Position Summary

The Starts Activator grows Medical Alley’s domestic and global startup community by identifying and engaging healthcare founders, understanding their needs, and connecting them with the people, resources, programs, and opportunities that can help their companies grow. Accountable to quarterly revenue targets, the Activator actively prospects, pitches, and closes sales. This highly relational, externally focused role combines business development and ecosystem engagement to expand the Starts pipeline, strengthen global referral partnerships, and create lasting value and relationships within the Medical Alley community.

Key Responsibilities

Startup Engagement & Relationship Development – 50%

• Identify, recruit, and engage healthcare and health technology startups to expand the Medical Alley

Starts community.

• Build trusted relationships with founders and develop an understanding of their businesses, goals,

challenges, and connection needs.

• Connect founders with relevant Medical Alley members, industry experts, service providers, corporate partners, and ecosystem resources.

• Maintain regular contact with participating startups and create an engaging, high-value experience

throughout their involvement with Medical Alley.

• Develop relationships throughout Minnesota's startup and healthcare innovation communities to

expand Medical Alley’s reach and referral network.

• Represent Medical Alley at startup, healthcare, entrepreneurial, and community events.

• Build and maintain relationships with domestic and international startup organizations, accelerators,

trade partners, and other referral sources to expand the Starts pipeline.

• Serve as a bridge between global partners and Medical Alley, helping connect international healthcare startups with Medical Alley’s network and resources as they explore opportunities in the U.S. market.

• Maintain consistent two-way engagement with referral partners, connecting appropriate startups to

their services and helping their companies access Medical Alley. Business Development & Growth – 30%

• Own and achieve assigned quarterly revenue targets through active prospecting, pitching, follow-up, and closing.

• Build and maintain an active pipeline of prospective Starts participants and emerging companies.

• Help startups understand the value of Medical Alley participation and identify opportunities for deeper engagement.

• Support the progression of eligible startups from complimentary participation into paid Medical Alley membership.

• Conduct consistent outreach and follow-up with prospective and participating companies.

• Maintain accurate relationship, activity, and pipeline information in HubSpot.

• Work toward defined activity, engagement, conversion, and revenue goals. Programming & Ecosystem Connections – 20%

• Help identify programming, events, educational topics, and connection opportunities that respond to founder needs.

• Support Studio 84 activities, founder gatherings, boot camps, networking opportunities, and other Starts programming.

• Recruit founders and ecosystem partners to participate in Medical Alley programs and events.

• Develop and write the monthly Starts newsletter, highlighting startup activity, resources, opportunities, events, and developments across the Starts ecosystem.

• Explore and help develop additional founder-focused content, including a Starts blog and quarterly podcast, to expand engagement and elevate voices from across the healthcare innovation community.

• Coordinate internally with the Starts, Partnerships, Events, Government Affairs, and Communications teams to connect startups with relevant Medical Alley resources.

• Gather feedback from founders and share insights that can improve programming and the overall Starts experience.

Qualifications

• 2–4 years of professional experience in sales, business development, account management, customer success, healthcare, entrepreneurship, or a related relationship-driven role.

• Demonstrated ability to build relationships, develop a network, and comfortably initiate conversations with new people.

• Strong sales instincts with the ability to identify opportunities, follow up consistently, and move relationships toward action.

• Genuine interest in healthcare innovation, startups, entrepreneurship, or emerging businesses.

• Strong verbal and written communication skills and the confidence to represent Medical Alley with a broad range of external stakeholders.

• Highly organized and able to manage multiple relationships and follow-up activities simultaneously.

• Comfortable using CRM technology; HubSpot experience is helpful but not required.

• Self-motivated, curious, collaborative, and comfortable working in a fast-moving environment where priorities evolve.

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.

Position Details:

Category: Full-time, Exempt employee.

This position is in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN. Hybrid schedule with required in-office days

Monday – Thursday with an option to work from home on Fridays.

Benefits: Competitive benefits package that includes medical, life and disability coverage with many optional

programs, 401k, PTO program plus thirteen paid holidays.

Must have reliable transportation. Flexibility to work weekends or evenings, as required.

Organizational Summary: As the Epicenter of Health Innovation and Care®, Medical Alley serves as a world-class growth engine and a leadership collective dedicated to making a measurable impact on the future of healthcare. As a primary driver of industry transformation, we provide the "creative persistence" required to succeed even when the system resists, acting as the central pulse for over 800 global companies and a thriving startup ecosystem.

We foster collaborations and partnerships that move beyond polite conversation to deliver a collective blueprint for the future. Our unique strength lies in uniting the entire health and life sciences continuum, where we elevate the dialogue from a single industry perspective to a broader impact on public health. By shaping policy at state and federal levels and delivering actionable intelligence, we empower leaders to navigate complex shifts while ensuring that trust remains our bedrock. Our mission-driven approach is centered on a simple, powerful truth: progress is defined by our ability to put the patient’s needs at the center of everything we do. At Medical Alley, we remain steadfast advocates for human connection, ensuring care is accessible to all as we bringinnovation to the "last mile". Recognized as a premier workplace by Minnesota Business Magazine and the

Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.

Medical Alley is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Reasonable accommodations will be made for qualified individuals with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and any other applicable federal, state, or local laws.

Please note: Medical Alley is not certified with the U.S. Department of Labor for immigration sponsorship.

Submit your cover letter and resume to: jobs@medicalalley.org