Sr Manager, Strategic Partnerships - Vehicle Intelligence
$194k - $310k USD
Join Axon and be a Force for Good.
At Axon, we’re on a mission to Protect Life. We’re explorers, pursuing society’s most critical safety and justice issues with our ecosystem of devices and cloud software. Like our products, we work better together. We connect with candor and care, seeking out diverse perspectives from our customers, communities and each other.
Life at Axon is fast-paced, challenging and meaningful. Here, you’ll take ownership and drive real change. Constantly grow as you work hard for a mission that matters at a company where you matter.
Org: Strategy & Corporate Development
Reports to: Head of Global Strategic Alliances
Location: US East Coast hub (Boston, or New York City, or Atlanta)
Your Impact
Axon is seeking a strategic, execution-oriented, and collaborative Senior Manager of Strategic Partnerships to lead partner strategy and execution for Vehicle Intelligence, including automated license plate reading (ALPR) and sensor-network expansion initiatives. In this high-impact role, you will drive partnership sourcing, development and onboarding to materially expand Axon’s vehicle data ecosystem, accelerate adoption of Axon Fusus and related products, and strengthen Axon’s position as the platform of record for real-time operations and investigations.
You will work cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, Sales, Legal, and Privacy to identify, structure, and scale partnerships across fleets, enterprises, technology platforms, and data providers that contribute vehicle intelligence signals into Axon’s ecosystem. This role requires independent ownership of complex partner relationships, strong strategic judgment, and disciplined execution across the full partnership lifecycle.
What You’ll Do
PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT & ECOSYSTEM EXPANSION
- Lead the sourcing, development and execution of strategic partnerships that expand Axon’s Vehicle Intelligence and ALPR sensor network, including fleet, enterprise, platform, and data partners.
- Identify, evaluate, and prioritize new partnership opportunities that materially increase coverage, data quality, and customer value within Axon Fusus and related workflows.
- Engage senior leaders at potential partners—including fleet technology providers, connected vehicle platforms, enterprise security providers, cloud and AI companies—to structure mutually beneficial partnerships.
- Own partner relationship management, including executive alignment, roadmap coordination, QBRs, and long-term value realization.
- Negotiate commercial and strategic partnership terms, including data-sharing frameworks, integration models, exclusivity considerations, and governance structures.
CROSS-FUNCTIONAL COORDINATION & EXECUTION
- Partner closely with Product and Engineering to translate customer and ecosystem needs into scalable partner integrations and repeatable patterns.
- Work with Sales and GTM teams to align partnerships with customer priorities, pilot deployments, and expansion opportunities.
- Collaborate with Legal, Privacy, and Policy teams to ensure partnerships meet Axon’s standards for data governance, transparency, and responsible use.
- Drive internal alignment on partner prioritization, investment tradeoffs, and sequencing across multiple stakeholders.
ESCALATION SUPPORT & ISSUE RESOLUTION
- Serve as the escalation point for complex or high-risk partner issues, ensuring timely resolution across Product, Legal, and executive stakeholders.
- Provide clear framing, documentation, and recommendations during decision points involving technical, commercial, or policy tradeoffs.
STRATEGIC INITIATIVES & PLANNING
- Contribute to the long-term Vehicle Intelligence partnership strategy, including ecosystem mapping, prioritization frameworks, and build/buy/partner recommendations.
- Support leadership in evaluating new partner categories, emerging technologies, and competitive dynamics within the ALPR and vehicle intelligence landscape.
- Help establish scalable partnership playbooks, operating models, and governance processes as the Vehicle Intelligence ecosystem grows.
Performance Measurement & Reporting
- Define and track success metrics for Vehicle Intelligence partnerships based on coverage expansion, integration milestones, partner health, and customer impact—not just near-term revenue.
- Prepare executive-ready updates, including partner summaries, dashboards, and strategic recommendations.
- Establish and maintain governance cadences (e.g., QBRs, executive reviews) and continuously identify opportunities for optimization across the partnership lifecycle.
Future Scope Includes (12–18 Month Expansion Path)
As Vehicle Intelligence scales to tens of thousands of nodes and becomes a foundational part of Axon’s real-time sensor and data strategy, this role naturally expands into broader ecosystem leadership.
