About WaitWhat:
WaitWhat is creating the most valuable independent portfolio of premium content IP that elevates human potential — with a contrarian strategy to scale.
Downloaded more than 120 million times, WaitWhat’s media properties have defined new genres in the areas of business (Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman), wellness (Meditative Story) and creativity (Spark & Fire). In everything WaitWhat creates, it aims to share hard-won wisdom from the most iconic people of day, to newer voices, sparking curiosity and helping us live at the top of our potential.
Founded by June Cohen and Deron Triff — the former TED execs who launched TED Talks and led the media organization for a combined 17 years — WaitWhat’s approach to content is unique in the industry, with a passion for inventing new business models and building inventive partnerships. Learn more about WaitWhat >>
About the role:
WaitWhat seeks to recruit a Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). As CRO, you will oversee Strategic Business Development and Sales. With regards to Business Development, you will conceive and negotiate revenue-generating partnerships that harness the organization’s rich content IP into new lines of businesses that amplify our standards for invention and quality. And in your capacity as the leading Sales executive, you will be responsible for designing and negotiating multi-year brand partnerships that both act as sponsorships for our properties,
and include strategic elements to drive our products and experiences into the world through these corporate channels. This role reports directly to our Co-founder and CEO.
We are looking for someone who has incredible vision and instincts to invent high-margin, original products, experiences, and programs that align with our thesis for elevating human potential, and drive scalable, recurring revenue. Our ideal candidate will deeply understand how to adapt WaitWhat’s content IP into sellable propositions for both consumer and enterprise markets. You’re known for both rare creativity/imagination in designing concepts from scratch, and an impressive track-record of bringing them to market with speed and excellence. Competing in the same game with other media companies is of no interest to you, rather you thrive in zigging when others are zagging because you can see potential where others don’t.
You’re equal parts thinker and doer. Your ability to originate and launch successful offerings — independently and in partnership — inspires others. You have an insatiable desire to master new skills, build upon philosophies and communication styles that are unique to WaitWhat, hone sophisticated negotiating techniques, and design inventive deal structures.
Initiatives that you’ll bring to market include technology products and platforms, television series, ticketed live experiences, corporate learning and higher education offerings, innovative content licensing programs, foreign language adaptations, membership and community subscription offerings, book publishing, and more.
Responsibilities:
- Own company revenue goals: sponsorship, products, licensing, subscription, live events
- Bring to market business initiatives in the pipeline across WaitWhat media properties
- Conceive/execute additional business opportunities to support strategic + revenue goals
- Partner with WaitWhat's CFO on budgeting and forecasting
- Stay current with market insights to identify opportunities and strongly aligned partners
- Develop and negotiate deal structure alongside WaitWhat’s legal counsel
- Build a team, initially including a head of brand partnerships/sales and a head of BD
- Maintain budgets and P&L accountability for each business initiative
- Superlatively support partners — motivating and maximizing their commitments
- Uphold WaitWhat's position as a media invention company of the highest quality
- Play an active strategic role on the executive leadership team
- Further build-out WaitWhat’s culture of creative collaboration and possibility thinking
Requirements
PLEASE SUBMIT
BOTH A THOUGHTFUL COVER LETTER AND RESUME.
Qualifications:
- 15+ years of hands-on experience in business development, strategy, and/or growth.
- Master deal structurer — you design contracts to serve as partner road maps
- Proven success exceeding expectations in hitting ambitious revenue goals
- Understands how to create FOMO (competitive tension)
- Able to set in motion multiple new projects at the same time
- Adept at defining business models and assessing revenue potential
- Proven track-record in managing and growing revenue year over year
- Ideally, experience with media companies known for innovation and exacting standards
- Passion for disruptive opportunities in both media and enterprise markets
- Refined ideas about the many ways IP can be monetized in different form factors
- You bring high-quality, executive relationships with you that are relevant to WaitWhat
- Entrepreneurial, proactive mindset with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment
- Ability to take direction, curious to learn, and the desire to work collaboratively, but fast!
- MBA desired. JD a plus
Benefits
We offer a benefits package that’s generous and competitive with larger companies. Benefits include 3 weeks of company holiday (2 weeks in summer + one week between Christmas and New Years), 5 personal days, healthcare (PPO, vision and dental), short- and long-term disability, life insurance and 401(k). We’re an anti-racist organization, committed to equity and diversity of all kinds — on our team, among our investors, and as represented on our media properties. Most importantly, we only hire extremely kind people.