Director of Partnerships

About Sage Bionetworks

Sage Bionetworks is a nonprofit biomedical research and technology organization that advances human health through open science and collaborative discovery. We work at the intersection of biomedical science, data, technology, and patient engagement - partnering across academia, industry, philanthropy, and government to build research programs, data resources, and technology that accelerate scientific progress.

Sage brings particular expertise in collaborative research, multimodal biomedical data, responsible data governance, and open source technology. As an AI forward organization, we are also exploring how emerging technologies can responsibly expand the reach and impact of scientific data and discovery.

The Opportunity

Sage Bionetworks is seeking a Director of Partnerships to help shape and grow our work beyond our historically government funded portfolio. This is a scientific leadership and partnership role and not a traditional business development or sales role. We are looking for someone with hands-on training and/or experience in biomedical data and technology who can develop partnerships with pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical technology, health technology, AI companies, as well as foundations and other mission aligned organizations.

Successful partnerships at Sage begin with substantive scientific and technical conversations. The Director must be able to engage scientists, technical leaders, and executives as a credible peer, understand what they are trying to accomplish, and translate that understanding into a focused opportunity that draws on Sage’s distinctive capabilities.

Our mission is to break silos in biomedical research and drive a new age of discovery through truly open science and radical collaboration. The Director will work across organizational boundaries to connect three things: the challenges and opportunities emerging in the external market, the underlying needs of prospective partners, and the scientific and technical capabilities Sage is best positioned to provide. They will work closely with Sage’s CEO and Chief Data Officer to help Sage define clearer, repeatable partnership offerings while ensuring that individual opportunities remain aligned with our mission,  strategy, capabilities, and capacity. 

The Director will also lead scientific and technical discovery and develop strategic initiatives that demonstrate Sage’s capabilities and increase its visibility. They will directly (hands on) contribute analyses, prototypes, demonstrations, and business cases that advance partnership opportunities and position Sage for future funding.

You Will Succeed at Sage If You

• Combine your scientific and technical depth with strong commercial and strategic judgment, moving comfortably across scientific, operational, and executive conversations.
• Listen for the need beneath a partner’s initial request and translate it into a focused, feasible, and reusable solution.
• Are proactive, resourceful, and accountable, willing to do substantive work yourself and use data, technology, and AI to create momentum amid ambiguity.
• Build trust through curiosity and collaboration while constructively challenging assumptions and balancing partner needs with Sage’s mission, strategy, and capacity.

You’ll Know You’re Succeeding When

• Sage has a clear external partnership strategy and a focused portfolio of compelling, repeatable solutions grounded in its scientific and technical strengths.
• New and existing relationships with priority organizations are advancing into deeper, longer term, and funded partnerships.
• Opportunities are translated into appropriately simple, valuable, and feasible solutions, with Sage’s internal teams aligned and engaged at the right time.
• The partnership portfolio strengthens Sage’s reputation as a scientific and technical collaborator and contributes meaningfully to revenue diversification and mission impact.

Key Responsibilities

Partnership and market strategy

• Develop and grow a diversified portfolio of new and existing external partnerships across pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical technology, health technology, AI, and philanthropic organizations.
• Identify scientific, technological and market developments that create opportunities for Sage’s research, data, governance, and technology capabilities.
• Build relationships with scientific, technical, executive, and funding decision-makers, translating priority relationships into a qualified pipeline of proposals and funded agreements.

Defining solutions and offerings

• Develop a clear portfolio of compelling, repeatable solutions that connect external needs with Sage’s distinctive scientific, data, governance, technology, and AI capabilities.
• Evaluate and shape opportunities based on strategic alignment, scientific value, differentiation, feasibility, funding potential, and organizational capacity
• Bring insights from partners and the broader market into Sage to inform organizational strategy, capability development, and investment priorities.
• Work closely with the CEO, Chief Data Officer, and other organizational leaders to shape Sage’s partnership strategy and identify priority sectors, organizations, and opportunities

Scientific and technical Discovery

• Lead hands on discovery with prospective partners to understand their scientific questions, data, technical environments, constraints, and intended outcomes.
• Apply practical expertise in biomedical data, research workflows, analytics, and AI to develop credible solution concepts, analyses, prototypes, demonstrations, and proofs of concept.
• Identify, build the business case for, and lead strategic initiatives (for example, community engagement efforts, scientific challenges, pilots, and analyses) that strengthen Sage’s capabilities, increase its visibility, and position it for future partnerships and funding.
• Lead the scientific strategy and content for external scientific events, including Sage’s flagship event (Sage Assembly) by developing compelling themes, speakers, and programming that showcase Sage’s capabilities, advance its mission, and strengthen relationships with priority partners.