Ownership of Axon’s “Sensor Network Ecosystem”
Beyond ALPR, expand Axon’s partnerships across:
- CCTV & consumer cameras
- Enterprise VMS ecosystems
- Drone & robotic networks
- Access control, IoT, and mass-notification platforms
- New data streams (vehicle data, logistics, commercial LPR, threat intelligence, smart infrastructure)
What You Bring
- 8–10+ years of experience in strategic partnerships, business development, corporate strategy, or enterprise technology environments.
- Proven experience structuring and negotiating complex partnerships involving data, platforms, hardware, or integrated technology ecosystems.
- Strong ability to influence and align cross-functional teams without direct reporting authority.
- Demonstrated success managing complex partner relationships, pilots, and escalations across multiple workstreams.
- Excellent strategic judgment, communication skills, and executive presence.
- Experience in ecosystem businesses involving data sharing, networks, hardware/software integration, or IoT.
- Familiarity with public safety, mobility, video, AI, cloud platforms, or regulated data environments is strongly preferred.
- Ability to operate comfortably between high-level strategy and hands-on execution in a fast-moving environment.
Why This Role Matters
This role is central to Axon’s strategy to build the largest and most trusted vehicle intelligence network — extending beyond first-party hardware into a broad, partner-powered sensor and data ecosystem. The Senior Manager will directly shape how Axon scales coverage, differentiates against competitors, unlocks next-generation AI capabilities, and balances innovation with privacy, policy, and public trust.
Axon is a total compensation company, meaning compensation is made up of base pay, bonus, and stock awards. The actual base pay is dependent upon many factors, such as: level, function, training, transferable skills, work experience, business needs, geographic market, and often a combination of all these factors. Our benefits offer an array of options to help support you physically, financially and emotionally through the big milestones and in your everyday life. To see more details on our benefits offerings please visit https://www.axon.com/careers.
Base Pay Range
$193,500—$309,600 USD
Don’t meet every single requirement? That's ok. At Axon, we Aim Far. We think big with a long-term view because we want to reinvent the world to be a safer, better place. We are also committed to building diverse teams that reflect the communities we serve.
Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they check every box in the job description. If you’re excited about this role and our mission to Protect Life but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification listed here, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.
Important Notes
The above job description is not intended as, nor should it be construed as, exhaustive of all duties, responsibilities, skills, efforts, or working conditions associated with this job. The job description may change or be supplemented at any time in accordance with business needs and conditions.
Some roles may also require legal eligibility to work in a firearms environment.
We collect personal information from applicants to evaluate candidates for employment. You may request access, deletion, or exercise other CCPA rights at axongreenhousesupport@axon.com or via our Axon Privacy Web Form. For more information, please see the Your California Privacy Rights section of our Applicant and Candidate Privacy Notice.
Axon’s mission is to Protect Life and is committed to the well-being and safety of its employees as well as Axon’s impact on the environment. All Axon employees must be aware of and committed to the appropriate environmental, health, and safety regulations, policies, and procedures. Axon employees are empowered to report safety concerns as they arise and activities potentially impacting the environment.
We are an equal opportunity employer that promotes justice, advances equity, values diversity and fosters inclusion. We’re committed to hiring the best talent — regardless of race, creed, color, ancestry, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship status, marital status, disability, gender identity, genetic information, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances — and empowering all of our employees so they can do their best work. If you have a disability or special need that requires assistance or accommodation during the application or the recruiting process, please email recruitingops@axon.com. Please note that this email address is for accommodation purposes only. Axon will not respond to inquiries for other purposes.
Phishing alert: Axon will never ask you to pay for any part of the hiring process, including training, equipment, or background checks. We do not make job offers via text message, WhatsApp, or instant messaging platforms without a formal interview process. All legitimate job openings are listed on our official careers page at https://www.axon.com/careers. If you receive a suspicious offer or outreach from an email address that is not @axon.com, or if you are asked for sensitive personal information (bank details, Social Security Number) prematurely, please ignore the message and report it to recruitingops@axon.com.