Manager, District Partnerships

We are looking for a Manager, District Partnerships to serve as a player-coach and people leader within our District Partnerships team. This role balances leadership of a team of District Partnership Managers with ownership of a limited portfolio of strategic district relationships. The Manager serves as a subject-matter expert and go-to resource for complex customer scenarios, renewal strategy, systems, and partnership best practices, while coaching and developing the team. This individual operates independently in high-stakes district conversations, partners closely with K-12 counterparts, and helps strengthen the team’s approach to renewals, expansion, and long-term district value.
In This Role You Will:
People Leadership, Team Enablement & Training

Directly manage, develop, and coach a team of District Partnership Managers, including performance management, goal setting, regular 1:1s, and career development.
Run team meetings and translate broader strategy into clear monthly priorities, tactics, and expectations for the team.
Serve as a point of expertise for District Partnership Managers on complex district scenarios, non-standard customer issues, administrative workflows, and systems usage.
Lead onboarding, training, and ongoing enablement for District Partnership Managers, including renewal strategy, forecasting, CRM discipline, and partnership best practices.
Provide ongoing coaching through account reviews, renewal strategy sessions, and structured 1:1s.
Model best-in-class execution and serve as an example for strategic thinking, executive-level communication, and operational excellence.

Process, Systems & Scalable Excellence

Act as a subject-matter expert on systems, tools, and workflows that support district partnerships.
Partner with leadership to improve processes related to forecasting, endorsements, purchasing workflows, and district administration.
Reduce reliance on manager escalation by enabling team members to operate with greater confidence and independence.
Contribute repeatable tools, templates, and best practices that elevate team performance.

Player-Coach: District Lifecycle Ownership

Personally own and grow a limited portfolio of strategic district relationships across the customer lifecycle.
Build and maintain annual account plans aligned to district priorities.
Develop renewal plans 2-3 quarters in advance to secure multi-year and multi-site agreements.
Support the team in maintaining an accurate rolling renewal forecast with clear confidence tiers and risk indicators.
Step in directly on complex, high-risk, or high-visibility district situations that warrant manager-level involvement.

Renewal & Retention Leadership

Guide structured renewal motions, including stakeholder mapping, timelines, and commercial coordination.
Support the team in building proactive risk mitigation plans with measurable checkpoints for at-risk districts.
Identify early churn signals and coach the team on prevention strategies.
Use account health, usage, renewal, and support signals to determine where the team should focus.

Expansion & Growth Strategy

Facilitate team brainstorming and strategic discussions to evolve renewal, expansion, and bundling approaches.
Support teammates in developing district-specific growth strategies aligned to instructional priorities and standards.
Support bundling opportunities across Mystery Science, Mystery Writing, and related offerings.
Coach the team on developing ROI-based proposals and use cases that support cross-sell and upsell conversations.
Partner with Discovery Education colleagues to identify and shape joint sales and enterprise opportunities.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

Partner with PLG and Sales Operations to refine administrator email series and top-down sales motions.
Collaborate with K-12 colleagues to ensure coordinated district support.
Provide structured customer experience feedback to Product and internal teams.
Serve as the team’s primary escalation point for complex, non-standard, or high-visibility issues.

Data Hygiene & Systems Discipline

Support and enable the team in maintaining accurate and timely notes, contacts, tags, and renewal data in Crystal Ball.
Guide administrative tasks related to district contacts, endorsements, and purchasing workflows.
Ensure CRM dashboards reflect accurate health scores and pipeline visibility.
Use team-level data to recommend actions and align the team and leadership on where risk and opportunity are concentrated.

Core Competencies for Success

People leadership - coaches District Partnership Managers to build judgment, not just solve problems for them; gives direct, calibrated feedback.
Playbook design - turns recurring account challenges into scalable, documented processes the team runs on.
Data-driven prioritization - uses team-level health data to decide where the team focuses, not just individual account plans.
Strategic influence - represents District Partnership priorities credibly with K-12 Sales, Product, Sales Operations, and Finance leadership.
Customer obsession at scale - turns district value stories into repeatable references and plays for the whole team.
Operational rigor - drives CRM hygiene, reporting accuracy, forecasting discipline, and workflow fixes across the team.

Credentials and Experience

Typically requires a Bachelor's degree and a minimum of 4+ years of related account management, district partnerships, customer success, or education sales experience, including at least 1-2 years in a people leadership or team lead capacity

• or an advanced degree with equivalent experience
• or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
  Experience managing renewals and expansion within a portfolio model.
  Familiarity with K-12 district decision-making structures.
  Demonstrated experience building or improving team processes, training, or playbooks preferred.
  Experience working within CRM systems to manage account health and forecasting.
  Legal right to work in the United States.

This role is designed to be hybrid/remote. Candidates must be able to engage district partners virtually and travel as needed to support strategic accounts and team priorities.