Proposal development and internal alignment

• Serve as the bridge between external partners and Sage’s scientific, technical, operational, and leadership teams, creating a shared understanding of partner needs, Sage’s capabilities, and key constraints.
• Lead the development of realistic concept notes, proposals, presentations, scopes and budgets, driving toward practical solutions and avoiding unnecessary complexity or customization.
• Facilitate decisions about priorities, resources, risks, and tradeoffs, ensuring commitments are strategically aligned and transition clearly into delivery.

People leadership and mentorship

• Build trusted relationships with Sage’s principal investigators and scientific, technical, and operational leaders, fostering collaboration across disciplines.
• Mentor colleagues and emerging leaders through context-sharing, constructive feedback, and opportunities to develop their capabilities and visibility.
• Build and lead a team over time, aligned with the growth and needs of Sage’s partnership portfolio.

Qualifications

Education

• Advanced degree in a biomedical, behavioral, public health, data science, engineering, or related discipline. 
• A PhD or equivalent scientific leadership and industry experience is strongly preferred

Experience

• Significant experience (10+ years) across biomedical science, data, technology, and external partnerships.
• Demonstrated success originating and advancing funded partnerships with life science, health technology, or AI organizations.
• Experience translating partner needs into focused solutions and developing the proposals, scopes, budgets, agreements, and negotiations needed to move opportunities forward.
• Hands on experience with health data and data intensive technologies; AI/ML experience preferred.
• Strong scientific communication, cross functional relationship building, and an established industry network.
• Sound judgment, personal accountability, and the ability to advance opportunities amid ambiguity.

Nice to Have

• Experience working with multimodal biomedical and health data, including clinical, observational, molecular, imaging, and patient generated data.
• Familiarity with biomedical data governance, open science practices, FAIR principles, and responsible AI.
• Experience with data partnerships, platform licensing, strategic alliances, or other models beyond fee for service work.
• Experience using AI coding agents, such as Claude Code, to analyze data, prototype solutions, or accelerate technical work.

 

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Job Functions and Physical Requirements

The following cognitive and physical activities outline the essential functions required for successful job performance. Reasonable accommodations may be provided to enable individuals with disabilities to fulfill these functions.

Physical Demands

• Extended periods of sitting at a desk and using a computer.
• Repeated wrist, hand, and finger movements.
• Requires clear vision for tasks like data analysis, transcribing, computer use, and reading.
• Occasionally lifting or moving objects weighing up to 10 pounds.

Cognitive Demands

• Able to work effectively under deadlines.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Attention to detail and accuracy.
• Flexibility to adapt to changing environments, priorities and multitask.

Additional Requirements

• Travel is required a minimum of two times per year for on-site events in Seattle, WA. 
• Effective verbal and written communication skills.
• Works well in a team and maintains professionalism.
• Follows company policies, procedures, and relevant laws and regulations.
• Note: This list is not exhaustive and may be subject to modification as job duties evolve.

Compensation & Total Rewards

Sage Bionetworks implements equitable workplace strategies to ensure fair pay. Actual compensation is determined by market data, specific experience, and internal parity.

• Job Level: Director
• Annual Salary Range: $160,930 to $210,000
• Note: New hires typically receive an offer between the minimum and the midpoint of the range to allow for future growth within the role. Higher offers may be considered for exceptional experience or specific market conditions.

Comprehensive Benefits: We offer a package competitive with both commercial biotech and nonprofit sectors:

• Health & Wellness: Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, life, AD&D, and long-term disability.
• Future Security: Robust retirement plan and flexible spending accounts (FSA).
• Work-Life Harmony: Paid time off and flexible work arrangements.
• Learn more at: Benefits – Sage Bionetworks

Equal Opportunity & Inclusion

Sage Bionetworks is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.

Accommodation Request: If you require a reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please let us know at the time of scheduling. 

Modern Hiring & Responsible AI

We value your talent and your time. To ensure a fair and inclusive experience, we operate with the following principles:

• Responsible AI in Recruiting: To help us find the best talent, we may utilize AI tools within our recruiting platforms. We use these technologies responsibly to avoid the pitfalls of bias and discrimination. We believe technology should enhance human judgment, not replace it, and we regularly audit our processes to ensure every candidate is evaluated fairly based on their unique skills.
• Work from (Almost) Anywhere: We are a distributed workforce and support remote or hybrid arrangements within the United States.
• Virtual-First Interviews: All interviews are conducted virtually to ensure accessibility and flexibility for all candidates.

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The Sage Way: Our Core Values

We don’t just talk about change; we live it through these five pillars:

• Science Driven: We use data and evidence to ensure our work creates a measurable, positive impact on human health.
• Accountable: We deliver on our promises through a foundation of trust and radical transparency.
• Growth Oriented: We stay curious, seek out the hardest challenges, and constantly aspire to improve ourselves and our field.
• Empathetic + Inclusive: We embrace our differences and build environments where every voice is empowered.
• Radically Collaborative: We believe the best solutions come from teamwork and building diverse, global communities.