Senior Partnerships Manager

Vast is seeking a Senior Partnerships Manager to join our team. Reporting to the VP, Communications and dotted line to the Head of Partnerships, you are a commercially minded, highly organized marketing and communications professional who will own the day-to-day management of Vast’s existing brand partnerships and work closely with the Head of Brand Partnerships to develop and build new partnership opportunities.

The ideal candidate will have experience developing and managing brand partnerships, and a strong understanding of the media and communications landscape. We would love someone who brings creativity and cultural fluency to the role: this is a rare opportunity to shape how brands and consumers engage with the future of space exploration.

This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location.

Responsibilities:

• Own the day-to-day management of Vast’s existing brand partnerships, serving as the primary point of contact and relationship manager
• Lead delivery against contractual commitments, tracking deliverables, activation timelines and campaign performance
• Identify and develop opportunities to expand existing partnerships in alignment with partner objectives and new opportunities in Vast’s ecosystem
• Research and identify prospective brand partners that align with Vast’s mission
• Maintain a well-organized pipeline, tracking outreach, prospect status, deal stages and actions and provide regular reporting to the VP, Communications/ Head of Brand Partnerships
• Work with the Head of Brand Partnerships and Marketing & Design colleagues to develop creative concepts, presentation materials, and pitch decks
• The ideal candidate will also support the Communications team from time-to-time as needed. This could include managing announcements, media engagements and public engagement campaigns, reviewing press materials and developing and aligning communications plans across partner agencies and Vast.

Minimum Qualifications:

• 8-10 years of experience in partnerships, business development, or related commercial fields
• Demonstrated experience managing brand partnerships end-to-end, including rights management, campaigns and activation, and performance evaluation
• Strong commercial acumen; comfortable building partnership proposals, rights frameworks and pricing benchmarks
• Excellent project management skills with the ability to manage multiple partners, projects and timelines simultaneously
• Ability to translate complex or technical concepts into clear, compelling commercial narratives
• Exceptional relationship-building and stakeholder management skills with internal and external partners

Preferred Skills & Experience:

• Experience managing high-value or high-profile brand partnerships
• Experience in business development or commercial solutions
• Familiarity with communications, PR and marketing workflows; comfortable working across partnerships and communications tasks
• Strong understanding of the media and brand landscape, including broadcast, digital and social platforms
• High attention to detail, particularly in regulated or approval-heavy environments
• A strong interest in space, exploration, and emerging spaceflight capabilities

Additional Requirements:

• Willingness to work extended hours, including nights and weekends, to support mission-critical milestones and real-time operations as needed