F

Founders Forum Group

Global founder network with venture studio

VIP & Strategic Relationships Lead

Full-TimeUpdated
No salary listed
Mid, Senior
Remote in USA
RemoteRemote, US-based role; international travel, including to London and other flagship events, is expected.
Sales & Account ManagementBusiness Development & Partnerships

About the job

Requirements
  • 3–5 years in a relationship-driven role with senior stakeholder exposure in the US market, such as event or conference production, journalism, VIP relations, chief of staff, executive engagement, investor relations, strategic partnerships, communications leadership, or government relations.
  • Demonstrable success securing senior speakers, talent, or strategic meetings within the US tech and investor ecosystem, with strong references for judgment, discretion, and delivery under pressure.
  • A genuine interest in technology and startups, with the ability to speak credibly about frontier themes such as AI, climate tech, biotech, fintech, defence tech, and policy.
  • Elite relationship-building skills and an existing personal network within US tech, venture capital, and founder circles; ability to earn trust quickly with principals and gatekeepers while being respectful, persistent, and outcome-oriented.
  • Creative dealmaking ability, including inventive hooks, tailored pitches, and smart sequencing of introductions to reach hard-to-access people.
  • Operational excellence in logistics, clear communications, accurate reporting, fast follow-through, and calm on-site execution under pressure across time zones and geographies.
  • Ability to work toward ambitious KPIs.
  • Excellent written communication that is concise, senior, and on-brand.
  • A low-ego approach and willingness to handle tasks of any size.
  • Preferred: Experience working with high-profile principals, founders, venture capitalists, family offices, agents, or government leaders in the US.
  • Preferred: Familiarity with the global tech and investor landscape, ideally with relationships or context spanning the US, UK, and Europe.
  • Preferred: Comfort using CRM and light research tools, with strong reporting discipline and pipeline hygiene.
  • Preferred: Willingness and ability to travel internationally, including to FF Global in London and other flagship FFG events.
Responsibilities
  • Lead the pipeline of top-tier US speakers and VIPs across priority events, including FF North America and San Francisco/HumanX-style retreats, mapping networks and using the FFG ecosystem and its leaders’ networks to secure participation.
  • Identify US relationships suited to FF’s global stage, particularly FF Global in London, and develop the pathways, outreach, and stewardship to bring key US principals to international events.
  • Drive commercial discussions with potential sponsors and partners for US events, working with the wider commercial team to convert relationships into revenue and long-term partnerships.
  • Help identify, shape, and launch new events in the US; for smaller events, deliver end to end from concept and commercial development through on-site execution.
  • Develop tailored outreach strategies, value propositions, and pitches for US prospects, working with Carolyn Dawson and the Head of Forums & Ecosystems and involving Brent Hoberman for selected high-value relationships.
  • Use warm introductions from FFG networks, including leadership, the partnership team, limited partners, founders, and agents, to deliver senior, outcome-focused communications tailored to the US market.
  • Provide end-to-end, white-glove handling of principals and their teams at US and international events, coordinating security, logistics, briefings, and on-site management while anticipating needs and resolving problems.
  • Work with the Head of Forums & Ecosystems and Content & Program teams to align US speakers with themes across US and global events, develop formats, and create impactful and editorially sound moments.
  • Activate relationships with US technology leaders, funds, corporations, government, and cultural institutions to secure speaker access and connect the US ecosystem with FFG’s global network.
  • Maintain a current map of relevant US networks, including executive assistants, communications teams, policy staff, and gatekeepers; identify timely opportunities, track developments, and build lasting relationships.

About the company

F

Founders Forum Group

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Founders Forum Group runs a global ecosystem for tech founders, senior leaders, and investors, organized around exclusive, invitation-only events that foster high-level networking and knowledge exchange. It also operates a portfolio of related businesses that support startups and scale-ups: Founders Factory (venture studio and accelerator), firstminute capital (early-stage VC), Founders Keepers (executive search for high-growth tech companies), and FF-WIN (Women in Innovation). The group generates revenue from event sponsorships, management fees from its venture activities, and service fees from its accelerator and recruitment arms. The goal is to be a central hub within the global technology landscape, helping entrepreneurs access capital, partners, and expertise across multiple stages of growth.

Company Size

11-50

Company Stage

N/A

Total Funding

N/A

Headquarters

London, United Kingdom

Founded

2006

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Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Tech Nation Report 2026 said UK tech reached £1.2 trillion on June 8, 2026.
  • Accenture and FF Group launched AI for Growth on April 21, 2026.
  • Edelman renewed its strategic partnership with FF Group on June 15, 2026.

