Head of Portfolio Marketing and Events

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M12 is Microsoft’s venture fund, focused on investing in and supporting early-stage startups in key strategic areas. As Microsoft’s Venture Fund, we leverage Microsoft’s extensive platform to help promising startups accelerate growth and build strategic partnerships A critical part of this value-add is the Portfolio Marketing and Events function, which provides marketing support and opportunities for our portfolio companies to increase their brand visibility, connect with customers and partners, and integrate with the Microsoft ecosystem.

We are seeking an experienced leader to head Portfolio Marketing and Events for M12. In this high-impact role, you will lead the strategic direction and execution of marketing initiatives, brand management, and communication efforts for M12’s portfolio companies. You will also drive the planning and execution of key events that showcase our startups and facilitate connections with customers, partners, and Microsoft’s network. This role offers the opportunity to build a foundation and take our portfolio support to the next level. As the Head of Portfolio Marketing and Events, you will work closely with M12 leadership, portfolio company founders, and cross-functional teams across Microsoft to optimize the growth of our portfolio through innovative marketing strategies. Your mission is to drive portfolio growth and enhance market presence by telling our startups’ stories, amplifying their successes, and creating opportunities for them to engage with the industry and customers.

This is not a Demand Generation role. The person in this role would be a scrappy, team of one who partners with two agencies. You will have the opportunity to work a hybrid work schedule from our beautiful Redmond or Bay Area office.

Required/Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Sales, Marketing, Business Operations, Computer Science, Engineering, or related field AND 8+ years partner management, business development, product management engineering, marketing, or partner channel development in the technology industry experience

  • OR equivalent experience.

• 4+ years of relevant professional experience with exposure to and/or knowledge of the startup and venture ecosystem.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree in Business Administration, Business Science, or advanced STEM degree AND 12+ years partner management, sales, business development, product management, or partner channel development in the technology industry experience

  • OR equivalent experience.

Portfolio Development IC6 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $155,800 - $277,200 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $202,400 - $303,600 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here: https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay

• Single reqs: Microsoft will accept applications for the role until July 12, 2025

#BD&V

In this role, you will lead a broad range of marketing and event initiatives to support M12’s portfolio. Responsibilities include:

• Develop and Execute Portfolio Marketing Strategy: Create and drive comprehensive marketing strategies for M12’s portfolio companies to build their brand positioning, enhance digital presence, and boost content marketing efforts. This includes crafting compelling messaging and value propositions for startups in diverse industries.
• Marketing Communications & PR Support: Provide hands-on marketing communications support to portfolio companies, particularly around major news and milestones. This involves PR strategy for investment announcements and partnership news, drafting or refining press releases, and securing amplification through M12’s channels and Microsoft’s platforms. You will ensure M12 is referenced appropriately as Microsoft’s venture fund and coordinate investor quotes or media opportunities as needed.
  • Example: Guiding a startup through a funding announcement – from press release drafting to distribution – and leveraging Microsoft’s LinkedIn and X (Twitter) channels for amplification.
• Content Creation and Storytelling: Champion storytelling and thought leadership for our portfolio. Work with founders to surface their stories and insights:
  • Organize “Founder Features” and thought-leadership content (e.g. blog posts, interviews, LinkedIn articles) that highlight founders’ vision and experience.
  • Conduct brand positioning and storytelling workshops to help startups craft messaging that resonates with target audiences.
  • Develop case studies and success stories showcasing how portfolio companies have achieved milestones or strategic wins, especially where collaboration with Microsoft was a factor. These stories will be used in M12 marketing, on our website, and in Microsoft’s internal communications to illustrate the value of our portfolio.
• Event Planning and Execution: Plan, coordinate, and execute high-impact events that drive exposure and connections for portfolio companies. This includes:
  • Microsoft and Industry Event Participation: Identify and secure speaking slots, demo opportunities, or showcases for portfolio startups at Microsoft events (e.g. Microsoft Build, Inspire) and relevant industry conferences. Prepare founders for executive briefings and presentations to customers, partners, or Microsoft product teams.
  • Portfolio Summits and Networking Events: Organize exclusive events such as portfolio founder summits, networking sessions with venture partners, and ecosystem gatherings to facilitate meaningful introductions (customers, partners, advisors) for our startups.
  • Executive Briefings: Leverage Microsoft’s Executive Briefing Center (EBC) and other forums to arrange meetings between startup CEOs and enterprise clients or Microsoft executives, showcasing the startups’ solutions and forging strategic partnerships.
• Leverage Microsoft Ecosystem & Partnerships: Act as the bridge between portfolio companies and Microsoft’s vast ecosystem. Work closely with internal Microsoft teams to unlock resources for our startups:
  • Partner with Microsoft’s Business Development, Sales, and Product teams to create co-marketing opportunities and product integration stories.
  • Connect startups with Microsoft subject-matter experts and technical resources for mentorship, platform integration, and technical marketing opportunities (e.g., showcasing a startup’s solution in the Azure Marketplace or at an internal Microsoft tech talk).
  • Coordinate with Microsoft’s PR and communications departments to align messaging and ensure our startups get visibility in the right channels.
• Portfolio Growth Initiatives: Collaborate with the M12 investment team and portfolio development team to identify opportunities where marketing can accelerate a startup’s growth or customer acquisition. This might involve advising on go-to-market strategy, sharing best practices for demand generation, or connecting startups to Microsoft’s customer base via co-selling programs. Ultimately, you will use marketing as a tool to maximize each portfolio company’s market potential and help drive their customer and revenue growth.
• Operational Leadership & Strategy: Provide leadership and operational excellence within the marketing function:
  • Set clear objectives and key results (OKRs) for portfolio marketing efforts and report on progress and impact (e.g., metrics like media mentions, event leads generated, growth in portfolio companies’ web traffic or pipeline attributed to marketing).
  • Manage any external agencies, contractors, or less tenure team members (if applicable) who assist with content creation, design, PR outreach, or event logistics.
  • Oversee the budget for portfolio marketing and events, ensuring efficient use of resources and demonstrating ROI on initiatives.
  • Maintain the “rhythm of business” for portfolio marketing – regular updates to M12 leadership on marketing outcomes and ensuring alignment with overall fund objectives and timelines.
• Stakeholder Collaboration: Serve as the primary point of contact at M12 for marketing and event support, working closely with portfolio company CMOs/marketing teams and CEOs to understand their needs. Also, collaborate internally with M12’s investment partners and program managers to integrate marketing support as a core part of portfolio development. Frequent interaction with Microsoft stakeholders means cultivating relationships across teams and effectively navigating a large organization to advocate for our startups.
• M12 Brand and Communications: While the focus is on portfolio companies, this role also helps strengthen M12’s brand as a value-add investor. You will contribute to M12’s own marketing content (e.g., managing M12’s LinkedIn presence for announcing portfolio news, maintaining the news section on m12.vc with press coverage, and ensuring consistent branding in all external communications). Through successful portfolio marketing, you indirectly enhance M12’s reputation in the startup ecosystem.

