Deputy Director - Corporate Partnerships

About The Convergence Foundation:

The Convergence Foundation (TCF) is an Indian philanthropic foundation established by Ashish and Manisha Dhawan in April 2021. TCF builds on their legacy of impactful philanthropy, including the founding of transformative institutions like Ashoka University and the Central Square Foundation.

Our mission is clear: to transform the lives of all Indians through rapid, sustained economic growth and inclusive development. To achieve this, we focus on 3 pillars 1) Direct engines of economic growth that enable job creation, 2) Human capital development through education and employability, and 3) Development Enablers that strengthen the philanthropic ecosystem and improve state capacity.

In each area, TCF works on:

1. Building pioneering institutions to address India's most complex socio-economic challenges.
2. Shaping the larger ecosystem and sharing knowledge, insights and learning with other philanthropists, governments and key stakeholders

We believe that the government is the key actor for system change, and the role of philanthropy and nonprofits is to strategically support the government. The TCF Network includes 20+ organisations all working systemically with the government, committed to addressing specific areas of India's socio-economic development, across our three pillars.

Position Summary:

The Convergence Foundation (TCF) supports a network of organisations working on India's most pressing challenges in economic growth, education, skilling, and state capacity. Many of these organisations are now at a stage where scaling impact requires significant and sustainable funding.

India's annual CSR pool of over ₹32,000 crore remains largely focused on programmatic activities, with limited support for systemic, government-aligned solutions. This role is designed to unlock that opportunity.

The Deputy Director – Corporate Partnerships will drive TCF's engagement with corporate India, building senior relationships and converting them into high-value, long-term partnerships that support institutional and systems-change work.

The role will:

• Build and manage relationships at the highest levels of corporate India (CSR Heads, CXOs, Board members), positioning TCF and its network as credible partners for large-scale impact.
• Enable portfolio organisations to work with corporates and CSRs through coordinated outreach, strong positioning, and strategic introductions.
• Own TCF's CSR partnership strategy and implementation plan end to end.

Key Responsibilities:

TCF-led CSR engagement

• Own and drive TCF's CSR partnership strategy, including prioritisation of target sectors, development of a focused pipeline (top 20–30 CSR accounts), and conversion into high-value partnerships.
• Build and manage a high-quality CSR pipeline, identifying and engaging corporate foundations, conglomerates, and industry associations aligned to TCF's priority themes.
• Lead flagship corporate relationships, engaging senior stakeholders including CSR Heads, CXOs, and Board members, and building long-term, trust-based partnerships.
• Secure multi-year and portfolio-level CSR commitments, shifting corporate giving towards systemic, government-aligned solutions in areas such as foundational literacy and numeracy, skilling, and state capacity.
• Position TCF as a trusted partner and thought leader within the CSR ecosystem, shaping corporate giving towards institutional and systems-change approaches.

Portfolio CSR fundraising support

• Enable portfolio organisations to access CSR funding through coordinated outreach, shared positioning, and strategic introductions, tailored to their stage and scale.
• Anchor CSR fundraising and corporate partnerships for issue-specific collaboratives, starting with the Foundational Learning Collaborative and expanding to areas such as skilling, employability, and state capacity.
• Work closely with leadership (Founders, CEOs/MDs, CFOs) to shape realistic CSR fundraising strategies and targets, ensuring timely and predictable access to funding.
• Strengthen portfolio organisations corporate-facing narratives and pitches, aligning them with CSR priorities, compliance frameworks, and corporate expectations.
• Build and activate a network of high-potential corporate funders, facilitating warm introductions, strategic meetings, and partnership development.
• Drive conversion of priority opportunities into long-term CSR partnerships, including multi-year and portfolio-level commitments where relevant.
• Leverage senior influencers, industry champions, and networks as strategic entry points to unlock high-value corporate relationships.

Ecosystem Engagement

• Represent TCF at CSR and other philanthropic events and forums, building senior-level visibility and shaping corporate giving towards systemic solutions..
• Contribute to TCF's thought leadership content in the CSR ecosystem, developing insights, briefs, and external content that articulate the case for investing in institutions, policy reform, and long term systems change.
• Track and interpret CSR policy and regulatory developments, ensuring alignment while identifying emerging opportunities for strategic engagement and partnerships.

Governance and Team Structure

• Reports to the Director -Global Engagements and work closely with TCF's leadership team on partnership strategy and priority relationships..
• Sit within the Philanthropic Partnerships team (a six-member horizontal), alongside colleagues leading on global and domestic philanthropy, contributing to a coordinated and high-impact partnership approach.
• Lead the CSR vertical for TCF with ownership of pipeline, partnerships and execution with support from junior team members
• Leverage shared administrative and research support across the broader partnerships team to ensure efficiency and consistency.
• Work closely with portfolio CEOs, CFOs, and other functional leaders to align CSR engagement with organisational priorities and funding needs.

Experience

• 15–20 years of professional experience across corporate CSR, institutional partnerships, philanthropy, professional services, or strategic client relationship management.
• Demonstrated success in building and managing senior corporate relationships, including CSR Heads, CXOs, and Board members.
• Proven track record of originating and converting partnerships or funding commitments, ideally with multi-year or strategic engagements.
• Strong understanding of the CSR landscape in India, including corporate decision-making processes, compliance frameworks, and stakeholder dynamics.
• Experience working at the intersection of corporates, philanthropy, and/or public systems is an advantage.

Skills

• Strong relationship-building and networking skills, with the ability to engage and influence senior corporate stakeholders.
• Excellent communication — clear, confident, and persuasive in one to one and group settings.
• Strategic orientation — ability to align organisational priorities with corporate agendas and identify high-potential partnership opportunities.
• Strong pipeline development and management capability, with disciplined follow-through from origination to closure. .
• Ability to navigate complex corporate structures and decision making processes, and secure commitments in multi-stakeholder environments.
• Sound judgement in balancing institutional priorities with funder expectations, including brand, visibility, and compliance considerations.
• Ability to structure and position large-scale, system-oriented opportunities for corporate funder

Attributes

• Highly credible and personable, with the ability to build trust and rapport quickly with senior stakeholders.
• Relationship-oriented, with a genuine interest in engaging diverse stakeholders across sectors.
• High integrity and professionalism in all interactions.
• Self-driven and resilient, with the ability to operate effectively in evolving and ambiguous environments.
• Collaborative mindset — works well across internal teams and portfolio organisations.
• Intellectually curious and comfortable engaging across different sectors and themes.

Location: Full-time position based out of Delhi / Mumbai, India & involves extensive domestic travel