Director of Business Development

Position Summary
The Director, Business Development — Semiconductor & Ecosystem Partnerships will lead client’s strategic relationships with semiconductor companies and the broader optical interconnect and AI infrastructure ecosystem, including ASIC and merchant silicon vendors, connector and interconnect companies, and adjacent technology providers. This person will identify, structure, and manage partnerships that expand client’s technical integration footprint, accelerate co-development with key silicon and system partners, and strengthen client’s position within the AI infrastructure supply chain.
The role works closely with the VP of BD, CRO, Engineering, and Product to translate ecosystem relationships into technical alignment, joint go-to-market opportunities, and revenue.

Key Responsibilities:
• Semiconductor Partnership Strategy
• Own and expand relationships with semiconductor partners—including ASIC vendors, merchant silicon providers, and adjacent component companies—relevant to client’s silicon photonics roadmap.
• Identify co-development, integration, and joint qualification opportunities that strengthen client’s technical position with hyperscale and OEM customers.
• Structure and negotiate technical collaboration, joint development, and co-marketing agreements in partnership with Legal and executive leadership.
• Track semiconductor partner roadmaps and technology direction, translating their implications into client’s partnership and product strategy.
• Build a pipeline of new semiconductor partnership opportunities aligned with client’s product roadmap and target market segments.

Ecosystem Partnership Development:
• Build and manage relationships across the optical interconnect and AI infrastructure ecosystem, including connector and interconnect vendors, system integrators, and adjacent technology providers.
• Identify ecosystem gaps or dependencies that could affect client’s ability to deliver integrated solutions, and develop partnerships to address them.
• Monitor the competitive landscape and identify partnership opportunities that differentiate clients from competing silicon photonics vendors.
• Evaluate and prioritize potential partners based on strategic fit, technical synergy, and go-to-market impact.

Joint Go-to-Market & Co-Selling:
• Develop joint go-to-market plans with strategic semiconductor and ecosystem partners, including co-marketing, joint customer engagements, and reference architectures.
• Partner with Sales, BD, and Technical Marketing to build joint value propositions that combine client’s technology with partner offerings for shared target accounts.
• Support partner-influenced and partner-sourced opportunities within client’s design-win pipeline.
• Coordinate with Sales Programs & Operations to ensure partner-driven opportunities are consistently tracked and reported.

Technical Alignment & Co-Development:
• Work closely with Engineering and Product to identify technical integration points with semiconductor and ecosystem partners, including interface compatibility, packaging co-design, and qualification requirements.
• Facilitate technical working sessions between client and partner engineering teams to align roadmaps and integration requirements.
• Support joint qualification and validation efforts required to bring integrated solutions to customers.

Partnership Program Management:
• Build and maintain a structured partnership program, including partner tiers, engagement models, and success metrics.
• Track the partnership pipeline, status, and impact, and provide regular updates to the VP of BD and executive leadership.
• Manage partner relationship health, including engagement cadence, escalation paths, and issue resolution.
• Develop scalable partnership frameworks, agreement templates, and engagement playbooks as the function grows.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration
• Serve as the primary point of coordination among BD, Engineering, Product, and Sales on semiconductor and ecosystem partnership matters.
• Keep the CRO and executive leadership informed of partnership developments that could affect strategic accounts or competitive positioning.
• Partner with Technical Marketing on joint content, co-branded materials, and participation in industry events with key partners.

Required qualifications:
• 10+ years of experience in business development, strategic partnerships, or related roles at semiconductor, optical communications, or AI infrastructure companies.
• Proven track record of building and managing partnerships with semiconductor companies, including ASIC, merchant silicon, or component vendors.
• Strong technical fluency, with the ability to engage credibly with partner engineering teams on integration and co-development topics.
• Experience structuring and negotiating partnership agreements.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills, with experience working across Engineering, Product, Sales, and Legal.
• Excellent relationship-building and executive communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications:
• Existing relationships with semiconductor companies or interconnect vendors relevant to AI infrastructure and optical interconnects.
• Experience with silicon photonics, co-packaged optics (CPO), near-packaged optics (NPO), or high-speed optical and electrical interconnects.
• A technical background in engineering or applications engineering before transitioning into business development or partnerships.
• Experience building a partnership function or program from an early stage.
• Familiarity with semiconductor industry go-to-market and co-selling models.