Head of Partnerships
$180k - $220k USD
Head of Partnerships
You'll own the strategic partnerships that unlock access to the world's most valuable data for Firecrawl — negotiating licensing agreements, building relationships with major content and platform companies, and opening doors that don't have a "Contact Sales" button. This is a business development role at its core, but the deals you close will shape what Firecrawl can offer and how the product evolves.
Salary Range: $180,000–$220,000/year OTE (Range shown is for U.S.-based employees in San Francisco, CA. Compensation outside the U.S. is adjusted fairly based on your country's cost of living. You can explore how we calculate this here: https://www.firecrawl.dev/careers/compensation.)
Equity Range: Up to 0.10%
Location: San Francisco, CA (Hybrid; remote-friendly when needed)
Job Type: Full-Time (SF)
Experience: 5+ years in partnerships, BD, or licensing — ideally at a major tech or platform company
Visa: US Citizenship/Visa required for SF
About Firecrawl
Firecrawl is the easiest way to extract data from the web. Developers use us to reliably convert URLs into LLM-ready markdown or structured data with a single API call. In just a year, we've hit 8 figures in ARR and 80k+ GitHub stars by building the fastest way for developers to get LLM-ready data.
We're a small, fast-moving, technical team building essential infrastructure super-intelligence will use to gather data on the web. We ship fast and deep.
What You'll Do
Identify, pursue, and close strategic partnerships with major content owners, media companies, and platform businesses
Negotiate data licensing and access agreements that expand what Firecrawl can offer its customers
Build and maintain relationships with senior decision-makers at large organizations — legal, BD, product, and policy teams
Develop the partnership strategy: who to go after, in what order, and why — then execute it
Navigate complex deal structures involving legal, compliance, and data governance stakeholders
Work closely with product and engineering to understand what data access unlocks and how partnerships translate into product value
Represent Firecrawl in rooms where AI infrastructure and data access are being shaped
What We're Looking For
A proven dealmaker in tech. You've closed complex, high-stakes partnerships — not just warm-intro handshakes, but real agreements with legal review, commercial terms, and multiple stakeholders. You know how big organizations actually make decisions and you have the patience and persistence to navigate that.
Deep relationships in the right rooms. You have an existing network across major tech companies, media organizations, or platform businesses. You don't need to cold-start every conversation — you know people, and people take your calls.
Fluent in the AI landscape. You understand why data access matters in the age of LLMs. You can speak credibly about how AI companies use web data, what licensing means in this context, and why Firecrawl's position is unique. You don't need to write code, but you need to hold your own in technical conversations.
Comfortable selling a fast-moving startup to slow-moving enterprises. You've bridged the gap between startup speed and enterprise process before. You know how to create urgency without burning relationships and how to keep momentum through long deal cycles.
High agency with executive presence. You represent Firecrawl in rooms with senior leaders at large companies. You're polished enough to earn trust and scrappy enough to follow up relentlessly until the deal is done.
Backgrounds that often do well: BD or partnerships leads at major platform, social media, or tech companies. People who've negotiated content or data licensing deals. Senior BD at AI companies who've worked the data access side. Ex-founders who've closed enterprise partnerships through sheer force of will.
What We're NOT Looking For
Partnership managers who manage, not close. If your experience is maintaining existing partner relationships and running QBRs, this isn't the role. You'll be sourcing and closing from scratch.
AI tourists. If you can't explain why data licensing matters for LLMs or how web data powers AI applications, you'll struggle to have credible conversations with partners. You need genuine understanding, not talking points.
People who need a big brand behind them to open doors. You'll be representing a startup, not a household name. If your dealmaking depends on the logo on your business card rather than your own credibility and hustle, this won't be a fit.
A Note On Pace
We operate at an absurd level of urgency because the window for what we're building won't stay open forever. If that excites you, keep reading. If it doesn't, no hard feelings — but this role probably isn't for you.
Benefits & Perks
Available to all employees
Salary that makes sense — $180,000–220,000/year OTE (U.S.-based), based on impact, not tenure
Own a piece — Up to 0.10% equity in what you're helping build
Generous PTO — 15 days mandatory, anything after 24 days, just ask (holidays excluded); take the time you need to recharge
Parental leave — 12 weeks fully paid, for moms and dads
Wellness stipend — $100/month for the gym, therapy, massages, or whatever keeps you human
Learning & Development — Expense up to $1000/year toward anything that helps you grow professionally
Team offsites — A change of scenery, minus the trust falls
Sabbatical — 3 paid months off after 4 years, do something fun and new
Available to US-based full-time employees
Full coverage, no red tape — Medical, dental, and vision (100% for employees, 50% for spouse/kids) — no weird loopholes, just care that works
Life & Disability insurance — Employer-paid short-term disability, long-term disability, and life insurance — coverage for life's curveballs
Supplemental options — Optional accident, critical illness, hospital indemnity, and voluntary life insurance for extra peace of mind
Doctegrity telehealth — Talk to a doctor from your couch
401(k) plan — Retirement might be a ways off, but future-you will thank you
Pre-tax benefits — Access to FSAs and commuter benefits (US-only) to help your wallet out a bit
Pet insurance — Because fur babies are family too
Available to SF-based employees
SF HQ perks — Snacks, drinks, team lunches, intense ping pong, and peak startup energy
E-Bike transportation — A loaner electric bike to get you around the city, on us
Interview Process
Application Review – Send us your stuff + a quick note on why this excites you (plus examples of strategic deals you've closed).
Intro Chat (~20–25 min) – Quick alignment call focused on the partnerships you've built, how you approach complex deal cycles, and what you'd prioritize first at Firecrawl.
Async Strategy Exercise (60–90 min) – A short, structured exercise: pick a target partner category, outline your approach to opening the relationship, and map the path from first conversation to signed agreement. We're looking for strategic thinking, deal instincts, and understanding of the data/AI landscape.
Founder Chat (~30 min) – Culture, pace, ownership, and how you like to work. Time for your questions too.
Paid Work Trial (1–2 weeks) – Test drive the real thing: advance a real partnership conversation with measurable progress.
Decision – We move fast after the trial.
If you've ever wanted to be the person who opens the doors that change what an AI infrastructure company can build, this is your shot.
👉 Apply now and let's set something on fire.