Job Description:
The Opportunity
This is a pivotal opportunity to build an Ecosystems Engagement function from the ground up for an organization catalyzing manufacturing excellence and engineering education transformation in India. You will partner directly with the CEO to collaborate with multiple entities Government, Industry, Industry Associations, Universities and Colleges to advance the core mission of Maker Bhavan to power and transform STEM education aligned with India's nation-building agenda.
This is not a maintenance role. It's a strategic builder position where you will have high visibility, direct CEO partnership, and the rare opportunity to harness an entire ecosystem for engineering education transformation in India.
The Scale of Impact
Maker Bhavan Foundation operates India-wide, engaging engineers, academic institutions, industry partners, government policymakers, and donors. Currently, awareness is low across most segments - which represents a massive opportunity to own a category and build a movement.
Role at a Glance
Position: Head of Ecosystem Partner Management
Reporting: Directly to President & CEO
Seniority: VP-level / Senior Director equivalent
Location: Bangalore preferred, negotiable flexibility
ABOUT MAKER BHAVAN FOUNDATION
Mission and Vision
Maker Bhavan Foundation transforms engineering education in India through catalyzing manufacturing excellence. We operate at the intersection of education innovation, industry transformation, and national economic priorities.
Why This Organization Matters
India's vision to become a global manufacturing hub depends on a pipeline of world-class engineers grounded in hands-on, practical excellence. Maker Bhavan bridges the gap between traditional engineering education and the real-world manufacturing excellence demanded by industry and overall nation’s priorities. This is not incremental improvement - this is transformation.
Strategic Context:
Aligned with India's Make in India initiative and manufacturing expansion agenda
Supported by government policy focus on technical education quality
Addressing critical gap between academic output and industry-ready talent
Operating at a moment when manufacturing is becoming a central national priority (target: 25% of GDP by 2035)
Current Stage and Trajectory
The organization is early-stage and building significant awareness. We are currently in the process of establishing partnerships with multiple entities. This hire scales that function into a strategic capability.
What Success Looks Like
Within 12 months:
Maker Bhavan establishes partnerships with multiple Govt (both Central Government and State Government) and with key Industries, Industry Bodies and with Universities and Colleges.
Programs that immediately impact education are rolled out in multiple states and colleges with enhanced industry-academia linkages.
Knowledge of multiple programs and alignment among engineers, educators, industry partners, and policymakers has measurably increased
Strategic partnerships are accelerating reach and impact.
Impactful industry partnerships are built at college level enhancing project-based learning, innovation opportunities and employability.
ABOUT THIS ROLE
Role Positioning
This is a strategic builder and hands-on executor role. You'll own:
Partner Mapping: Define the key Partnerships and personnel that impact Engineering education linkages with industry at every University and College.
Execution: Negotiate and Sign MOU (Memoranda of Understanding) with key partners, especially Industry, to drive actions and impact at local, regional/state and national levels.
Team: Network with key internal leaders to effectively engage with external entities.
You are comfortable working in an unstructured environment and flexible in aligning with external partners to craft a partnership that drives measurable impact on the ground. You thrive in early-stage environments where resources are limited but opportunity is limitless.
Why This Hire Is Critical Now
Ecosystem alignment: It is essential to co-ordinate and work with multiple partners for essential approvals, programs, knowledge and program elements to work together to make an impact.
Multi-Audience Complexity: No existing alliances can effectively multiplex distinct stakeholder groups simultaneously
Movement Building Moment: National attention on manufacturing creates a window to establish authority
Resource Leverage: Limited team means every strategic decision multiplies impact
Fundraising Dependency: Growth depends on demonstrating impact to donors and partners
Unique Aspects of This Role
Direct CEO Partnership: Weekly strategy alignment with President & CEO
High Visibility: Your work directly influences organizational strategy
Category Definition: Opportunity to impact engineering ring education
Movement Building: Not just promotion - building a grassroots movement around engineering excellence with participation of local industry.