What critics are saying

  • Event sponsorships and partnership revenue depend on executives attending London Tech Week annually.
  • Tech Nation lost its government grant in 2023; staff departures weakened operating depth.
  • If UK startup activity shifts to Paris or Berlin, FF Group's founder gravity collapses.

What makes Founders Forum Group unique

  • Invitation-only founder network still centers dealmaking, access, and status, not mass-market scale.
  • Tech Nation acquisition in 2023 gives FF Group policy reach, reports, and visa leverage.
  • Founders Factory, firstminute capital, and Founders Keepers create owned services beyond events.

Help us improve and share your feedback! Did you find this helpful?

Benefits

  • Health Insurance
  • Remote Work Options
  • Paid Vacation
  • Mental Health Support
  • Wellness Program
  • Professional Development Budget

Company News

WebWire
Oct 19th, 2026
Repeat Entrepreneur Relief: our case ahead of the Autumn Budget.

Repeat Entrepreneur Relief: our case ahead of the Autumn Budget. With the Autumn Budget approaching and Repeat Entrepreneur Relief making headlines in The Times, new research shows why backing founders to build again would pay for itself. WEBWIRE - Monday, October 19, 2026 In May, we set out why the UK needs Repeat Entrepreneur Relief. It is a targeted capital gains tax deferral for founders who reinvest their exit proceeds into British startups, scaleups and growth funds. Now the proposal is with the Treasury ahead of the Autumn Budget, and it is back in the news, with The Times covering the plan. Before submitting it, Founders Forum Group commissioned Beauhurst Insights to test whether the policy would work in practice. The research found that it would more than cover its own cost. Repeat Entrepreneur Relief: At A Glance * Only 1 in 8 UK founders who sell a company build another * Experienced founders' companies raise 61% more capital and are 25% larger by headcount * Around £22,500 cost per reinvesting founder vs. an estimated £740,000 in employment taxes per new business * Breaks even if it persuades fewer than 1 in 200 exited founders to reinvest The Founder Flywheel Is Stalling Around 800 UK founders sell their companies every year, and many of those deals put significant capital into the hands of British entrepreneurs. Yet very few of them reinvest that capital into the next generation. Only one in eight goes on to build again. As a result, around 10,200 UK founders have built and sold a company and not returned. Each of them has the networks and the hard-won experience of starting a business. That matters because repeat founders know how to raise investment, how to hire, and how to avoid the mistakes that cost first-time founders years. Companies started by experienced founders raise 61% more capital and are typically 25% larger by headcount than comparable firms in the same sector, region and founding year. Founders tell us the right incentive would change their decision. Through Founders Pulse, 72% of the founders we polled said Repeat Entrepreneur Relief would make them significantly more likely to build again. How Repeat Entrepreneur Relief Would Work Repeat Entrepreneur Relief (RER) would introduce a targeted Capital Gains Tax (CGT) deferral for founders who reinvest their exit proceeds into new UK-headquartered businesses or growth vehicles. The relief would be capped at £250,000 of reinvestment, in line with the SEIS lifetime funding cap, which makes it a practical tool for investment. The idea has been tested elsewhere. The US Qualified Small Business Stock scheme is widely credited with creating Silicon Valley's culture of reinvestment, and France offers a similar deferral for founders who reinvest their proceeds. A Policy That Pays for Itself This Budget comes at a time of tight fiscal constraints, so the research weighed the policy's cost against its returns. RER would cost the Treasury around £22,500 per reinvesting founder. Each new business it helps create would generate an estimated £740,000 in employment taxes over ten years, which is more than thirty times the cost of the relief. That figure doesn't count corporation tax, VAT, or the extra success a business can gain from having an experienced founder in charge. It also leaves out the wider economic return if money reinvested into growth funds or vehicles also qualified for RER. To break even, the relief would need to persuade fewer than one exited founder in 200 to reinvest who otherwise wouldn't have done so. If it raised the refounding rate from 12% to 20%, each year's exits could generate around £47m in employment taxes over ten years, against £3.6m in relief. Carolyn Dawson OBE, CEO of Founders Forum Group, said: "We know the founders who often build Britain's strongest companies are those who've done it before. Repeat Entrepreneur Relief helps them do it again, here. Keeping capital in the UK, supporting the next cohort of successful British businesses makes this one of the simplest decisions for the Treasury to make in this Budget." What Else Founders Need From This Budget Repeat Entrepreneur Relief is one of four policy asks in Founders Forum Group's Autumn Budget submission, sent to Government earlier this month. Each is designed to help British companies grow faster and stay in the UK as they scale. The other three are: * Expand the Enterprise Management Incentive (EMI) scheme further so it reflects the size and ambitions of today's UK startups and scaleups, and helps them keep attracting top talent. * Introduce a Digital Adoption Tax Credit to recognise that the biggest cost of adopting digital tools and AI is often the technical staff needed to roll them out and make sure they deliver real productivity gains. * Create an "investor route" to the Global Talent Visa so successful investors who want to back UK scaleups or regulated growth funds can come to the UK, increasing the capital available to fast-growing businesses. The submission also carries a clear message from founders on CGT. Raising it in this Budget would discourage entrepreneurs from taking risks and push them out of the UK. Founders make a large net contribution in tax and jobs, so the UK benefits when they want to start, scale and keep their businesses here. A CGT rise would work against that. Britain already produces world-class founders. With the right incentives in this Budget, more of them will build their second, third and fourth companies here. Read Founders Forum Group's full Autumn Budget submission here. If you haven't already, join Founders Pulse and be part of the conversation. The more founders who contribute, the stronger our case will be. WebWireID363012 This news content was configured by WebWire editorial staff. Linking is permitted. Distribute your news. * Every day, hundreds of individuals and companies choose WebWire to distribute their news. * WebWire places your news within numerous highly trafficked news search engines generating leads and publicity. * Submit Your Release Now!

