Emerging Partnerships Analyst

About the role

The Emerging Partnerships Analyst supports Velera's emerging partnership efforts by helping execute key partnerships with fintech companies. This role influences products and services offered to Velera clients through B2B partnership models, ensuring alignment with enterprise strategy, client needs, and competitive market pressures. The role partners closely with internal business units, technology teams, community financial institutions, fintech partners, and external networks to implement new product opportunities into scalable offerings.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end cross-functional formation of key fintech partnership initiatives, from ideation and concept validation through pilots all the way to commercialization and scaling.
• Identify, evaluate, and prioritize emerging fintech trends, technologies, and market opportunities aligned to Velera’s strategic roadmap.
• Assist with the negotiation of key partnership terms through business cases, financial modeling, market sizing, and legal contract terms.
• Serve as a cross-functional change agent for the organization in an ongoing effort to standardize a holistic approach to partnership commercialization that is smooth and easy to maneuver.
• Maintain deep understanding of competitive dynamics and partner needs within the fintech ecosystem.
• Work with Velera technology teams to orchestrate the technical integration design of new products, services, and features through fintech partnerships.
• Translate user needs, market insights, and research into clear product requirements and strategic use cases.
• Ensure commercialization readiness across training, operations, support, compliance, contracting, and delivery teams.
• Track partner performance, risks, and dependencies; communicate progress to senior leadership and key stakeholders.
• Curate and maintain strategic relationships with fintechs, clients, and technology providers to bring innovative capabilities to Velera’s ecosystem.
• Champion a culture of innovation, experimentation, and continuous learning across the organization.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, finance, or other related field or equivalent combination of education and experience required.
• Five (5) years of experience in partnerships, fintech, banking technology, or related innovation roles.
• Strong understanding of banking technology, the fintech landscape, and emerging banking markets.
• Experience with structuring reseller, whitelabel, OEM, and referral contracts with other businesses.
• Proven ability to lead complex cross-functional initiatives with enterprise-level visibility.
• Demonstrated success bringing new banking products or services to market through partnerships.
• Exceptional communication, storytelling, and executive influence skills.
• Ability to exhibit professionalism when working with fintech and financial institution executives.
• Experience working with or supporting credit unions, community banks, or network-based ecosystems.
• Analytical mindset with strong business case and financial modeling capabilities as well as familiarity with structuring legal contracts.
• Entrepreneurial approach with a passion for innovation and customer-centric design.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of the financial services industry and associated fintech industry and products.
• Knowledge of technology integrations and architectural environments.
• Ability to lead and execute on partnership initiatives.
• Ability to quickly and intuitively grasp how new products, complementary business models, and creative transaction structures could impact the company from a product and financial perspective.
• Ability to represent the company to relevant organizations inside and outside the credit union system.
• Excellent communication, professionalism, and project management skills.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to present analysis in an impactful and concise manner.
• Willingness to occasionally travel to industry conferences.

Skills

• Business case and financial modeling capabilities.
• Legal contract structuring.
• Strategic partnership development.
• Market trend identification and evaluation.
• Technical integration design.
• Product requirement and strategic use case creation.
• Commercialization readiness coordination.
• Partner performance tracking and risk management.
• Strategic relationship maintenance.
• Innovation and customer-centric design.

Benefits

Velera offers competitive wages, medical with telemedicine, dental and vision benefits, basic and optional life insurance, paid time off (PTO), maternity, parental, family care, community volunteer time off, 12 paid holidays, company-paid disability insurance, 401(k) (with employer match), health savings accounts (HSA) with company provided contributions, flexible spending accounts (FSA), supplemental insurance, mental health and well-being: Employee Assistance Program (EAP), tuition reimbursement, wellness program, and great work/life benefits. Velera is an equal opportunity employer and an E-Verify employer.