Each of these responsibilities is geared toward driving awareness, credibility, and growth opportunities for our portfolio startups, thereby amplifying the overall impact of M12’s investments.

Brand Building & Thought Leadership: Proven track record of building brand visibility and thought leadership for organizations or products. You should be able to point to examples where your marketing initiatives significantly increased brand awareness, media presence, or industry credibility for a company or portfolio of companies. Experience developing compelling brand narratives and establishing a brand voice in the market is critical.

Communications & PR Experience: Demonstrated experience in public relations and communications – including crafting press releases, managing media relationships, and securing coverage. Experience handling comms for major announcements (e.g. funding rounds, product launches, partnerships) is required. Storytelling skills and an ability to distill complex technologies or business ideas into impactful messages are helpful.

Event Management: Hands-on experience planning and executing successful events, such as conferences, executive briefings, webinars, or community meetups. This includes skills in event programming (agenda design, speaker selection), logistics coordination, and driving attendee engagement. Experience integrating events with broader marketing campaigns or sales goals is a plus. If you have worked on events that involved executive-level attendees or partnerships (for instance, coordinating between a startup and a large corporation for a joint event), highlight that experience.

Strategic Vision and Execution: Strategic thinker who can see the big picture and align marketing initiatives with business goals, while also being detail-oriented in execution. In this role, you will set a vision for portfolio marketing (what does success look like for supporting our startups?) and roll up your sleeves to make it happen. Familiarity with setting and measuring OKRs or KPIs for marketing programs is important, as is the ability to adjust strategy based on data and feedback.

Leadership & Collaboration: Leadership and people skills. You are adept at influencing and collaborating with a wide range of stakeholders – from startup founders and their teams to Microsoft executives and colleagues across different functions. You should have experience leading cross-functional initiatives and rallying others around a project or campaign. The ability to mentor and guide less experienced marketers (at the startups or on your own team) is valuable. Communication and interpersonal skills are essential for success in this highly collaborative role.

Knowledge of Tech Industries: Broad understanding of the technology landscape and enthusiasm for innovation. M12’s portfolio spans various sectors (AI, cloud, SaaS, cybersecurity, etc.), so the ability to quickly grasp new industry domains and tailor marketing approaches accordingly is needed. Prior experience in B2B tech marketing or enterprise cloud technologies can be beneficial, given many M12 startups target enterprise customers.

Entrepreneurial Mindset: A self-starter with an entrepreneurial mindset. This role operates somewhat like an “agency lead” within M12 for our startups – meaning you need to be proactive, resourceful, and comfortable working in ambiguity. A passion for startups and empathy for the founder journey will help you connect with our portfolio and identify creative ways to help them succeed. We value a creative problem-solver who can devise unique marketing solutions and find win-win opportunities that benefit both startups and Microsoft.

Results-Driven & Analytical: Data-driven approach to marketing. You leverage metrics and analytics to measure impact (e.g., tracking press mentions, social engagement, event ROI, lead generation campaigns) and inform decision-making. Experience with marketing analytics tools, CRM systems, or social media analytics is a plus. You should be eager to set benchmarks and show how marketing support translates into tangible outcomes (such as increased customer inquiries, partner engagements, or successful follow-on funding for startups).

Flexibility and Multitasking: Thrives in a fast-paced, multi-project environment. Our portfolio companies have varied needs and timelines; the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously, prioritize effectively, and pivot as priorities change is crucial. Project management skills and attention to detail will serve you well.

Travel: Willingness to travel occasionally (as needed) for events, conferences, and on-site startup support (~10-20% travel, depending on event schedules and portfolio needs). Many events may be in the Bay Area, Seattle, or other tech hubs; flexibility to represent M12 and our startups on the road is important.