Manager, Corporate Development, Strategy + Business Operations

Role location is open to NYC or our Pittsburgh, PA Headquarters.

Our mission at Duolingo is to develop the best education in the world and make it universally available. But we’ve got more left to do — and that's where you come in!

Duolingo is the most popular language-learning application in the world, with over 500 million users and over half a billion exercises completed daily. Beyond our core learning product, we have also entered into literacy with Duolingo ABC and English proficiency testing with the Duolingo English Test.

The Corporate Development, Strategy and Business Operations team is a high profile, strategic part of Duolingo, and this position represents a vital role within the company. In this role, you will drive key strategic decisions (incl. M&A) via analysis, insight, and collaborative problem-solving. You will have extensive interaction with the senior leadership of Duolingo. 

As a member of this team, you will play a key role in shaping Duolingo’s growth and strategic initiatives. Your responsibilities will include evaluating new markets, shaping strategy for new businesses and product lines, and driving the development of our overall corporate strategy. You will also have the opportunity to take on more operational leadership roles as well as drive M&A processes.

We are looking for driven, curious, talented, and kind people to join our team.

Responsibilities

• Market analysis: scoping the breadth and depth of market understanding required to make informed decisions about pursuing new opportunities, rapidly developing the appropriate fact base, and presenting it as actionable insight that drives smart decision-making.
• Strategy development: collaborating with cross-functional leaders to combine market understanding, customer insight, and product vision into strategies that drive company value.
• Operational leadership: taking on operational leadership of projects as needed, whether building an ops function for a new business line, or managing complex cross-functional efforts to deliver a key business outcome.
• Corporate Development / M&A: Performing industry research to identify opportunities for growth for Duolingo’s existing businesses or expansion into new areas. Lead all aspects of transaction evaluation and execution, from idea generation through valuation, due diligence, and negotiation of legal documentation. 

Requirements

• Entrepreneurial and driven by new challenges in the consumer internet. 
• Self-starter capable of working independently.
• Strong business acumen: ability to approach complex business problems in a structured way and drive rapidly towards insight.
• Outstanding and demonstrated research, analysis and written and oral communication skills.
• Expert level knowledge of Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, flexible, and outcomes-oriented environment: able and excited to thrive in an environment with rapid cycles of analysis, decision, and action.
• Strong people leadership skills, including a demonstrated ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams and communicate effectively with a diverse range of internal and external stakeholders.
• Skills commensurate with a bachelor’s degree or higher in Business, Finance, Economics, or related field and 3+ years of professional experience.

Exceptional candidates will have

• Experience in a strategic corporate development, strategy function or in strategy consulting.
• Strong knowledge of the consumer tech industry (education experience also a plus).
• Experience leading cross functional projects in a high-growth environment.

We will do everything we can within reason to make sure that your interview takes place in an environment that fairly and accurately assesses your skills. If you need assistance or accommodation, please contact your recruiter.

Because Duolingo requires all employees to return to work from an office, all employees will need to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to remain employed unless they have an exemption to vaccination pursuant to a required reasonable accommodation. This is so that our employees feel safe in the office.

Take a peek at how we care for our employees' holistic well-being with our benefits here.

Duolingo is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.