Strategic Partnerships Manager

Asymmetric Research: Asymmetric Research is a specialized security firm focused on long-term, integrated partnerships with L1/L2 blockchains and DeFi protocols. We help teams build resilient systems, strengthen security posture, and proactively address emerging threats. Culture: AR is a fully remote organization and members of our team have been strongly committed to open-source values for decades, having worked at organizations with deep open-source roots and strong security programs including Google, Netflix, Mozilla, Stripe, and Jump Crypto. We pride ourselves on maintaining the highest levels of confidentiality, trust, and professionalism. About the role: We're looking for someone to serve as a strategic partnerships manager to join our business development team. Your work would involve getting in front of crypto/AI builders and positioning us as the security and infrastructure partner of choice. You'll be building a pipeline through a mix of outbound outreach, in-person relationship-building, conferences, and other channels. What you'd actually be doing: - Identifying and prioritizing prospects (established protocols, exchanges, L1/L2 teams, fintechs, and AI companies) - Being out in the market, attending conferences, meetups, dinners, wherever the people who make these decisions actually are - Running full-cycle deals: outreach, scoping conversations, working with our team to size engagements, and closing - Making a compelling, persuasive case for why security should be a priority. - Using market signals (who's raising, shipping, or upgrading) to reach teams before they go looking for a security partner. What we're looking for: - Strong enterprise sales experience: 1-2+ years closing complex, larger deals. This matters more than web3, AI, or security background, which we expect you can pick up. - Genuinely persuasive: comfortable making a case to skeptical, sophisticated buyers and changing their mind - Strong market instincts: you read a market and know where to be, not just who to call - NYC-based and in-market: you live in the NYC area and work the ground game in person, including meetings, events, and dinners. You'll work occasionally from our office at 1 World Trade Center to meet with the team and clients in person. You will travel up to 20-40% whenever a deal or event calls for it. - Self-directed: we're a 50+ person team with a flat hierarchy, so you'll get trust and room to define the role, not a heavily scripted playbook Good to have, not required: - Existing relationships with funds, exchanges, or protocol teams - Prior exposure to crypto, artificial intelligence, security, or technical sales is a plus Benefits: - 25+ days of paid time off - Comprehensive stipends for home office, wellbeing, professional development, and more - Pension/401(k) programs - Life insurance - Premium healthcare - Competitive base salary - Lucrative bonus programs When applying, mention the word CANDYSHOP to show you read the job post completely.