Position Summary

BioSTL’s Senior Manager of Industry Workforce Partnerships will play a central role in shaping and implementing the region’s bioscience workforce strategy by serving as the primary liaison with industry partners. This position will lead the development of a comprehensive employer engagement strategy that advances apprenticeship and other earn-and-learn pathways, ensuring that employer demand aligns with career exposure, talent development and training efforts. By understanding current workforce needs, projecting future trends, and building strong industry relationships, this position will help create sustainable pipelines of skilled talent that drive growth in bioscience and related industries.

This is a highly strategic role requiring autonomy, vision, and execution capacity. The Senior Manager will collaborate across BioSTL’s Education to Workforce strategic initiatives to ensure employer needs inform and strengthen all stages of the talent pipeline. The position reports to the Director of Regional Workforce Strategy and will be a full-time, salaried position with BioSTL.

Job Responsibilities

Industry Partner Engagement

• Serve as BioSTL’s primary liaison with bioscience and related industry employers, building trusted partnerships that inform and advance regional workforce priorities.
• Conduct employer needs assessments to identify current and future workforce demands, skills requirements, and opportunities for innovative workforce solutions.
• Engage current and new employer partners in program design, sponsorship, and volunteer opportunities that support BioSTL’s education-to-workforce strategy.

Workforce Strategy Development & Implementation

• Design and implement a comprehensive employer engagement strategy to scale earn-and-learn models, including registered apprenticeships and customized training pipelines.
• Align employer needs with regional training providers, community partners, and workforce systems to deliver responsive, sustainable workforce programs.
• Lead the development of new workforce pathways that anticipate industry shifts and position St. Louis as a leader in bioscience workforce readiness.

Partnership Building & Convening

• Represent BioSTL in cross-sector convenings with industry associations (e.g., manufacturing, geospatial, health sciences) to align strategies and leverage collective opportunities.
• Collaborate with community-based and educational partners to ensure broad participation and access to bioscience workforce opportunities.
• Develop partnerships that scale regional impact and strengthen employer-led workforce solutions.

Internal Coordination

• Work closely with BioSTL colleagues across community engagement, training development, and youth exposure initiatives to ensure industry demand informs program design and delivery.
• Share insights and employer intelligence across the team to drive cohesive strategy implementation.

Evaluation & Continuous Improvement

• Monitor employer engagement outcomes, apprenticeship and program success, and industry satisfaction with workforce initiatives.
• Use feedback from employers and partners to refine BioSTL’s workforce strategies and scale best practices.
• Support organizational learning by tracking workforce trends and identifying opportunities for innovation.

Required Qualifications

•         7+ years of progressively responsible experience in workforce development, business engagement, economic development, or a related field, with a demonstrated ability to move from strategy to execution.
•         Proven experience in designing and launching employer-driven workforce initiatives (e.g., apprenticeships, customized training, or earn-and-learn programs) that have resulted in measurable impact.
•         Demonstrated ability to operate autonomously: independently assessing industry needs, building strategic plans, and driving initiatives forward while ensuring alignment with broader organizational and regional workforce strategies.
•        Strong history of strategic partnership development with employers, industry associations, and training/education providers.
•        Experience working collaboratively on cross-functional teams, with demonstrated ability to communicate effectively, manage shared projects, and adapt to diverse work styles.
•        Capacity to analyze labor market trends and translate insights into forward-looking workforce strategies that anticipate industry shifts.
•        Track record of representing organizations in regional or national industry/workforce convenings and advancing multi-stakeholder initiatives.

Skills

• Strategic thinking and ability to design initiatives that scale impact.
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills with senior leaders across industry sectors.
• Excellent organizational, analytical, and decision-making abilities.
• Collaborative and independent work skills, with ability to manage multiple partnerships and priorities simultaneously.
• Effective communication and facilitation skills across diverse audiences and organizational levels.

  What We Offer

  • Competitive salary and benefits package.
  •  Opportunities for professional growth and development.
  • A dynamic and collaborative work environment.
  • The chance to work on impactful projects that drive business success.

About BioSTL

BioSTL is dedicated to advancing bioscience innovation and entrepreneurship in St. Louis. Through its BioGenerator initiative, it supports emerging companies and groundbreaking research that positively impacts the region and beyond.

BioSTL is committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace where all individuals are valued and empowered to thrive. We provide equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees and strictly prohibit discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, disability, genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.