Director of Customer Growth Partnerships

We're transforming the grocery industry At Instacart, we invite the world to share love through food because we believe everyone should have access to the food they love and more time to enjoy it together. Where others see a simple need for grocery delivery, we see exciting complexity and endless opportunity to serve the varied needs of our community. We work to deliver an essential service that customers rely on to get their groceries and household goods, while also offering safe and flexible earnings opportunities to Instacart Personal Shoppers. Instacart has become a lifeline for millions of people, and we’re building the team to help push our shopping cart forward. If you’re ready to do the best work of your life, come join our table. Instacart is a Flex First team There’s no one-size fits all approach to how we do our best work. Our employees have the flexibility to choose where they do their best work—whether it’s from home, an office, or your favorite coffee shop—while staying connected and building community through regular in-person events. Learn more about our flexible approach to where we work. Overview About the Role Instacart is seeking a Director of Customer Growth Partnerships to lead transformative partnerships that expand our reach, accelerate customer acquisition, and unlock new revenue streams. You will partner with high-profile companies across media, travel, financial services, and other high-growth industries to drive distribution, acquisition, and category-defining customer experiences. This is a senior leadership role: you will design partnership strategies, negotiate industry-shaping deals, and scale initiatives that deliver measurable growth. You’ll also lead and mentor a team of business development professionals – setting vision, building playbooks, and ensuring flawless execution. At Instacart, we’re uniquely positioned at the intersection of grocery, commerce, and everyday life. This role will shape how millions of households discover and experience Instacart through our most strategic partners, including those embedded in payments, financial services, and consumer value ecosystems. About the Team The Strategic Partnerships team drives some of Instacart’s most impactful initiatives. We identify and scale opportunities that unlock customer growth, deliver cost efficiencies, and advance Instacart’s long-term strategy. We work cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, Marketing, Finance, and Legal to bring new ideas to life. Our culture is entrepreneurial, collaborative, and impact-oriented - we thrive at the intersection of strategy and execution. About the Job Source and prioritize high-impact consumer-facing partnership opportunities, with a focus on financial services, media, travel and embedded consumer value platforms. Develop multi-year partnership strategies aligned with Instacart’s growth objectives, product roadmap, and monetization goals. Use data, customer insights, and market intelligence to identify whitespace opportunities and emerging categories. Originate, structure, and close high-visibility partnerships with Fortune 500 companies, including consumer brands, financial institutions, fintechs, marketplaces and more. Navigate complex commercial models (e.g., revenue share, incentives, co-marketing, funding commitments). Manage senior executive relationships and represent Instacart in strategic negotiations. Set new benchmarks for innovation in grocery, commerce, payments-adjacent, and consumer tech partnerships. Drive cross-functional execution with Product, Engineering, Marketing, Finance, and Legal. Establish scalable playbooks and operating frameworks to launch and grow partnerships efficiently. Own partner portfolio performance: set targets, run business reviews, manage escalations, and optimize growth levers. Ensure financial rigor across partnerships, including ROI measurement, funding structures, and ongoing performance tracking. Build and manage a high-performing team of business development and partnerships professionals. Provide strategic guidance, mentorship, and operational oversight to ensure team success. About You You’re a bold, entrepreneurial leader who thrives at the intersection of strategy and execution, with a proven track record of building and scaling partnerships in complex, regulated, or highly competitive environments. Minimum Qualifications 12+ years of experience in business development, strategic partnerships, or corporate development, with meaningful experience in payments, financial services, fintech, or adjacent regulated industries. Proven experience leading complex, high-stakes partnerships with Fortune 500 companies. Demonstrated ability to take 0 to 1 initiatives from concept to scaled, measurable impact. Strong commercial acumen, including experience structuring and negotiating sophisticated deal economics. Familiarity with performance marketing metrics, CAC/LTV dynamics, and ROI measurement in partnership-driven growth models. Proven leadership experience managing and developing high-performing teams. Strong executive presence and ability to influence at the C-suite level. Strategic and analytical thinker with a hands-on execution mindset. Preferred Qualifications Experience at high-growth consumer technology or marketplace companies. Background in payments, fintech, banking, card networks, or financial services partnerships. Experience managing or influencing marketing and advertising budgets, including co-marketing investments, incentive funding, or customer acquisition spend. Curiosity about the future of commerce, food, payments, and consumer technology. MBA or advanced degree. Instacart provides highly market-competitive compensation and benefits in each location where our employees work. This role is remote and the base pay range for a successful candidate is dependent on their permanent work location. Please review our Flex First remote work policy here. Offers may vary based on many factors, such as candidate experience and skills required for the role. Additionally, this role is eligible for a new hire equity grant as well as annual refresh grants. Please read more about our benefits offerings here. For US based candidates, the base pay ranges for a successful candidate are listed below. CA, NY, CT, NJ $252,000—$266,000 USD WA $242,000—$255,500 USD OR, DE, ME, MA, MD, NH, RI, VT, DC, PA, VA, CO, TX, IL, HI $232,000—$245,000 USD All other states $209,000—$220,500 USD