Director of Strategy and Partnerships

University of Colorado System; Allenspark (CO); On-site; USD 225,000 - 265,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Moving allowance

Performance bonus

Excellent benefits

Tuition benefit

ECO Pass

Job summary

The University of Colorado Boulder’s LASP invites nominations for Director of Strategy and Partnerships. This senior role leads LASP’s strategic vision, cultivates essential partnerships, and ensures competitive proposals support science and technology missions.

Reporting to LASP's Director, you will oversee a team of proposal and capture managers, coordinate across government and international partners, and drive programmatic success with robust leadership and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree in engineering or science; or Bachelor’s plus 5+ years in a relevant field.
• Ability to lead new directions in science, engineering and mission opportunities.
• Program/project management experience in a research or science mission capacity.
• Proven ability to manage complex organizational relationships and drive alignment without direct authority.
• Knowledge of government, commercial, philanthropic, and international space research goals.
• Deep familiarity with federal proposal and procurement processes (NASA/NOAA/NSF/DoD).
• Ability to identify factors that impact research and mission opportunities.
• Ability to assess business, social, and cultural factors affecting strategy and partnerships.

Responsibilities

• Oversee development of short- and long-term strategic priorities spanning LASP science and tech teams.
• Identify opportunities across academic, government, commercial, and international sectors.
• Cultivate partnerships with NASA, NOAA, government, industry, foundations, and philanthropy.
• Lead proposal and capture efforts; evaluate opportunities and resource needs with LASP leadership.
• Publicize upcoming opportunities and grow the number of high-quality submitted proposals.
• Direct a team of proposal and capture managers; ensure proposal excellence and reviews.
• Oversee LASP Strategy & Partnerships Committee and advise on dissemination and growth.
• Ensure initiatives are resourced, sequenced, and tracked to completion.

Skills

Leadership

Strategy development

Proposal management

Partnerships

Program management

Cross-cultural communication

Stakeholder management

Security clearance eligibility

Education

Advanced degree

PhD preferred

Job description

Job Summary

Attention: This is a listing for visibility, PLEASE DO NOT APPLY TO THIS POSITION ON THIS SITE. The University of Colorado has engaged Opus Partners to support the recruitment of the Director of Strategy and Partnerships. Applications submitted here on the CUBoulder Job Site WILL NOT BE REVIEWED.

The Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics ( LASP ) at the University of Colorado Boulder invites nominations and applications for the position of Director of Strategy and Partnerships. The position provides a rare opportunity to help define the future of one of the world’s premier space research institutions.

The Director of Strategy and Partnerships is a senior leadership team role, reporting to LASP’s Director, that develops and executes LASP\'s strategic vision, cultivates the partnerships essential to advancing the lab\'s space science mission, and ensures competitive proposals are submitted for winning new grants and contracts that support the laboratory’s science and technology efforts.

In collaboration with the Director of LASP and the executive team, this role represents LASP objectives, champions strategic positions for large missions and instrument lines, leads capture efforts, and oversees proposal activities across key partner relationships. The Director of Strategy and Partnerships leads a team of proposal and capture managers to identify, formulate, and support research and technology in emerging opportunity areas spanning government, commercial, philanthropic, and international sectors. Their team also includes a committee of LASP professionals engaged part-time to support proposal opportunity dissemination and proposal internal support and review.

CU is an Equal Opportunity Employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment. We are committed to creating a workplace where all individuals are treated with respect and dignity, and we encourage individuals from all backgrounds to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.

What Your Key Responsibilities Will Be

Strategy

• Working with the LASP Director and senior leadership, oversee the development of short- and long-term strategic priorities and future plans that span LASP’s science and technology teams, including in coordination with CU, government, private, and international space partners.
• Identify new opportunities across academic, government, commercial, and international sectors, including awareness of emerging domains, products, and sectors eligible for expansion, such as large mission concepts, instrument line development, and strategic faculty and staff hiring.

