Braun Board

Strategic Partnerships Manager

Cartesia · San Francisco, CA

Base
Not disclosed
OTE
$220K–$270K
Quota attainment
Not disclosed
Posted
5mo ago

Why it matters: OTE tells you what you could earn. Attainment tells you how realistic it is.

Ask: “What percentage of fully ramped reps hit quota last year?”

Still open · checked 2h agoon Cartesia's careers page

What Cartesia sells

AI models that developers call through an API

When a developer wants their app to use AI, they have to pick a model that's accurate, fast, and easy to plug in. The problem is, a slow or clunky model makes the whole app feel worse and slows the team down. Cartesia builds its own AI models and sells them through an API, so developers can plug them in and pay only for what they use.

In plain English, from their own job posts. Something wrong? Tell us

More AI & data companies →

The Braun Read

Worth a look

Solid on the basics. Use the first call to fill in the gaps.

Pay
OTE is listed. Ask what the base is.
Transparency
Says nothing about quota, attainment, deal size, territory or sales cycle.
Pipeline
A mix of self-sourced pipeline and inbound or SDR help.
Time on market
Open 172 days. Ask why it's been hard to fill.
Company hiring
5 sales roles open, hiring at a steady pace.

Red lights

None spotted.

Yellow lights

  • Open 90+ days. This role has been posted for three months or more. Ask why it's been hard to fill, and whether anyone left it.

Green lights

  • Publishes OTE. It tells you the on-target earnings up front. Most postings don't.

Based only on what the posting says. Lights are a starting point for your first call, not a final judgment.

Questions to ask on the first call

Built from what this posting leaves out. How they answer tells you as much as what they say.

  1. 1.

    This role has been open a while. What's made it hard to fill?

    The answer tells you what candidates saw that made them walk.

  2. 2.

    What percentage of fully ramped reps hit quota last year?

    OTE is what you could earn. This is how likely you are to earn it.

  3. 3.

    What percentage of reps on the team have been here more than 18 months?

    Tenure shows whether people stay long enough to get paid.

  4. 4.

    Has the comp plan changed in the last 12 to 18 months? What changed?

    A plan that changes every year means the goalposts keep moving.

  5. 5.

    Who sits with reps and reviews calls each week?

    Coaching is often what's behind a good or bad attainment number.

  6. 6.

    Why is this role open? Did someone leave, or is it new?

    New headcount is growth. A replacement means someone left. Ask why.

When the offer comes

Save these for later. They land better once they've said yes to you.

  1. 1.

    Can I see the full comp plan in writing, including clawbacks and accelerators?

    What's in writing is what gets paid. Read it before you sign.

  2. 2.

    Can I see the actual comp distribution for the team last year, not just the OTE?

    The spread shows what most reps really take home. OTE is just the target.

  3. 3.

    I'd be walking away from earned commission to join. Is there room for a sign-on bonus to help cover that?

    Leaving money behind is a fair reason to ask. The worst answer is no.

Josh's top five questions for any sales interview →

Going for your first AE role? Get the free interview kit → 24 questions, what good and bad answers sound like, and an offer comparison sheet.

Got an offer from Cartesia? Not sure about it?Ask me. I read every message myself. · JoshAsk Josh
+ Add offer details (optional)

Goes straight to my inbox. I never share it with employers or recruiters.

The role

You build and run partnerships with enterprise tech companies (AI platforms, SaaS) to co-sell and embed Cartesia's AI models. You own partner roadmaps, KPIs, enablement, and joint go-to-market.

Strategic · Partnerships

Selling motion

Channel

Who you're selling to

Buyer:
Business development leaders and sales teams at enterprise tech partnersIn their words: “Cultivate and own relationships with business development leaders and individual sales teams within enterprise technology companies.”
Industry:
Enterprise technology and SaaSIn their words: “drive transformational partnerships with enterprise technology companies that can unlock massive revenue growth for Cartesia”
Company size:
Enterprise

Pipeline expectations

A mix of self-sourced pipeline and inbound / SDR support.

Compensation

$220K–$270K OTE

What is not disclosed

This posting doesn't tell you:

  • Base salary
  • Quota size
  • Quota attainment
  • Average deal size
  • Territory
  • Sales cycle length

The questions above cover the big ones.

