Corporate Partnerships Officer, New Business

msichicago; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits starting day one

Free admission for family and friends

Free admission to other museums

Free parking in MSI garage

Job summary

The Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago is seeking a Corporate Partnerships Officer, New Business to identify, cultivate, and secure new corporate partnerships, focusing on high-touch portfolio management, sponsorships, and strategic engagement. You will manage 50–75 partners and drive sponsorship activations across exhibitions, programs, and events.

This full-time role requires 5–7 years in fundraising or partnerships, a bachelor’s degree, and strong relationship-building and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• 5–7 years of relevant experience in fundraising, business development, corporate partnerships, marketing partnerships, or related fields.
• Demonstrated success identifying new opportunities, building relationships with decision-makers, and generating revenue through consultative business development.
• Exceptional communication, presentation, and storytelling skills with the ability to inspire prospective partners and articulate compelling value propositions.
• Ability to travel up to 10%.
• Demonstrated confidence initiating conversations with senior executives, cultivating relationships from cold outreach through close, and building long-term partnerships.
• Highly organized with strong attention to detail and ability to manage multiple priorities.
• Experience with CRM systems (Salesforce preferred) and Microsoft Office Suite.
• Curious, resourceful, and energized by building relationships from scratch.
• Comfortable navigating ambiguity and creating structure where none exists..
• Willingness to work occasional evenings and weekends for events and networking.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain a robust pipeline of prospective corporate partners through research, networking, referrals, market intelligence, and creative prospecting strategies.
• Initiate and lead proactive outreach, including cold and warm prospecting, networking, and leveraging existing relationships to generate new partnership and funding opportunities.
• Design and execute cultivation and solicitation strategies for new corporate donors and sponsors, including preparing outreach materials, proposals, and pitch decks.
• Understand prospective partners' business objectives and develop customized partnership opportunities that create shared value.
• Partner with senior team members to advance and close new business opportunities.
• Serve as a visible ambassador for the Museum, actively building relationships throughout Chicagoland's corporate community and identifying new opportunities to expand the Museum's network.
• Manage and grow an assigned portfolio of 50-75 corporate partners, serving as the primary day-to-day relationship manager.
• Execute all stages of the donor lifecycle, with a focus on qualification, cultivation, onboarding, and early-stage stewardship.
• Maintain regular communication with corporate partners to ensure strong engagement, satisfaction, and retention.
• Monitor progress toward individual and team revenue goals, ensuring accountability and timely follow-up.
• Develop and execute creative corporate sponsorship opportunities tied to exhibitions, public programs, and events.
• Think beyond traditional sponsorships to identify innovative opportunities for employee engagement, thought leadership, customer experiences, community impact, and brand visibility.
• Assist in creating and packaging sponsorship assets, ensuring alignment with marketing, brand, and audience engagement goals.
• Collaborate with Marketing & Communications and Events teams to deliver high-quality sponsor activations and visibility opportunities.
• Ensure fulfillment of sponsorship benefits, including brand placement, recognition, and experiential engagement.
• Track and maintain accurate records of pipeline, proposals, agreements, and correspondence in the CRM system.
• Assist in preparing donor-facing materials, including proposals, reports, and presentations.
• Coordinate logistics for corporate meetings, site visits, tours, and events, including ticketing and catering needs.
• Support donor cultivation and recognition events, including sponsor activations and receptions.
• Collaborate with colleagues across departments to ensure coordinated outreach and consistent partner experience.

Skills

Fundraising

Business development

Corporate partnerships

Relationship building

Presentation skills

Storytelling

Travel readiness

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Salesforce

Microsoft Office

Job description

About Us:

The Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago is the largest and most interactive science museum in the Western Hemisphere. Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry (MSI) expose guests of all ages to awe-inspiring exhibitions that spark curiosity and bring science to life. MSI’s mission – to inspire the inventive genius in everyone – is realized through its world-class exhibitions and engaging guest experiences. The Museum of Science and Industry provide programs and experiences that deepen the engagement of students and teachers in science and science-related disciplines, with a vision to inspire and motivate our children to achieve their full potential in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math.

We offer a creative, collaborative, and innovative environment for our employees. Our employees get great perks such as: benefits starting day one of your employment, free admission to MSI for family and friends, free admission to other museums, free parking in MSI’s garage and more! If you are equally passionate about our vision and want to be surrounded by a team of dynamic, smart and innovative people, the Museum of Science and Industry is the right place for you!

