Code for Science & Society

Title: Business Development & Partnerships Lead

Position Type: Full time with benefits

Salary range: $95,000 - 110,00 USD annually with benefits

Location: Remote, with supervisor based in New York.

Program Description

Invest in Open Infrastructure (IOI) is seeking a Business Development & Partnerships Lead to join a growing team working to increase adoption, investment in, and the sustainability of open infrastructure in research and scholarship.

The Business Development & Partnerships Lead position is instrumental to the next phase of IOI’s growth and development as we look to diversify our funding modes and streams, as well as grow uptake and investment of open infrastructure by institutions and funders globally. Our aim is to direct as much support to the communities we serve while also ensuring our ability to sustain IOI’s core activities. This role will directly support and lead the expansion of IOI’s business activities to advance IOI’s mission.

This includes identifying fee-for service and funding opportunities to advance IOI’s strategic plan, conducting market analysis and prospect research to help prioritize new opportunities and partnerships, creating materials to support the Executive Director in business development, and developing processes and strategies to bring efficiency and clarity to this work. This role will also work closely with the Executive Director and Leadership team to build support for IOI’s first Collective Fund, set to launch in early-to-mid 2024.

This is an exciting role for someone passionate about deepening IOI’s impact and service to the research community, while also ensuring that we internally are being strategic about how we are supported alongside the pressing funding needs of the communities we serve. We see this role as critical in helping us identify mission-aligned ways we can support ongoing work, while also ensuring we’re maximizing and increasing investment in the open infrastructure ecosystem.

This position will work closely with the Executive Director and will serve as part of IOI’s Leadership team (which consists of the Director of Research & Strategy and Engagement Lead). This is a full-time, remote position, reporting to the Executive Director.

Key responsibilities:

Support the Executive in furthering the development of IOI’s fundraising and business partnership strategy, including development of sustainable support for IOI via fee-for-service offerings, fund contributions, and core support via grants and donations.
Build and manage a portfolio of funding prospects and partners including foundations, government agencies / national funding programs, industry partners, institutional leaders and budget holders, and other organizations with financial support potential through identification, cultivation, solicitation, reporting, and stewardship.
Work with IOI Leadership team to think strategically about how to grow the uptake and investment of open infrastructure among funders and institutions systematically, including via marketing efforts, network partnerships, and more.
Create and refine systems, processes, and tools for building and managing a business development pipeline that brings clarity to how we make decisions about opportunities, what the outcomes and deadlines are, and how we are measuring progress.
Lead and support prospect research and prepare materials to support business development conversations led by the ED and/or other Leadership team members.
Track engagement efforts and progress in CiviCRM.

Additional responsibilities could include:

Ensure the cultivation and stewardship, with the support of the Executive Director and Engagement Lead, of a diverse portfolio of existing supporters and prospects, including taking meetings with current and prospective partners to understand their needs, keep them informed and engaged, and track reporting requirements.
Support the ED and Leadership team with costing out proposals for new work, and prioritizing opportunities that weigh IOI’s capacity, financial need, and alignment with strategic objectives.
Engage and manage short-term contractors, as needed, to augment market research and analysis needs to further bolster development activities and help deepen IOI’s understanding of core audiences and prospective partners.
Work with IOI staff and/or short-term contractors to investigate financial, legal, and operational considerations associated with administering and deploying funds.

Necessary Skills and Experience:

Knowledge of the funding landscape for research intensive environments and/or open source technology, including philanthropies, institutional funding, and government funders.
5-7 years of successful fundraising experience, including direct experience and success in securing large grants and donations from individuals to support mission-oriented work and/or experience building consulting or fee-for-service offerings to offset core programmatic costs.
Experience creating and implementing successful long-term fundraising and partnership strategies with a diverse set of partners.
Ability to create and maintain strong internal relationships and balance the needs of multiple stakeholders.
Demonstrable track record as an exceptional communicator, in writing as well as verbally, adept at preparing proposals, donor correspondence, slide decks and background research to support business development conversations.
Desire to work in a dynamic and mission-driven organization.
Ability to maintain confidentiality of donor information and a finely-tuned sense of discretion.
Ability to work with a high degree of autonomy and accountability.
Comfort and experience in a technology-driven environment.
Experience working with technical and/or scientific donors.
Experience working in an organization with a distributed workforce.
Experience with CRM software and tracking, like CiviCRM.

Nice to have:

Broad-based knowledge of various development and partnership activities including: membership/subscription based models, fee-for-service opportunities, grants and philanthropic support.
Experience building relationships with and through mission-supporting ventures.
Experience preparing and making effective presentations to diverse groups large and small.
Experience costing out proposals, conducting market research and business analysis to better map total addressable markets and provide insights.
Past experience at a philanthropy or public sector funder, managing a portfolio of at least $3-5M.

Work Location & Environment

We strive at IOI to ensure our work balances being trustworthy and evidence-based with a design that makes the topics we care about actionable, approachable, reusable, memorable, and understandable.

We are committed to openness and transparency, and aim to share our process, findings, and work in formats that enable participation and reuse. Transparency and access are two critical components of the healthy, inclusive ecosystem we are building towards, and we aim to reflect that in our work.

We believe in iterative development, and are committed to soliciting and incorporating feedback into our work products and process.

We aim to foster a healthier, more equitable and inclusive research ecosystem. This underlies all of our work as a team, with the community, and in how we approach this work.

We’re a highly collaborative, fully remote team that believes in empowering others, learning together, and (respectfully) challenging our own assumptions to better serve the communities we care about. We value honest and transparent communications in our work together and actively cultivate a team culture of learning and iteration.

A stipend of up to $3,000 USD is provided to support equipment costs and home office needs for employees. Project staff work across a variety of time zones, with project leadership based in New York, USA. Candidates should be available 3+ hours / day to allow for effective communication, connection, and collaboration. Benefits include medical, dental, vision, life insurance, 401k with 4% employer match for US employees.

Additional details:

This is a grant-funded position.
CS&S is the fiscal sponsor and organizational home of IOI. CS&S offers employee benefits through TriNet for US-based employees, including health insurance and retirement.
International applicants will be considered for a contract position.
Candidates should already be able to work legally where they are based, we can not offer visa support for this position at this time.
IOI is a fully remote organization, with project leadership based in US Eastern Standard time. Candidates should be available 3+ hours / day with project leadership.

Application Process

Please follow this link to apply. At the link you will be prompted to upload a single pdf document containing a cover letter and resume along with a short statement about why you're interested in the role.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. We are looking to hire for this role ASAP, so please share this opportunity and don’t hesitate to apply.

About IOI

Invest in Open Infrastructure (IOI) was launched to create a strategic, global body dedicated to furthering a network of open, interoperable community-led and -supported infrastructure to advance scholarship, research, and education. We work in concert with institutional funders, decision makers, and philanthropic funders to better understand the decision points, funding and governance models available, and costs associated with maintaining, sustaining, and scaling open infrastructure projects.

IOI is fiscally sponsored by Code for Science and Society (CS&S). CS&S is an equal opportunity employer committed to hiring a diverse workforce at all levels of the organization thereby creating a culture that allows us to better serve our clientele, our employees and our communities. We value and encourage the contributions of our colleagues and strive to create an environment where everyone can reach their full potential and drive outstanding results. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, age, sex, religion, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, gender identity or expression, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal law. This policy applies with regard to all aspects of one’s employment, including hiring, transfer, promotion, compensation, eligibility for benefits, and termination.