Director, Partnership Pipelines

Summary of Position:
The Director of Partnership Pipelines provides strategic leadership for the development and growth of enrollment pipelines through partnerships with external organizations. This position is responsible for leading the Partnership Executive (PE) team focused on established partnership verticals including healthcare, behavioral sciences, counseling, community colleges, churches, educational organizations, corporate partners, and education benefit providers.

The Director is responsible for driving partnership development, strengthening organizational relationships, expanding lead-generation opportunities, and ensuring effective execution of partnership strategies across assigned verticals. This role works collaboratively with academic leadership, enrollment, marketing, student success, and operational teams to advance partnerships that create awareness, generate prospective student interest, and support institutional growth objectives.

Duties and Responsibilities

* Team and Culture

* Develop and lead a high-performing Partnership Executive team that models the mission, values, and culture of Indiana Wesleyan University

* Provide leadership, coaching, and development for Partnership Executives

* Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, innovation, and strategic execution

* Establish performance expectations and professional development plans

* Promote leadership development and succession planning within the partnership organization

* Ensure team alignment with institutional priorities and assigned vertical goals

* Partnership Strategy & Pipeline Development

* Lead the development and execution of partnership strategies that strengthen enrollment pipelines within assigned verticals. Collaborate with leaders to develop outreach and engagement strategies

* Guide partnership development efforts that increase organizational awareness and prospective student interest

* Ensure consistency in partnership development processes and relationship management practices

* Maintain and refine partnership development playbooks and best practices

* Monitor pipeline activity and progress toward established partnership objectives

* Strategic Relationship Management

* Cultivate and strengthen strategic relationships with organizations, industry leaders, and influencers

* Identify and engage organizations that align with university priorities

* Facilitate executive-level conversations between university leaders and external partners

* Advance partnerships that support enrollment, workforce development, student success, and institutional objectives

* Serve as a trusted advisor to key organizational partners

* Support long-term partner engagement and relationship growth

* Market Awareness & External Representation

* Expand awareness and visibility within assigned verticals and target markets

* Represent Indiana Wesleyan University at conferences, industry associations, networking events, and community gatherings. Identify opportunities for lead-generation events and strategic outreach initiatives

* Maintain awareness of market trends, workforce needs, and competitor activity

* Engage alumni, community leaders, and strategic stakeholders within assigned verticals

* Travel as needed to support partnership development and relationship management

* Partnership Development

* In collaboration with the PE leads, creates and executes university-to-organization development and contact strategies and techniques to engage prospective partners, nurture key relationships, present IWU-N&G offerings, and guide the prospective partner through the partnership development funnel, and increase enrollment

* Ensures the administration of legal agreement for new partners, utilizing existing templates

* Executes these strategies with the goal to meet performance targets, including the number of partnerships and students enrolled in degrees

* Provides consistency in the sales process within Partnerships

* Creates and manages with an enrollment and sales playbook

* Onboarding & Engagement

* Ensures the onboarding of new partners

* Provides ongoing communication with and account management for partners to ensure engagement, optimize the relationship, and ensure long-term enrollment success

* Recruitment Strategies

* Aligns partnership development with recruitment strategies that will effectively communicate to an organization's associates IWU programs and deliverables

* Advances partnerships in a way that supports sustained enrollment

* Ensure the execution of recruitment activities at partner organizations

* External Representation & Travel

* Serves as an IWU representative to organizations and events as requested from time to time to support pipeline development and student recruitment

* Frequent travel within the region is an expectation of this role

* Cross-Functional Collaboration & Operational Alignment

* Build strong partnerships across the university to support successful partnership outcomes

* Coordinate internal resources necessary to support partnership…