Tech.eu
Jun 6th, 2024
Empowering Change: Venture And Growth Investing For Sustainability And Societal Impact

The European tech ecosystem reached a combined market valuation of €3.5 trillion in Q1 2024, more than doubling in value over the past five years. This growth has been largely driven by venture capital. Currently, Europe has over 2,400 active VC firms, and European VC-backed startups have created 6.3 million jobs. Nearly 200 active unicorn companies have emerged in Europe, fostering innovation and positive impact across various industries. The new report “Beyond returns – Venture and growth investing fuelling sustainability societal change” from European Woman in VC, Founders Forum Group and Tech Nation, states that VC-backed companies are the ones that are driving economic growth, creating jobs, and often aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), thus generating substantial social and environmental benefits. Additionally, mixed teams and female-led VCs are particularly effective in this regard, whether in deep tech or digital sectors, fostering positive change within the ecosystem

Bloomberg
Feb 8th, 2024
Founders Forum's Dawson: UK Is the Place for Tech Talent

The Founders Forum Group, which acquired Tech Nation last year, released a report highlighting areas in the sector that need improvement and how that ties into general technological developments.

Tech.eu
Oct 16th, 2023
Tech Nation Is Back With £10B Private Investment And Support For Disabled Founders

Today brings news of £10 billion in private investment over the next five years as part of a plan to relaunch the Tech Nation brand announced today.Carolyn Dawson OBE, London Tech Week lead and CEO of Founders Forum Group, unveiled the plans as part of a keynote address at the official opening of Birmingham Tech Week.Dawson laid out her vision for the expanded future of the startup champion, including the ambition to facilitate £10 billion of investment and a commitment to ensuring half of Tech Nation’s UK startup network is based outside the capital.Tech Nation is a leading growth platform for UK tech companies. It fuels the growth of game-changing founders, leaders, and scaling companies so they can positively transform societies and economies. The organisation provides coaching, content, and community through growth programmes, events, research and insights.Earlier this year, Tech Nation — which has supported the likes of Monzo, Revolut and Ocado — lost its government grant funding (its main income source) to Barclays tech business incubator Eagle Labs and closed its doors.It was acquired by entrepreneur network Founders Forum Group, owned by Lastminure.com co-founder Brent Hoberman in April.The formerly government-funded organisation has played a pivotal role in the UK tech ecosystem since its launch in 2014. 30 percent of all Tech Nation has ten years of experience facilitating and helping UK tech companies scale, both at home and abroad. #Over 40 cohorts and 1300 companies have successfully graduated from Tech Nation’s growth programmes. Alumni include Skyscanner, Darktrace, and Monzo, as well as three of the UK’s ‘decacorns’: Revolut, Wise, and Farfetch.Since 2014, participants have gone on to raise £28.1 billion after attending a Tech Nation scheme.Support for disabled founders and disability techBacked by Motability Operations, Tech Nation will also launch a first-of-its-kind community for disabled founders and founders building technologies for the disabled community.It's unclear what this community means in practice and whether it translates to specific recruitment, funding, mentoring, or other forms of support, or whether Tech Nation will commit to ensuring disabled people are represented in all intake cohorts.Speaking at the launch, Dawson said:“The new Tech Nation will champion the startup scene - advocating for its needs, supporting international reach and fuelling the investment that will create the next generation of unicorns

Provoke Media
Jun 19th, 2023
EMEA Industry News In Brief (June 19, 2023)

LONDON — Edelman has launched a strategic partnership with Founders Forum Group, a global community for digital and technology entrepreneurs.

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