Sr. Strategic Partnership Manager

Job Title: Sr. Strategic Partnerships Manager

Team: Partnerships

Location: Onsite - Sawtelle (Between Santa Monica & West LA)

Employment Type: Full-time, Salary, Exempt

Reports To: Head of Partnerships

About Plug

Plug is an automotive fintech startup building the marketplace for electric vehicles. Consumers, dealers, and commercial partners trade in, sell, and auction used EVs through a platform built exclusively for electric, with nothing adapted from legacy automotive.

Consumers can get an instant cash offer in minutes, backed by data-driven pricing, battery state-of-health analysis, with pickup, payment, and title transfer handled end-to-end. Franchise and independent dealers across the United States bid in real time on inventory sourced directly from these consumers, dealers, and commercial partners. The result is a single platform that gives sellers a fast, fair exit and gives dealers a dedicated channel for sourcing used EV inventory.

Founded in 2023 and led by former Tesla executives, Plug has facilitated $100M in EV sales since launch and is backed by a $20M Series A from Lightspeed Venture Partners. We’re building the most AI-native startup team in Los Angeles, full of operators, engineers, and ML researchers laying the transaction rails for the used EV market’s exponential growth.

Why Plug

• You’ll own a piece of the biggest infrastructure opportunity in automotive.

• You’ll work on a platform built exclusively for EVs, with nothing adapted from legacy automotive.

• You’ll be part of an AI-native company. We’re rethinking how work gets done at a fundamental level.

• You’ll work directly with operators who have scaled multi-billion dollar businesses in automotive, EV, and marketplaces.

• You’ll have real ownership, high autonomy, and a direct line to company outcomes.

Why this role

Partnerships are how Plug scales supply and demand at the same time. The Partnerships team owns the relationships that power Plug’s auction: consumer marketplaces, dealer groups, and commercial vehicle sellers –such as fleets, rental companies, OEMs, and other high-volume consignors.

Reporting to the Head of Partnerships, you will own a major slice of that portfolio end to end. You are not running a support function and you are not waiting for direction. You set the plan for your accounts, drive it across Operations, Sales, Product, and Finance, and answer for the results.

Your mission

Our company mission is to electrify the used car industry. Your job is to turn Plug’s most important partnerships into durable, growing programs, and to be the person inside the company who makes those programs work.

How we think about partnerships

Partnerships are a business, not a relationship-management exercise. Every program should answer at least one of: does this increase vehicle supply, increase dealer demand, improve transaction speed, improve margin, or strengthen Plug’s position with a partner? We do not confuse activity with progress, and we do not keep programs alive out of politeness.

What you will own (key responsibilities)

1. Own a portfolio of strategic partnerships: Carry direct accountability for a defined set of partner relationships and the numbers they produce. Set the objectives for your accounts inside the team’s goals, build the plan, and drive it without needing it handed to you.

2. Grow the programs you own: Find the expansion inside existing relationships - new lanes, new vehicle types, new commercial structures - and build the case for it. Bring the analysis, not just the idea.

3. Lead cross-functionally without authority: Get Operations, Sales, Product, Engineering, and Finance aligned on what your partners need and when. You will not own those teams, so influence, clarity, and credibility are the job.

4. Maintain excellence throughout the relationship: Own onboarding, implementation, and the ongoing operating cadence. Track commitments and milestones, resolve issues end to end rather than escalating them, and surface risk before it lands.

5. Be the partner’s advocate and Plug’s filter: Translate partner needs into clear internal priorities and product requirements with enough detail that other teams can act. Push back internally when a partner is right, and push back on the partner when Plug is.

6. Build the playbook: Document how Plug runs strategic partnerships so the approach scales past you, and contribute the standards and methods the next hires will run on.

7. Bring AI-native solutions to your work: We want people who don’t just execute the process but rebuild it, and who apply new tools to their own workflow before asking for headcount.

Success after 12 months

• Measurable growth in vehicle supply from the partnerships you own.

• Program revenue from your portfolio growing against plan.

• At least one existing program materially expanded in scope or commercial value.

• Partner commitments and program milestones consistently met, with risk flagged early.

• Cross-functional teams moving on your partner priorities without escalation.

• Reporting and forecasts on your portfolio the exec team trusts without checking.

• A documented partnership playbook a new hire could run.

Required experience

• 5+ years of relevant experience in partnerships, business development, account management, or commercial roles, with real ownership of outcomes rather than support of someone else’s.

• A track record of growing existing relationships into larger programs, with numbers you can speak to.

• Proven ability to lead cross-functional work without authority and get decisions made.

• Strong executive presence and clear written communication with both partners and internal teams.

Preferred experience

• Automotive, fleet, OEM, or marketplace experience - strongly preferred, not required.

• Worked two-sided or supply-constrained businesses where partnerships drove liquidity.

• Experience structuring commercial terms alongside legal and finance.

• Already using AI tools in your daily workflow to move faster.

How we operate

We hire builders who value ownership, velocity, curiosity, and measurable outcomes. We move quickly, make decisions with data, and embrace AI as a core operating principle. We hire for skillset over background, and people advance here because their impact grows, not because of tenure or headcount.

The people who do well here scope their own work, run their own process, and keep multiple workstreams moving without being managed closely. They are comfortable with complexity and ambiguity, and can take a partly defined problem and come back with a plan. High agency, low ego, and a bias for action. You put yourself in front of people and you own the outcome.

What makes this role unique

You will own relationships that directly determine how fast the company grows, with the autonomy to run them like your own business and direct exposure to how a two-sided EV marketplace gets built. This is a seat with a clear path to broader commercial ownership as Plug scales.

Not sure you should apply? Do it.

Research consistently shows that people from under-represented groups are more likely to talk themselves out of applying if they don’t meet 100% of the listed requirements. Here’s the thing - you don’t need to check every box. At Plug, we’re building a team that’s diverse and inclusive, so if this role excites you but your background isn’t a perfect match for every qualification, apply anyway. You might be exactly who we’re looking for. We’ve flagged what’s essential vs. nice-to-have above. If the role excites you and you bring most of it, we want to hear from you.

Compensation and Benefits

Annual Salary: $150,000 - $175,000

Salary ranges reflect independent, third-party benchmarking against national compensation data. Where an individual’s actual offer falls within that range depends on a combination of factors, including relevant experience, specialized skills, training and qualifications, current business needs, and prevailing market conditions. Ranges are reviewed periodically and may be adjusted to reflect changing market conditions.

Benefits & Perks:

• Health, Vision, and Dental insurance

• 401(k) plan

• Daily lunch stipend

• Equity (based on role and performance)

• Unlimited PTO

• Fully stocked kitchen

• Dog-friendly office

• Ongoing opportunities for growth and development

This full-time position is based in Sawtelle (between Santa Monica and West Los Angeles) and is an in-person role. The role includes regular travel to partner sites, dealer groups, and industry events, approximately [X]% of the time. We welcome candidates from all locations to apply, provided they are willing to relocate for the role. Relocation assistance will not be provided for successful candidates. Sponsorship not available at this time.

Acknowledgments

Plug is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We believe diverse teams build better products - full stop.