Senior Director of Partnerships

About CDI

The Constructive Dialogue Institute (CDI) is a non‑profit dedicated to equipping the next generation of Americans with the skills to communicate and collaborate across lines of difference. We work with U.S. colleges and universities by providing co‑curricular programming for students, professional development for faculty and staff, and strategic guidance to leadership. Our goal is to foster constructive dialogue at every level of the institution and to create the conditions for lasting organizational change.

CDI was co‑founded by psychologist Jonathan Haidt, the bestselling author of The Righteous Mind and The Anxious Generation.

The Constructive Dialogue Institute (CDI) is seeking a strategic and dynamic Senior Director of Partnerships to accelerate CDI’s growth through high‑impact, mission‑aligned partnerships.

Reporting to the VP of Growth, you will serve as a strategic thought partner in shaping and executing CDI’s partnership and demand generation strategy. You will own a portfolio of key institutional targets and lead efforts to advance them from early engagement through committed partnership, ensuring alignment between partner goals and CDI’s offerings.

This role blends strategy and execution: you’ll collaborate cross‑functionally and design systems that make CDI’s partnership pipeline more efficient and data‑informed while cultivating key relationships that expand CDI’s reach across higher education and other sectors. You will also represent CDI externally, serving as a thought partner to higher education leaders and as an ambassador at conferences and convenings, with expected travel 4‑6 days per month during conference season (October – April).

The ideal candidate combines business development acumen, systems thinking, and a passion for advancing dialogue and culture change in complex organizations.

• Own a portfolio of key institutional targets, state systems and associations, advancing prospects through the full partnership lifecycle from initial outreach and qualification to agreement and successful handoff to implementation.

• Build and manage a high‑quality partnership pipeline using Hub Spot to track engagement, monitor deal progression, and analyze conversion metrics, generating insights that inform forecasting and strategy.

• Lead an outreach and demand generation strategy in collaboration with Demand Generation Marketing and the VP of Growth, including lead scoring, segmentation, and account‑based marketing (ABM) campaigns that deepen engagement with target institutions.

• Track performance toward CDI’s earned‑revenue goals
  , analyzing Hub Spot data to surface insights that inform forecasting, strategy, and team decision‑making.

• Refine and operationalize partnership systems and protocols
  , including contracting, outreach workflows, and collateral development, to support efficiency and consistency across the partnerships function.

• Collaborate closely with the Program Implementation team to ensure smooth handoffs, assess partner readiness, and identify opportunities for renewal or expansion within existing partnerships.

• Represent CDI externally as a compelling spokesperson at conferences and convenings, engaging institutional leaders and decision‑makers to elevate awareness and generate new partnership opportunities.

• 7+ years of experience in partnerships, sales, or development, ideally within mission‑driven or growth‑stage organizations.

• Strategic and organized; you bring vision and initiative while delivering reliably on goals and timelines.

• Highly skilled relationship‑builder who cultivates trust with senior decision‑makers and advances partnerships through authenticity and alignment.

• Experienced in developing strategies and systems at the intersection of marketing and partnerships to generate demand and deepen engagement.

• Data‑informed and fluent in sales enablement tools ensuring accuracy, insight, and accountability across the partnership pipeline. Experience with Hub Spot and Asana a plus.

• Collaborative and comfortable working across functions, from Marketing and Growth Ops to Program Implementation, to translate interest into measurable…