Head of Partnerships

WHO WE ARE

Serval http://serval.com is an AI-native automation platform transforming how enterprises operate. We build intelligent agents that understand real-world workflows and execute them end-to-end — replacing manual processes and rigid legacy systems with adaptive, learning software. Founded in early 2024, Serval is already trusted by companies like Fox, Notion, Perplexity, Vercel, and Brex to automate high-volume, high-friction operational work across their organizations.

At the core of Serval is an agentic AI platform that turns natural language into production-grade workflows. Our agents don’t just respond to requests — they reason, take action across systems, and continuously improve with usage. What began with operational use cases has quickly evolved into a horizontal AI automation layer used across IT, HR, Finance, Security, Legal, and Engineering.

Our mission is to eliminate repetitive, manual work across the enterprise and give teams leverage through intelligent automation. Long term, we’re building the universal AI operations layer — a system of agents that sits across business functions and runs the workflows that keep modern companies moving.

We’re backed by leading investors including Sequoia Capital, Redpoint Ventures, Meritech, First Round, General Catalyst, Elad Gil, and others.

ROLE OVERVIEW

This is the person who builds and owns Partnerships at Serval. As our founding Partner Manager, you’ll define the function from the ground up: the strategy, the partner playbook, and the ecosystem motion that opens new routes to market beyond direct sales. You’ll source and structure partnerships with key industry players and technology platforms, build distribution channels and alliances, creating a repeatable engine for inbound interest and introductions.

You’ll start hands-on, personally sourcing, negotiating, and closing high-impact partnerships while you stand up the systems a partner org runs on. You’ll work shoulder-to-shoulder with the founders, Sales, and Marketing to make sure every partnership is enabled and integrated into our existing GTM motions, and you’ll bring partner and customer signal back to inform product and market decisions. Because the function is new, you’ll get to write the playbook.

WHO YOU ARE

• A builder and a closer: you can find the right partner, structure a complex deal, and get it signed yourself, and you’re energized by turning that instinct into a repeatable motion.
• Credible with senior executives, the kind of person who earns the trust of partner leadership and decision-makers in the first meeting.
• Analytical and execution-oriented: you can size an opportunity, weigh the tradeoffs, and act on it without waiting to be told.
• A connector who knows how to activate a network of investors, partners, and industry influencers to create real pipeline.
• A team player who works naturally across Sales, Marketing, and Product, because partnerships only pay off when they’re enabled and integrated.
• Comfortable in ambiguity, owning outcomes end-to-end, and operating autonomously in a fast-moving startup.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Own Partnerships at Serval: the strategy, the partner playbook, and the ecosystem motion that creates new routes to market.
• Identify, source, and execute partnerships with key industry players and technology platforms, owning discovery, deal structuring, and ongoing relationship management.
• Experiment with and develop alliances and distribution channels that reach customers beyond direct sales.
• Leverage Serval’s network of investors, partners, and industry influencers to generate inbound interest and warm introductions.
• Work closely with Sales and Marketing to support GTM efforts through partnerships and ecosystem-driven initiatives.
• Ensure every partnership is effectively enabled and integrated into our existing GTM motions, not left to sit on paper.
• Gather partner and customer insights and feed them back to inform product and GTM decisions.
• Support exploration of new industries, use cases, and geographies through hands-on research and direct partner engagement.
• Build the foundational partner toolkit from scratch: partner agreements and processes, enablement, deal-flow tracking, and the operating cadence the function will run on.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

• 8+ years in business development, partnerships, or related roles in tech.
• Demonstrated success sourcing, structuring, and closing complex, high-impact partnerships.
• Comfort building and sustaining relationships with senior executives and decision-makers.
• An analytical and execution-oriented mindset, with the ability to assess opportunities and act independently.
• The ability to thrive in ambiguity and operate autonomously in a fast-moving startup.

NICE TO HAVE

• Prior experience at a high-growth AI or enterprise SaaS startup.
• Deep expertise in one or more of our key industries: financial services, healthcare, telecommunications, media, travel, transportation and hospitality, retail and consumer goods, and technology.
• Experience structuring and managing ecosystem partnerships.

WHAT WE OFFER

• Impact: Be a key player in shaping the success of our product and company.
• Growth: Build a fundamentally new AI product offering with the support of our experienced team and investors. Grow rapidly with the company.
• Culture: Join a culture that values innovation, ownership, accountability, and fun.