Tech Nation Programme Manager - Scaleups

About Founders Forum & Tech Nation

Founders Forum Group is an event-powered community and family of businesses supporting innovative entrepreneurs at every stage of their journeys. Founded in 2005, our invite-only forums unite founders, investors, corporate and government leaders to tackle era-defining questions in iconic locations across the globe.

Since 2019, Founders Forum has partnered with Informa Tech to celebrate the strength and diversity of UK tech through London Tech Week. 

Fuelled by the connections and ideas forged at our flagship events, Founders Forum businesses support the needs of today’s founders via networking, education, professional services, investment and charitable giving.

In 2023, Founders Forum acquired Tech Nation to further our mission to empower tech entrepreneurs and scale innovative startups.

Tech Nation is the leading platform for tech insights, connections, collaboration and talent, empowering ambitious founders and their teams with the access and knowledge they need from seed stage to success story.

Under the FFG umbrella, Tech Nation has relaunched our first set of initiatives and reports as part of the new Tech Nation. We are now in a growth phase and are looking for a new Programme Manager to oversee Upscale and additional scaleup initiatives - this is where you come in!

The Opportunity 

We are looking for a Programme Manager to manage Tech Nation's Upscale programme and bespoke scaleup initiatives.

Upscale is Tech Nation's flagship scaleup programme, backed by fantastic founders and partners, offering brilliant exposure to the UK's most ambitious Series A growth-stage companies.

Given strong founder interest and demand, we are also evaluating expanding our programme. This will include wider scaleup initiatives, including our scaleup padel event, our alumni offering and potential event, and international expansion opportunities for our community of founders.

As our Programme Manager, you will be responsible for planning and delivering these programmes, with the strategic and commercial oversight of the Future Fifty Programme Lead, our network for Series B+ founders. You will identify and build a strong, relevant network rallied around these initiatives, and engage strategic and commercial partners as well as later stage speakers. The result will be delivering a calendar of events and advisory support for selected companies, alongside strengthening our scaleup and alumni network with strong engagement.

This is an exciting opportunity to be part of Tech Nation's next journey of growth, shaping how we support UK’s scaleup founders.

Responsibilities

Programme research, ideation, & content curation:

• Input and iterate the strategy for Upscale and our bespoke scaleup initiatives, working with the Future Fifty Programme Lead and wider team, ensuring it is truly valuable to the community and the tech ecosystem.
• Keep yourself informed and at the forefront of what scaleup founders need to grow - be amongst the first to know, and develop ideas to iterate your initiatives accordingly. You will become a specialist in the scaleup and growth stage investing journey.
• Research and identify thought leaders, programme advisors, investors and value adding speakers to integrate into the offering, as well as coordinating invitations and shaping agendas to create value adding events.
• Ideate new formats to bring to events and programmes, including our Padel event and alumni forum.

Programme & event delivery:

• Ensure we deliver an incredible experience for all companies on Upscale and our bespoke initiatives, that is impact driven and scalable.
• Organise a series of growth and investor based events, educational, advisory sessions and introductions ensuring the programme delivers long term impact.
• Work with the founders on a day to day basis to get their feedback and shape the support we can provide.
• Own the content and plan for our flagship scaleup events, including the Padel event and alumni forum, uniting programme stakeholders, alumni, investors and Founders Forum community members.
• Work with investors and relevant stakeholders to support fundraising and drive impact.
• Implement a clear selection process for the programme.
• Collaborate with our partnerships lead to maintain communication with partners of the programme and scope out opportunities for scaleups initiatives 
• Deliver new bespoke partner events relating to the scaleup community. 
• At times work with the Future Fifty programme lead on Future Fifty or overlapping initiatives such as international missions. 

Community engagement:

• Scale the community by developing a pipeline of target Founders, investors and wider stakeholders for the programmes and events via direct outreach, our partners and mobilising others in the ancillary network(s), including international expansion opportunities for our scaleup community.
• Maintain a close relationship with companies, with day to day community management and align our services to their needs and goals.
• Work with the programme leads and wider team to build and develop the alumni engagement strategy, including our alumni forum.
• Network to continually source advisors and experts who can add to our Tech Nation offering.
• Play a key role in developing in house scaleup focus and specialism, keeping in touch with relevant stakeholders and identifying Founders.
• Attend relevant scaleup ecosystem events, including opportunities to represent Tech Nation internationally.

This role is for you if:

• You are able to think proactively - you make things happen and can come to the table with ideas.
• You are passionate and curious about scaleups and working more closely with this founder, investor and wider ecosystem community.
• You are able to stay organised to timelines and project manage multiple deliverables.
• You have entrepreneurial drive - this means you are self driven, naturally curious and excited about working with startups, ecosystem stakeholders and investors.
• You are a people person and enjoy building relationships across different type of stakeholders and you enjoy bringing these people together to create tangible impact.
• You thrive working in teams and are passionate about our mission at Tech Nation.

• Some relevant experience relating to the scaleup ecosystem (desireable)
• Some proven experience in events, VC, accelerators, community or a scaling startup.
• Strong relationship builder and communicator.
• Strong organisational and project management skills.
• Right to work in the UK.

This role requires working 4 days a week in the office. This role may require some travel around the UK, and internationally where relevant.

We offer a range of flexible, discretionary benefits to our team. These currently include:

• 25 days contractual annual leave
• Enhanced discretionary leave provision, including an additional day off for your birthday and leave between Christmas and New Years Day
• The option to work remotely anywhere in the world for 3 weeks/year (1 week at Easter and 2 weeks during July and August)
• Private healthcare package
• Mental health, wellbeing, and learning and development stipends
• Lunch 1x/week, office snacks, and regular team drinks
• Quarterly team activities and annual team trip/day out
• We currently have a hybrid working model with 4 days spent in the office and 1 day with the option to work remotely/from home.
• Access to the Founders Forum Group network of businesses and wider tech ecosystem
• Experience rapid advancement and professional growth with a track record of our previous Partnerships Coordinator achieving two promotions within just 18 months.
• Immerse yourself in a unique community of visionary founders and globally recognized innovators, offering unparalleled opportunities for networking and collaboration.

Founders Forum Group’s Values

Community first

More than just fellow founders. Everything we offer is centred around the founders we work alongside. A goldmine of information, support and opportunity for our community. Our experience and connections allow us to offer unparalleled guidance, advice and events. We are committed to being there for the highs, the lows and everything in between. A trusted ally, driving positive action by championing the people behind great ideas and building real relationships.

Entrepreneurial to our core

Preserving our startup mentality is the key to being able to empathise with and fully support our growing community. Just like the founders we work with, entrepreneurship runs through our veins. We drive change and unearth new ways of thinking by reframing the way we approach an idea. We look at the possibilities of business through a new lens. Seeking out potential in every aspect of life, passionately pursuing new ideas.

Founding the future

We are forward thinkers. Always at the forefront of innovation. Our foot is firmly planted on the accelerator as we gain understanding of what tech is coming and new trends that will shape our lives. We have a hunger for knowledge and find joy in discovery, paving the way for a new way of thinking. This is the room of people you want and need to be in, to drive yourself and your business forward.

Excellence without ego

We don't take ourselves too seriously, but are proud of what we do. We work together, recognising the expertise of those around us, and understand the value in differing points of view. We are committed to excellence and always hold ourselves to the highest standard.