Full posting
ABOUT CARTESIA Our mission is to architect AI that learns from and interacts with the world like humans do. We're pioneering the model architectures that will make this possible. Our founding team met as PhDs at the Stanford AI Lab, where we invented State Space Models or SSMs, a new primitive for training efficient, large-scale foundation models. Our team combines deep expertise in model innovation and systems engineering paired with a design-minded product engineering team to build and ship cutting edge models and experiences. We're funded by leading investors at Index Ventures and Lightspeed Venture Partners, along with Factory, Conviction, A Star, General Catalyst, SV Angel, Databricks and others. We're fortunate to have the support of many amazing advisors, and 90+ angels across many industries, including the world's foremost experts in AI. ABOUT THE ROLE Cartesia is seeking a Strategic Partnerships Manager to drive transformational partnerships with enterprise technology companies that can unlock massive revenue growth for Cartesia. This role focuses on developing high impact relationships with priority technology partners including AI platforms and key SaaS companies. You will be responsible for enabling our commercial partners by leading enablement and adoption initiatives that maximize value across our solutions, driving long-term engagement and success.   YOUR IMPACT - Power enterprise technology distribution: operationalize partnerships with enterprise technology leaders to deeply embed Cartesia into sales motions and develop joint go-to-market strategies that amplify mutual success - Cultivate relationships: Cultivate and own relationships with business development leaders and individual sales teams within enterprise technology companies. - Create a roadmap for partnership initiatives, including timelines, strategic priorities, KPIs, and performance metrics (e.g. new user growth, revenue growth, product adoption). - Attend and organize events aligned to that partner including technical enablements, sales kickoffs, conferences, and more. - Design and deliver technical training programs for partner engineering teams   WHAT YOU BRING - 5–8+ years of experience in Business Development, Partnerships, or Enterprise Account Management within a fast-paced SaaS or technology-driven environment. - Exceptional communication and relationship management skills, with the ability to influence internal and external stakeholders at all levels. Confident delivering technical enablement and training sessions. - Strong commercial acumen and experience driving adoption, retention, and revenue growth across complex or early-stage products. - Operational program design skills (e.g. onboarding journeys, certification design, QBRs, success plans, playbooks). - Experience maximizing enterprise partner programs such as marketplaces with co-marketing, and co-selling initiatives. - A builder mentality— you're comfortable operating in ambiguity, scaling processes, and shaping foundational systems for long-term success.   NICE TO HAVE - Technical degree (Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, etc.) - Understanding of foundational AI model capabilities and enterprise AI adoption patterns, with insight into how technical capabilities translate to business value - Proven track record of structuring and closing innovative deals involving joint go-to-market, product partnerships, revenue sharing, marketplace models, co-innovation, or other non-standard commercial structures Note: Cartesia participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with Form I-9 information to confirm employment eligibility after hire. MORE DETAILS 🏢 In-office policy: We’re an in-person team based out of offices in 🇺🇸 San Francisco, 🇬🇧 London and 🇮🇳 Bangalore. We love being in the office, hanging out together, and learning from each other every day. 🌎 Visa sponsorship: We provide visa sponsorship support and assess each circumstance on a case-by-case basis. However, visa sponsorship is dependent on many factors, including the role you are applying for, and the location you are going to be based, and so we can't always guarantee success. Your Recruiter will work with you to understand your visa sponsorship needs from the first call. 🚢 We ship fast. All of our work is novel and cutting edge, and execution speed is paramount. We have a high bar, and we don’t sacrifice quality or design along the way. 🤝 We support each other. We have an open & inclusive culture that’s focused on giving everyone the resources they need to succeed. OUR BENEFITS (US EMPLOYEES ONLY) 💰 Compensation Competitive base salary alongside attractive equity package. 🩺 Health Insurance Fully covered medical insurance along with dental and vision for you and your family. 🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒 Parental Leave 9 weeks paternity & 12 weeks maternity leave 🏦 401(k) 🚆 Commuter Allowance A monthly stipend to help you get to and from the office. 🏖️ Flexible PTO Take as much time as you need to recharge your batteries. 🍲 Meals & Snacks Lunch, dinner and plenty of snacks, provided daily. 🦖 Your own personal Yoshi OUR COMMITMENT TO EQUAL OPPORTUNITY Cartesia is an equal opportunity employer. We consider qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status.
Apply →