The Strategic Partnerships & Alliances Team at Excelsior University is dedicated to cultivating purposeful collaborations through partnerships and strategic alliances with corporations, associations, government entities, military bases, veteran organizations, other academic institutions, and likeminded organizations serving those seeking to complete a post-secondary degree or certificate. Excelsior University is an accredited, not-for-profit distance learning institution founded in 1971 focused on providing educational opportunity to adult learners, with an emphasis on those underrepresented in higher education.

The Associate Director of Partnership Development is responsible for managing a portfolio of strategic partnerships and alliances across industry verticals, as well as onboarding new partnerships and alliances when transitioned from Business Development. The goal of this position is to help Excelsior grow inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, and revenue through established strategic relationships. The Associate Director of Partnership Development will support the Director of Partnership Development, assisting with management, coaching, mentoring, training, and development of designated team members and representing the Director of Partnership Development amongst internal and external stakeholders, in their absence.

In this role the Associate Director of Partnership Development builds awareness of Excelsior as a leader in distance learning to partners at a B2B level, acting as an Account Manager for established partners within a designated portfolio, building synergies and pathways with different units, subsidiaries, and departments under the partner institution, and serving students at a B2C level. The goal of this position is to build strong partnerships that will address the needs of these various institutions by aligning Excelsior University services and products.

The successful candidate will report to the Director of Partnership Development, work closely with other members of the Strategic Partnerships and Alliances team, interact with other Excelsior University departments and staff members, and be able to work independently and as part of a team to help successfully achieve inquiry, enrollment, credit taking, and revenue goals and objectives. This position requires regional and national travel, including weekends and overnight.

This position is based out of the university’s home office in Albany, NY with the option of considering remote candidates. Remote employees will have mandatory occasional travel for meetings, conferences, and professional development opportunities. Remote employees are expected to be available during work hours 8:30am – 5:00pm Eastern time. The University will supply necessary equipment to perform the essential functions of this job (e.g., laptop, docking station). Employees are responsible for having a workspace where they can participate in virtual meetings without multiple interruptions and noise.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Assist in coordinating, executing, and supporting the team and university strategic plan, under the oversight of the Director of Partnership Development.

Assist the Director of Partnership Development with the management, coaching, mentoring, training, and development of team members, as needed.

Represent the Director of Partnership Development and the Strategic Partnership and Alliances team in meetings and on certain committees, projects, and working groups, ensuring appropriate representation, as necessary.

Collaborate with other Strategic Partnerships and Alliances team members to ensure best use of resources and best practices.

Collaborate with Strategic Partnerships and Alliances leadership to actively recruit, participate in and provide feedback on interview candidates and assist with training schedules and development of new hires.

As an Account Manager, the Associate Director builds and manages relationships with various stakeholders representing assigned partners and acts as a point of contact and advocate.

Develop key contacts within a designated portfolio with the goal of building workforce development, degree and certificate completion initiatives, and educational interventions to meet the identified goals of the partners to align with university goals.

Manage existing portfolio of partnerships by developing and executing engagement, outreach, and marketing initiatives that will meet inquiry, enrollment, credit taking, and revenue goals as driven by the university’s strategic goals.

Manage and execute new partner onboarding initiatives under the oversight of the Director of Partnership Development upon transition from Business Development to determine long-term viability of partner.

Coordinate and execute the development and updating of transfer guide (articulation) and high level (unofficial) review templates and make available to team members.

Assist with and manage the development of unofficial evaluations, admissions, and advising processes (as needed).

Promote and represent Excelsior products and services as an educational option to partners and students.

Actively seek opportunities to promote Excelsior and engage existing partners through relationship building, site visits, webinars, presentations, and other forms of outreach, engagement, and marketing with the focus of generating inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, and revenue.

Manage effective engagement, marketing, and communication plans for each partner within designated portfolio, including B2C engagement, development, and execution.

Provide continuous improvements to Strategic Account Plans (SAPs), and development of Annual Partner Plans (APPs) and marketing initiatives for designated portfolios. SAPs are used to generate annual plans inclusive of face-to-face and virtual engagements, communication, and marketing plans, which are functionally executed by Partnership Development staff working in tandem with the Director of Partnership Development.

Track all partner activities via Salesforce and ensure all final documents are posted in SharePoint.

Represent Excelsior University at appropriate conferences, participating in seminars/forums etc. (as needed). The primary focus of the

Assistant Director of Partnership Development is B2B relationships and B2C engagements with the goal of growing inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, and revenue.

Work with Director of Partnership Development and other university staff on initiatives to increase partner inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, and revenue.

Ensure consistency with Excelsior’s brand with partners, students, and team members to ensure delivery of a consistent, branded, and accurate message. Generate and provide reports and updates to partners as needed.

Ensure partner agreements are reviewed frequently to determine compliance to terms and conditions.

Other duties as assigned.

The focus of this position is on growing Excelsior’s inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, revenue, and growth opportunities for a portfolio of new and high-profile partners. Success will be measured by individual and partner success as defined by engagements, activities, initiatives, growth, inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, and revenue.

Depending on location, this position may require the ability to work from a home office. Albany based staff are expected to work onsite a minimum of two days per week. This position requires regional and national travel (including weekend and overnight travel).

QUALIFICATIONS - To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Ability to work with multiple, diverse stakeholders across complex organizations and different populations and recognize opportunities for growth.

Success in inquiry, enrollment, credit taking, and revenue generation and building successful partnership programs.

Ability to establish and maintain relationships with key decision makers and develop a high level of understanding for professional development and workforce needs within key organizations and verticals.

Project management skills and the ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities effectively.

Demonstrate creativity, enthusiasm, and openness to innovation.

Ability to master a wide body of knowledge and information.

Strong interpersonal, oral, written communication, and presentation skills.

Strong organizational, analytical, decision making, and problem-solving skills.

Ability to excel working fully remote or hybrid in a professional, private, and quiet workspace managing multiple priorities and meeting deadlines and goals.

Ability to review/prepare accurate detailed documents.

Proficient computer literacy and willingness to learn new applications, Knowledge of Microsoft Office products required. Knowledge of

Salesforce and SharePoint a plus.

Self-disciplined with proven ability to work independently and with initiative to successfully achieve goals and objectives.

Ability to travel. Conference attendance, partner/student engagements, and off-site meetings will be required. Occasional weekend/evening hours and overnight travel.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution required.

Master’s degree desirable.

At least five years of work experience in a related role, such as sales, account management, marketing, admissions, recruiting, or business development is required.

Experience working in Higher Education or other learning-related field with adult learners a plus, as is additional professional work experience.

The hiring salary range for this position is $63,000.00 - $81,000.00. The hiring salary range above represents the University's good faith estimate at the time of posting.