Associate Director, Partnerships

Engine is the modern travel platform for booking and managing work trips. It saves businesses time and money through an intuitive travel network that connects to nearly every hotel, airline, and car rental company in the U.S. It offers single invoice billing, the flexibility to modify trips at any time without sunk costs, and a unified view of all company travel and spend. Customers rely on Engine to not only make travel easier to manage, but to make it enjoyable for everyone involved. The company is backed by Telescope Partners, Blackstone, Elefund and Permira. Learn more at www.engine.com.

Your Mission:
As Associate Director of Partnerships for our Construction vertical, you'll be a player-coach who builds and leads a high-performing channel strategy from the ground up. This role combines strategic leadership with hands-on execution, perfect for someone who thrives on both developing team talent and rolling up their sleeves to close transformative partnerships. You'll establish Engine as the go-to travel solution for the construction industry while building and mentoring a team that scales our impact.

Key Responsibilities: 

• Build & Scale Construction Channel: Architect and execute a comprehensive channel partnership strategy from the ground up, establishing Engine as the premier travel solution through construction industry associations, software providers, and complementary service partners while setting ambitious targets for partner-sourced revenue and gross booking volume
• Lead & Develop High-Performing Team: Recruit, hire, coach, and mentor a dedicated partnerships team for the construction vertical, establishing performance metrics and career development paths while leading by example in the field
• Drive Platform Growth Through Strategic Partnerships: Personally close high-value channel partnerships with industry associations, technology providers, and service companies that serve the construction sector while coaching your team to build a robust referral pipeline that drives travel volume and revenue growth
• Champion Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Sales, Product, Marketing, and Customer Success teams to develop partner enablement materials, create construction-specific value propositions for partners to use, and ensure seamless handoffs of partner-sourced leads
• Become Industry Expert & Innovator: Establish yourself as Engine's subject matter expert on construction industry travel needs, monitor competitive channel strategies, and drive innovation in partnership models that enable partners to seamlessly refer and integrate Engine into their construction client offerings
• Manage Performance & Analytics: Maintain oversight of the channel partnerships pipeline and P&L for the construction vertical, track partner-sourced leads and conversion rates, and provide data-driven insights on partner performance and enablement needs to leadership

What You’ll Bring to Engine:
We’re looking for someone who’s ready to make an impact and grow alongside us:

• Experience: 5-8+ years of progressive experience in partnerships, business development, or channel management, with at least 2 years in people management and a proven track record of building and scaling partner programs that drive significant revenue growth
• Industry Knowledge: Direct experience in or selling to the construction industry is highly preferred, with understanding of the unique travel needs and workflows of construction companies and their workforce
• Leadership Capabilities: Natural leader who inspires teams through vision, coaching, and personal example, with experience building teams from scratch and strong emotional intelligence to navigate complex stakeholder relationships
• Strategic & Execution Skills: Ability to think strategically while maintaining focus on tactical execution, with a data-driven approach to decision making and excellent project management skills to balance multiple priorities
• Communication & Influence: Executive presence with ability to engage and influence C-suite stakeholders, exceptional written and verbal communication skills, and natural networking abilities to build authentic, lasting business relationships
• Entrepreneurial Mindset: Comfort operating in ambiguity while building structure and processes, with a player-coach mentality that embraces both closing deals personally and developing others to do the same

Cash Compensation: 

• The base salary ran