The Corporate Partnerships Officer, New Business is an entrepreneurial fundraiser responsible for identifying, cultivating, and securing new corporate partnerships, with a focus on high-touch portfolio management, sponsorship and strategic engagement opportunities. This is a highly external-facing role for someone who thrives on identifying new partners, building authentic relationships, and creating innovative partnerships. This role manages a developing portfolio of new, lapsed, and early-stage corporate partners and prospects, while supporting the execution of sponsorship packages and partnership activations across the Museum’s exhibitions, programs, and events.

Responsibilities

Business Development & Strategic Partnerships

• Build and maintain a robust pipeline of prospective corporate partners through research, networking, referrals, market intelligence, and creative prospecting strategies.


• Initiate and lead proactive outreach, including cold and warm prospecting, networking, and leveraging existing relationships to generate new partnership and funding opportunities.


• Design and execute cultivation and solicitation strategies for new corporate donors and sponsors, including preparing outreach materials, proposals, and pitch decks.


• Understand prospective partners' business objectives and develop customized partnership opportunities that create shared value.


• Partner with senior team members to advance and close new business opportunities.


• Serve as a visible ambassador for the Museum, actively building relationships throughout Chicagoland's corporate community and identifying new opportunities to expand the Museum's network

Corporate Portfolio Management

• Manage and grow an assigned portfolio of 50-75 corporate partners, serving as the primary day-to-day relationship manager.


• Execute all stages of the donor lifecycle, with a focus on qualification, cultivation, onboarding, and early-stage stewardship.


• Maintain regular communication with corporate partners to ensure strong engagement, satisfaction, and retention.


• Monitor progress toward individual and team revenue goals, ensuring accountability and timely follow-up.

Sponsorship & Marketing Partnerships

• Develop and execute creative corporate sponsorship opportunities tied to exhibitions, public programs, and events.


• Think beyond traditional sponsorships to identify innovative opportunities for employee engagement, thought leadership, customer experiences, community impact, and brand visibility.


• Assist in creating and packaging sponsorship assets, ensuring alignment with marketing, brand, and audience engagement goals.


• Collaborate with Marketing & Communications and Events teams to deliver high-quality sponsor activations and visibility opportunities.


• Ensure fulfillment of sponsorship benefits, including brand placement, recognition, and experiential engagement.

Cross-Functional Collaboration & Development Support

• Track and maintain accurate records of pipeline, proposals, agreements, and correspondence in the CRM system.


• Assist in preparing donor-facing materials, including proposals, reports, and presentations.


• Coordinate logistics for corporate meetings, site visits, tours, and events, including ticketing and catering needs.


• Support donor cultivation and recognition events, including sponsor activations and receptions.


• Collaborate with colleagues across departments to ensure coordinated outreach and consistent partner experience.

Additional Duties as assigned

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.


• 5–7 years of relevant experience in fundraising, business development, corporate partnerships, marketing partnerships, or related fields.


• Demonstrated success identifying new opportunities, building relationships with decision-makers, and generating revenue through consultative business development


• Exceptional communication, presentation, and storytelling skills with the ability to inspire prospective partners and articulate compelling value propositions.


• Ability to travel up to 10%


• Demonstrated confidence initiating conversations with senior executives, cultivating relationships from cold outreach through close, and building long-term partnerships.


• Highly organized with strong attention to detail and ability to manage multiple priorities.


• Experience with CRM systems (Salesforce preferred) and Microsoft Office Suite.


• Curious, resourceful, and energized by building relationships from scratch.


• Comfortable navigating ambiguity and creating structure where none exists..


• Willingness to work occasional evenings and weekends for events and networking.

Language

• Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, standard operating procedures, etc.


• Ability to write routine reports and correspondence.


• Ability to speak effectively before groups of employees of the organization.


• Mathematical:


• Ability to calculate figures and amounts such as percentages, turnover rates, retention rates, etc.


• Reasoning:


• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.


• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.


• Physical:


• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to use hands to finger, handle, or feel and talk or hear.


• The employee frequently is required to stand, walk, and reach with hands and arms.


• The employee is occasionally required to sit; climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl; and taste or smell.


• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.


• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.


• Work Environment:


• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

The salary range for this position is $60,000 - $75,000.

This fulltime position is eligible for benefits including:

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans


• An attractive time off program including vacation, sick, and personal days


• 10 Company Holidays


• 401(k) plans (Traditional and Roth) including a generous employer match


• Robust Voluntary benefit plans including transportation, legal, and many others


• Free onsite garage parking

Our Inclusion and Belonging Statement

The Griffin Museum of Science and Industry is committed to advancing diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion across our workforce, experiences, and day-to-day operations. As Griffin MSI employees, we are each responsible for making the Museum a welcoming place externally for guests and internally for our colleagues within the scope of our roles.

Griffin MSI is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer, which includes providing equal opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.