Partnerships

• Cultivate partnerships with NASA, NOAA, local and state government, federal agency, industry, foundation, and philanthropic entities, supported by a robust partner relationship management system.
• Identify and develop advancement and philanthropic opportunities in collaboration with the Director of LASP.

Proposal & Capture

• Interact with prospective principal investigators (PIs) to maintain a continual awareness of future ambitions.
• Evaluate proposal opportunities and assess resource and capacity requirements for responding to calls, working closely with LASP leadership.
• Publicize upcoming proposal opportunities within LASP.
• Lead a team of proposal and capture managers to grow the quality and number of proposals submitted by LASP principal investigators and by external principal investigators partnered with LASP scientists and technologists.
• Oversee the submission of large mission, instrument, and research proposals, including conducting internal reviews to ensure proposal excellence.
• Oversee the LASP Strategy and Partnerships Committee, a rotating group of scientists and technologists to support the Director of Strategy & Partnerships in shared responsibility for lab-wide dissemination of opportunities, internal proposal support and review, and fostering the skills growth of new PIs and PMs.
• Ensure initiatives for strategy and partnerships are resourced, sequenced, and tracked to completion.

Plus other duties as assigned.

What You Should Know

• Due to requirements governing access to export-controlled data and information, only U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), or other protected individuals (i.e., persons designated as an asylee, refugee, or temporary resident under amnesty provisions) are eligible for hire.

What We Can Offer

• The annual salary range for this position is $225,000 to $265,000, plus moving allowance and performance bonus. The University of Colorado offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefit, and ECO Pass.

Benefits

At the University of Colorado Boulder, we are committed to supporting the holistic health and well-being of our employees. Our comprehensive benefits package includes medical, dental, and retirement plans; generous paid time off; tuition assistance for you and your dependents; and an ECO Pass for local transit. As one of Boulder County’s largest employers, CU Boulder offers an inspiring academic community and access to world-class outdoor recreation. In fact, CU Boulder has been named one of Forbes\' America\'s Best Large Employers, ranking #4 among large employers in Colorado and #28 among universities nationwide. Explore additional perks and programs through the CU Advantage program.

Be Statements

Be ambitious. Be groundbreaking. Be Boulder.

What We Require

• Advanced degree (e.g. Master\'s) or Bachelor’s plus minimum of 5 years experience in a relevant discipline of engineering or science.
• Ability to lead and define new directions in science, engineering, and mission opportunities.
• Program/project management experience in a research or science mission capacity.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complex organizational relationships and drive alignment across diverse teams without direct authority.
• Knowledge of government, commercial, philanthropic, and international space research goals, objectives, and opportunities.
• Deep familiarity with federal proposal and procurement processes, including experience with NASA, NOAA, NSF, DoD, or comparable agencies.
• Ability to identify academic, financial, and political factors that impact research and mission opportunities
• Ability to assess and manage business, social, and cultural factors affecting strategy and partnerships with local, national, and international organizations.

What You Will Need

• Excellent collaborative and adaptive thinking perspectives, along with high emotional intelligence.
• Excellent cross-cultural and multi-discipline communications skills.
• Resilience and composure under pressure, with the ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-moving environment.
• Creativity, accountability, and resilience.

What We Would Like You to Have

• Ph.D. degree in a relevant discipline of engineering or science.
• Experience with industry, federal, and/or international space agencies.
• Commercial business development and marketing experience.
• Eligibility for a high-level security clearance.

Special Instructions

The University of Colorado and LASP have engaged Opus Partners to support the recruitment of the Director of Strategy and Partnerships. CraigSmith, Managing Partner and Jeffrey Stafford, Senior Associate, are leading the search. Candidates should send their CV and letter of interest to [e-mail]. Nominations, recommendations, and inquiries should go to the same address. Every effort will be made to ensure candidate confidentiality. Applications received by August 1, 2026, will receive full consideration. The search process is confidential.

Posting Contact Information

Posting Contact Name: Boulder Campus Human Resources

Posting Contact Email: [e-mail]