Cross-Sector Navigation: Complexity of government, academic, industry, corporate, and donor relationships
Job Description: Head of Ecosystem Partner Management Maker Bhavan Foundation
Role Overview:
The incumbent will lead the strategy, engagement, and management of Maker Bhavan Foundation’s ecosystem partnerships, including industry, academic, nonprofit, government, technology, and funding partners. They will be responsible for building, nurturing, and sustaining high-impact collaborations to advance MBF’s objectives in transforming engineering education and innovation in India. They will lead the identification and analysis of demand-supply mismatches between industry requirements and engineering education outputs, leveraging ecosystem partnerships, industry data, and academic feedback to design targeted interventions and programs.
Key Responsibilities:
Category A: Ecosystem Orchestration (40% of role)
Strategic Partnership Development
Identify, initiate, and negotiate collaborations with future-focused organizations - businesses, industry bodies, academic institutions, central and state government bodies, nonprofits, and patrons - relevant to MBF’s mission.
Design and implement partnership frameworks and agreements that create win-win outcomes that impact Engineering education in India.
Build connections and agreements with Industry, Industry bodies, Universities, Engineering Colleges and student bodies to further the core mission.
Evangelize MBF’s mission to key Govt. and industry bodies to orchestrate an ecosystem that has a bigger impact than the sum of its parts.
Systematically identify gaps and mismatches in skills, competencies, and talent supply vis-à-vis current and future industry demands, and collaborate with academic and industry partners to co-create solutions that enhance employability and industry readiness of engineering graduates.
Relationship Management & Engagement
Serve as a liaison with ecosystem partners, maintaining regular communication, resolving issues, and ensuring alignment of goals and deliverables.
Organize partner events, briefing sessions, technical workshops, and collaborative projects.
Advocacy & Representation
Represent MBF and its programs at national and international forums, conferences, and industry working groups.
Lead outreach, knowledge sharing, and advocacy efforts to promote best practices and program impact.
Category B: Operationalizing, Tracking Progress and Reporting (40% of role)
Program Oversight
Co-create and oversee joint initiatives, including Makerspaces, Innovation competitions, Faculty development programs, and Pilot projects, with a specific focus on industry needs and participation.
Participate in rolling out initial programs including in student workshops industry sponsored challenges, to develop templates that can be duplicated across states and Colleges.
Facilitate working with key Faculty and Student leaders to gain feedback and iteratively design programs that deliver a superior skills relevant to delivering Industry 4.0 goals
Collaborate with Industry and their associations to leverage their experiences and strengths to drive better programs and to increase overall employability.
Engage and collaborate with ecosystem partners in Industry (tools & equipment, training, certification) to design and develop partnerships to enhance student learning outcomes at colleges.
Develop and pilot innovative programs that address identified demand-supply gaps, such as tailored curriculum enhancements, industry-driven projects, internships, faculty development, and maker space initiatives that align education outcomes with market needs.
Reporting
Understand how partners Govt (State and Central), Industry, Universities and Colleges and students perceive value and parameters that will require reporting.
Support design of appropriate recognition / certifications / commendation / job placement / facilitate internships and placement of talent from colleges into industries to support the Make in India Program.
Monitor impact metrics and ensure transparent reporting and communication with all stakeholders.
Monitor and report on key metrics reflecting the alignment between engineering education outputs and industry demand, using feedback loops from partners to refine programs and expand scale.
Category C: Internal Stakeholder alignment with External Requirements. (10% of role)
Internal Collaboration
Act as a channel of external partnership expectations Industry, Govt, Educational bodies and students to provide feedback to the organization. This will be essential input to sharpen the programs and delivery of expected inputs to further engineering excellence.
Leverage the expertise of the leadership, Board of Directors and advisors to further the Partnership agenda of Maker Bhavan Foundation.
Work with the senior leadership on strategic initiatives & marketing, prioritizing programs and budgets with a focus on superior execution.
Work closely with MBF leadership, project leads, and program managers to ensure seamless execution of joint activities, compliance, and data management.
Act as a conduit for insights about demand-supply mismatches into the organization's strategic planning and program development, ensuring that Maker Bhavan’s initiatives effectively close these gaps.
Category D: Funding Management (10% of role)
Funding
Engage to generate funding and alignment with multiple stakeholders.
Align and set expectations on funding requirements, training and equipment with multiple funding partners in Govt and non Govt space.
Support operationalizing of shared innovation spaces, training equipment, software, labs and learning programs that drive student participation to build their expertise.
ABOUT YOU
Required Qualifications
Experience Level
Master’s degree (equivalent) or higher in Engineering, Management or related fields.
