Alliances

Overview

SENIOR DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC ALLIANCES

First Book has a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy (medical and religious exemptions permitted).

This is not a 100% fully remote position; in-office presence is mandatory on Tuesday & Wednesday.

First Book is a leading organization in philanthropic and public-private partnerships, dedicated to removing barriers to education for children in need. The Senior Director, Strategic Alliances provides senior leadership for the strategy, management, and growth of First Book’s corporate partnerships portfolio, including complex, multi-year, high-value relationships across a wide range of industries. The role sets partnership strategy, leads and develops a high-performing team, and secures and steward corporate funding to advance First Book’s mission.

Core responsibilities include developing a partnership strategy, managing relationships, driving revenue, overseeing programs, coordinating cross-functionally, budgeting, performance management, and partnership marketing. Successful candidates will bring extensive experience in cause marketing, corporate partnership development, fundraising, and/or private-sector consulting, along with leadership, strong business writing and presentation skills, sound judgment, and the ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, matrixed environment. This role collaborates closely with colleagues across the Strategic Alliances team and works cross-functionally with departments throughout the organization to ensure corporate partnerships align with organizational needs and priorities.

• Provide senior leadership for the strategy, stewardship, renewal, and growth of First Book’s corporate partnerships portfolio, ensuring alignment with organizational priorities, financial objectives, and mission impact.
• Collaborate with Strategic Alliances leadership and cross-functional teams to support departmental vision, planning, staffing, professional development, and performance management, using key performance indicators (KPIs) and results frameworks to evaluate effectiveness and progress.
• Lead, coach, and support a team responsible for managing complex corporate partnerships, setting clear expectations, fostering accountability, and supporting sustainable team performance.
• Develop, present, and advance corporate partnership concepts, proposals, and pitch materials for institutional partners, including multinational corporations and Fortune 500 companies, in support of partnership growth and revenue objectives.
• Oversee the renewal and expansion of existing corporate partnerships by identifying opportunities for growth, negotiating scope and deliverables, and ensuring partnership activity is accurately documented in Salesforce or comparable CRM systems.
• Guide the design, implementation, and oversight of large-scale cause-marketing and corporate-funded programs, ensuring delivery within approved budgets, timelines, and documented scopes of work.
• Partner with internal stakeholders to develop, monitor, and refine partnership performance metrics, portfolio health indicators, and operational dashboards used to inform decision-making and resource allocation.
• Maintain accurate, timely, and complete records of partner engagement, pipeline activity, financial projections, and impact outcomes using CRM and reporting tools.
• Lead the preparation of data-driven partner impact reports, executive summaries, and internal updates using standardized templates and validated data sources.
• Coordinate cross-functional deliverables across departments to ensure partnership commitments are met, proactively identifying risks, dependencies, and opportunities and escalating as appropriate.
• Monitor and assess trends in corporate philanthropy, CSR, ESG, and cause marketing, translating insights into actionable recommendations that inform partnership strategy and innovation.
• Represent First Book professionally in external meetings, presentations, and partner engagements, exercising sound judgment, discretion, and alignment with organizational values.
• Perform additional duties as assigned, consistent with business needs and the scope of…