Sr Manager/Director, Corporate Development

Job description

Who we are: Nirvana is on a mission to harness the power of data to revolutionize commercial insurance and enable a safer world. We are bringing much-needed innovation into the legacy, trillion-dollar commercial insurance industry. We have developed cutting-edge predictive models that use real-time IoT data from billions of connected devices, allowing us to better understand and price risk. Our AI-driven platform fundamentally changes the way an insurance company operates with personalized risk scoring, faster underwriting, modernized claims, and proactive, data-driven insights to help customers prevent accidents. We've already proven the scale—serving thousands of fleets and more than doubling our written premiums year over year. Our data moat is growing exponentially with more than 30 billion miles of telematics data, leading to more predictive models and new insights into how we can better understand and reduce risk. With $270+ million raised, including our Series D round in December 2025, we're only accelerating our growth, with strong support from top-tier VCs including Lightspeed, General Catalyst, and Valor. Nirvana's leadership team has previously helped scale multi-billion-dollar companies from scratch, including Samsara, Rubrik, and Flexport, and includes industry veterans from Hiscox, The Hartford, and RLI. About the role: Reporting directly to senior leadership, you'll be Nirvana's first dedicated Corporate Development hire—building our M&A and strategic partnerships function from the ground up. You'll work closely with Strategic Finance, Claims leadership, and our data partnerships team to identify, evaluate, and execute transactions that accelerate Nirvana's growth across both our insurance MGA and claims TPA businesses. This is a high-visibility, high-autonomy role for someone who wants to shape strategy at a fast-growing InsureTech company, not just execute on a predefined playbook. What you'll do: - Lead full-lifecycle M&A transactions from investment thesis development through sourcing, diligence, negotiation, deal structuring, legal documentation, and closing for both insurance and claims acquisitions - Build and manage direct and intermediary relationships to source proprietary deal flow and stay ahead of market opportunities in the MGA and claims sectors - Identify, structure, and launch strategic partnerships, particularly around data acquisition opportunities that strengthen Nirvana's underwriting and risk models - Scope, negotiate, and launch large commercial deals involving data assets and other strategic resources that support Nirvana's competitive moat About you: - 5+ years of experience in private equity, investment banking, or corporate development - Insurance or InsureTech experience strongly preferred; FinTech background acceptable - Demonstrated experience managing deals end-to-end, including diligence, negotiation, and closing - Comfortable operating as an independent contributor with minimal oversight - Strong financial modeling and valuation skills - Experience managing intermediary relationships (investment bankers, advisors) - Strong communication skills, both written & verbal - Thorough critical thinker who isn't afraid to make decisions - Self-starter who independently seeks out opportunities to learn & succeed - Bias-to-action — not afraid to get your hands dirty and stretch yourself - Owner mentality — takes accountability for actions and results - Thrives in high-growth, ambiguous startup environments Benefits: - Competitive salary & equity - Medical, dental & vision insurance (100% employer paid) - 401k with up to 4% company match - Unlimited PTO - Parental leave - Wellness reimbursement We set our salary ranges using compensation data from companies similar to our stage and size. For this role, the estimated total cash for this position is $232,000- $300,000. The actual total cash salary will vary depending on multiple factors unique to each candidate, including location, job-related knowledge, transferable skills, work experience and our assessment of your level during the interview process. Nirvana offers equity for all full-time employees, which is not included in the range listed above and will have an impact on your overall compensation. Nirvana offers a wide range of best-in-class, comprehensive benefits including 100% employer paid healthcare plans, an up to 4% 401k match program, paid time off, parental leave, wellness reimbursement, work-from-home stipend and more.Nirvana is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. If you’re interested in this role, but do not meet 100% of the qualifications listed above, we encourage you to apply. We'd like to consider you for this position and roles that may be a fit in the future. Nirvana is an Equal Opportunity Employer and considers applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, orientation, national origin, age, disability, genetics or any other basis forbidden under federal, state, or local law. Nirvana considers all qualified applicants in accordance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.