DIRECTOR – FOUNDER RELATIONS & ECOSYSTEM GROWTH

Company: Zetiify Private Limited

Designation: Director – Founder Relations & Ecosystem Growth

Department: Business Development & Strategic Partnerships

Location: Bengaluru, Karnataka

Position Type: Full-time Leadership Role

Reporting: CEO and Board of Directors

About Zetiify

Zetiify is an AI-powered fundraising and professional networking platform connecting startups, entrepreneurs and existing businesses with potential investors, industry professionals and business opportunities.

We aim to build a connected entrepreneurial ecosystem that makes fundraising, skilled networking and business collaboration more accessible.

Role Overview

Zetiify is looking for a dynamic and strategic leader to take ownership of its founder ecosystem and lead the company's founder acquisition, onboarding, institutional partnerships and community development initiatives.

The Director will be responsible for building and expanding Zetiify's network of startup founders, entrepreneurs, existing businesses, colleges, universities, incubators, accelerators and entrepreneurial organisations.

This is a leadership position requiring strong business development capabilities, strategic thinking, exceptional communication skills and the ability to represent the company at institutional and industry levels.

The individual will lead the founder-side growth vertical and work closely with the CEO and other leadership members to execute Zetiify's overall business objectives.

Key Responsibilities

- Founder Ecosystem Development
- Lead the strategy for acquiring and onboarding founders, startups and existing businesses onto Zetiify.
- Build a strong network of entrepreneurs across different industries and business stages.
- Identify founder communities, startup networks and potential ecosystem partners.
- Develop scalable founder acquisition and engagement strategies.
- Establish relationships with entrepreneurs, business owners and startup leaders.
- Institutional & Strategic Partnerships
- Establish strategic partnerships with colleges, universities, business schools and entrepreneurship cells.
- Build relationships with startup incubators, accelerators and entrepreneurship organisations.
- Represent Zetiify in institutional meetings, business conferences,



startup events and networking sessions.
- Lead partnership discussions, presentations and collaboration opportunities.
- Develop long-term institutional relationships to expand Zetiify's reach.
- Business Development & Founder Acquisition
- Lead founder-side business development and market expansion.
- Develop outreach strategies through email, LinkedIn, direct meetings, phone calls and industry networks.
- Conduct presentations and pitch Zetiify to founders and business communities.
- Build and manage the founder acquisition pipeline.
- Convert potential founders into registered, verified and active platform users.
- Founder Onboarding & Relationship Management
- Oversee the complete founder onboarding process.
- Ensure founders understand the platform, its features and fundraising capabilities.
- Understand founders' business models, funding requirements and challenges.
- Build long-term relationships with onboarded founders.
- Improve founder engagement, platform activation and retention.
- Identify recurring founder challenges and communicate them to the product and technology teams.
- Market Intelligence & Strategic Development
- Study the Indian startup and small-business ecosystem.
- Identify market opportunities, emerging sectors and founder requirements.
- Analyse competitor platforms and industry developments.
- Provide strategic recommendations to the CEO.
- Contribute to business expansion plans, partnership strategies and growth initiatives.
- Leadership & Execution
- Build and manage the founder relations and business development team as the company scales.
- Establish operational processes, performance targets and reporting systems.
- Monitor acquisition, onboarding, engagement and retention metrics.
- Coordinate with investor relations, product, marketing and technology leadership.
- Take ownership of the founder ecosystem's overall performance and growth.

Required Competencies





- Exceptional verbal and written communication.
- Strong leadership and relationship-management abilities.
- Strategic business development and partnership-building skills.
- Excellent presentation, pitching and negotiation abilities.
- Understanding of startups, entrepreneurship and business models.
- Knowledge of fundraising stages, angel investing, venture capital and incubator ecosystems.
- Ability to communicate with founders, investors, institutional representatives and senior business professionals.
- Strong networking and stakeholder-management capabilities.
- Strategic thinking combined with hands-on execution.
- Ability to build teams, manage targets and take ownership of business outcomes.
- Willingness to travel for institutional meetings, partnerships and industry events.

Preferred Background

- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Business Administration, Commerce, Management, Marketing or a related discipline.
- Experience in business development, strategic partnerships, startup ecosystem development, institutional relations or leadership roles.
- Experience working with startups, incubators, accelerators, colleges or entrepreneurship communities.
- A demonstrated ability to build professional networks and develop business relationships.

Key Performance Areas The Director will be accountable for:
- Growth of Zetiify's founder network.
- Quality and number of active founders onboarded.
- Strategic college, university and institutional partnerships.
- Founder acquisition and conversion.
- Founder engagement and retention.
- Expansion of the entrepreneurial community.
- Development and execution of founder ecosystem growth strategies.

Ideal Candidate

We are looking for someone who can take ownership of an entire business vertical, build relationships at an institutional level, represent Zetiify professionally and develop a strong entrepreneurial ecosystem.

The ideal candidate must be equally comfortable developing strategy, pitching to senior stakeholders, meeting founders, building partnerships and executing growth initiatives.

This is an opportunity to take a leadership position in an emerging FinTech and fundraising technology company and help build its founder ecosystem from the ground up.

📌 DIRECTOR – FOUNDER RELATIONS & ECOSYSTEM GROWTH (Bengaluru)
🏢 Zetiify | The AI Funding Engine for (Bharat) India
📍 Bengaluru