Head of Government Partnerships

Director of Federal Partnerships Department: Oritain Government Services
Employment Type: Permanent - Full Time
Reporting To: Chief Government Affairs Officer
Description Oritain is a global leader in forensic origin verification of products and raw materials. C, Auckland, Dunedin, London, Paris and Singapore our vision is to be the source of truth in global supply chains.
Through our proprietary methodology, our mission is to harness cutting edge science, data, and specialized services to create a community of origin verified buyers and suppliers, protecting our people and planet. We empower the world’s leading brands to make positive changes across their supply chain; ensuring product integrity, meeting regulatory demands, and reducing the risk of fraud and unethical sourcing - creating real change in our world.
About the Role The Director of Federal Partnerships plays a key role in leading Oritain's expansion into the U.Department of Defense and Federal Government sector, building strategic relationships, shaping high-impact opportunities, and converting complex pursuits into long-term partnerships and contracted growth.
Reporting to the Chief Government Affairs Officer, Americas, you will take real ownership of Oritain's federal opportunity pipeline, working closely with government affairs, proposal and delivery teams to progress opportunities from early shaping through to contract award and execution. This is a rare opportunity to shape the strategy, the pipeline and the culture of a brand-new federal business from day one.
What you'll be doing On the pre-award side, you will own and manage the federal opportunity pipeline from qualified opportunity through to contract award, developing and executing capture strategies for priority opportunities including stakeholder mapping, Pentagon engagement, competitive positioning and teaming. You will build and maintain trusted relationships with DoD stakeholders, contracting offices, program offices, prime contractors and acquisition decision-makers, and lead proposal planning and development, translating capture strategy into compliant, compelling submissions.
You will coordinate cross-functional proposal inputs across technical, legal, finance, operations and commercial teams, support contract negotiations and award execution, and maintain deep working knowledge of Federal contracting processes, acquisition pathways, contract vehicles and regulatory frameworks including FAR and DFARS.
On the post-award side, you will lead successful execution of awarded programs, maintaining strong customer engagement including regular communication with Contracting Officer Representatives (CORs), program stakeholders and delivery partners. You will oversee contract execution mechanics including deliverables management, reporting, modifications and option periods, and identify and shape follow-on opportunities including task orders, adjacent programs and recompetes.
You will implement and continuously improve federal pipeline governance, tracking and forecasting disciplines, support project management of ongoing BAA Phase II efforts, and partner closely with Sales leadership to align federal forecasting and messaging with the broader company sales operation.
S. federal government, ideally Pentagon/DoD, though relevant experience within the White House, Department of Energy, or Department of State will also be considered.
You bring deep familiarity with FAR, DFARS, federal acquisition processes and contract vehicles (IDIQs, GWACs, BPAs, OTAs, BAAs), along with proven experience managing capture strategy, proposal development and customer engagement within structured federal procurement environments.
Existing personal relationships within the Pentagon or broader DoD community would be an advantage, though not a requirement, as Oritain's government affairs support already provides access to key stakeholders. Prior experience within the White House, Department of Energy or Department of State would also be well regarded. This is not intended to be a senior executive hire: strong potential, drive and readiness to take ownership of a federal pipeline matter as much as tenure.
Exposure to a category-defining mission at the intersection of forensic science, compliance and national security.
A clear path to grow the role and team as the federal business scales.
Life insurance and critical illness cover
Medical insurance
Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
Learning portal with over 100,000 assets for professional development

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