25+ years of experience with minimum 10 years in strategic partnership management, large program leadership or innovation ecosystem development with proven impact.
Must have had hands-on manufacturing experience as an engineer.
Demonstrated success in leading multi-stakeholder engagement, especially with Industry and Industry Bodies.
Skills & Attributes
Outstanding relationship-building and stakeholder management skills.
Strong strategic planning, business negotiation, and analytical abilities.
Excellent communication skillswritten and spoken English (Hindi proficiency desirable).
Leadership and team management competencies; ability to influence senior stakeholders.
Digital literacy (MS Office, project management tools, CRM, online collaboration platforms).
Attention to detail, data-driven decision-making, and ability to manage complex, high-budget projects.
Core Competencies
Strategic Thinking & Execution
Ability to develop strategy AND drive tactical execution
Comfort moving between 30,000-foot vision and implementation details
Evidence of balancing long-term positioning with short-term wins
Multi-Stakeholder Management
Demonstrated ability to navigate complex stakeholder landscapes with competing interests
Comfort working with government, academic, industry, corporate, and NGO audiences
Diplomatic approach to managing diverse relationships and perspectives
Resourcefulness & Entrepreneurial Mindset
Track record of delivering impact with limited resources
Creative problem-solving approach
Willingness to experiment and iterate
Comfort with ambiguity and rapid course correction
Partnership Thinking
Ability to identify mutual value in partnerships
Track record of building strategic relationships
Understanding of co-marketing and ecosystem approaches
Summary:
This role is ideal for a visionary leader, systems thinker, and partnership builder with a passion for manufacturing, innovation, technical education, and scalable impact.
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
6-Month Milestones
Strategic Foundation
Key partnerships identified with multiple stakeholders and mapping of their key personnel
Identified key roles/ decision makers in Industry, Government Central and State level and Universities and Colleges.
Identified major successful programs and blueprint to take it to more states/Universities.
Key MOU / Legal agreements identified and funding/ stakeholder responsibilities identified at a framework level.
Major industry partnerships identified and communications initiated with them.
Early Traction
Partnership strategy identified with 3-5 partnerships in pipeline
Understand how major industries and industry associations - e.g IMTMA (India Machine Tools Manufacturers Association) can contribute to the mission and leverage their expertise to drive the mission.
Define a Phase I program that will be rolled out to new participating Universities / Colleges to positively impact their learning and build local industry-linkages.
Drive current initiatives to their logical conclusion.
12-Month Milestones
Strategic Partnerships
5-10 active strategic partnerships with documented outcomes
Joint campaigns launched with 2-3 key partners
Partner-generated awareness and reach metrics tracked
Fundraising
Donor retention rate improving based on ecosystem collaboration effectiveness
New donor pipeline growth attributed to partnership efforts
Team & Operations
Programs tracking at individual University / College / Faculty / Student level
Learnings cycled back to improve programs and initiatives
Issue of Certifications, Faculty training, Maker Spaces initialized.
KPI dashboard demonstrating consistent growth across metrics
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS (KPIs)
Partnerships
MOU and Agreements
Number of key partnership initiatives identified.
MOU and industry partnership agreements in negotiation / Completed
Ecosystem contribution and Program development
Identified initiatives that already exist in the ecosystem and how they can be joint branded / expanded / rolled out to new Universities / Colleges
Key infrastructure and learning programs e.g. Maker spaces, Machinery, Raw material, learning programs, Cross disciplinary programs that are offered for students
Strategic Outcome Metrics
Partnerships
Number of strategic partnerships signed
Partnership quality metrics (resource contribution, impact on engineering education)
Partner-generated leads or opportunities
Measure of Impact
# of Universities, Colleges, Students covered by this initiative
# of Learning programs run by Faculty and Students across colleges that are powered by this program.
Demand-Supply Mismatch Analysis and Resolution
Identification of priority skill and competency gaps impacting engineering employability and industry readiness.
Percentage improvement in alignment metrics between curriculum outputs and industry needs
Number of industry-education collaboration projects
Government, Industry & Academia Engagement and Policy
Industry stakeholder relationships established with Government (Central/State), University and colleges
Policy mentions or influence achieved
Industry-academia partnership opportunities generated for Colleges, faculty and students