About XPRIZE

XPRIZE competitions change the world for the better by accelerating innovation life cycles, catalyzing markets, and energizing stakeholders.  

The XPRIZE Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to inspiring and incentivizing breakthroughs to the most critical challenges facing humanity. Since its beginning in 1994, the Foundation has been building and continues to build a vision of hope and abundance for humanity’s future by harnessing the power of innovators, technology, and resources.  

Through incentive prize competitions, XPRIZE enables people to create bold and transformative solutions that are scalable and drive real impact. XPRIZE competitions positively impact both the marketplace and humanity by addressing the market failures that have prevented significant breakthroughs across multiple sectors.  

An XPRIZE… 

sets an audacious but achievable goal that aims to overcome challenges deemed impossible. It tackles some of humanity's most pressing issues by redefining what is achievable and pushing the boundaries of human potential.  

defines and addresses a clear problem through extensive research, a design sprint, and a competition that catalyzes the development of the next breakthroughs to put humanity on the path toward a preferred future state for all. The desired outcome from an XPRIZE is clear and measurable, and the rules of the competition are transparent and easily understood.  

democratizes innovation by encouraging expert and nonexpert participation and multidisciplinary collaboration.  

catalyzes markets and revitalizes stagnant industries by increasing awareness of market failures and accelerating innovations to address them.  

is highly leveraged, with competing teams attracting and mobilizing investment capital, partner support, and new members in pursuit of the prize. Philanthropic dollars are thus magnified in support of a solution.  

Our first XPRIZE, the $10 million Ansari XPRIZE for private spaceflight, spurred an industry and created exponential breakthroughs. Since then we have provided over $140 million in incentives through these competitions. Each prize has created an industry-changing technology that brings us closer to a better, safer, more sustainable world.  

The use of incentive competitions, or prizes, to accelerate innovation goes back over 300 years, to when the British Admiralty launched the Longitude Prize in 1714 to find a better way to navigate our seas. In the years since, several well-known innovations have resulted from incentive competitions, including canning as a form of food preservation (a competition launched by Napoleon in 1795), modern plastics (the Billiard Ball Prize, 1863) and commercial aviation (the Orteig Prize, 1919).  

This is more than a job to us. When you work at XPRIZE, you’re making a positive impact on some of the biggest challenges facing our world. Whether you’re working in prize design or development, marketing and communications, stakeholder relations, business operations or any other department, you’re playing a critical role in turning the impossible into the possible.

Role Summary

You will be the primary liaison for the competing teams, ensuring that both XPRIZE and the teams have everything they need to ensure a successful competition. You will be expected to apply a broad range of analytical and creative problem-solving skills to ensure the success of the Prize. You will be an integral member of the core Prize Operations team and support the smooth and timely execution of the competition and field operations by managing competing team relationships. 

Responsibilities

• Serves as primary liaison and manages relationship with potential and competing teams and ushers them with the competition as needed.
• Maintains timely, concise, unbiased, and professional communications with competing teams using available channels.
• Responsible for developing collateral for teams detailing operational and marketing requirements, preparing for site visits, outlining submission details, etc.
• Responsible for the harmonization and communication required from competing team information for marketing, public relations, or technical operations.
• Keeps track of team stories for internal and external reporting.
• Collaborates with all internal departments as related to the operations of the prize as needed, and in support of competing teams.
• Supports Prize Manager in maintaining and updating project plan to ensure all parties are tracking towards deadlines successfully.
• Will be on-site during testing as part of operations team.
• Collaborates with Prize Manager to manage internal and external meetings with stakeholders and all related tasks.
• Manages team documentation, including reviews for compliance the team application paperwork and legally binding team agreements (Competitor Agreement), verifies insurance for competing teams and proof of legal entity, and ensures teams have access to policies, rules and regulations.
• Works with internal team in event planning including; workshops and team events.
• General support for prize operation team to ensure smooth competition execution.
• Supports Prize Manager in arranging travel for judges, Advisory Board members, and other stakeholders as needed.
• Responsible for producing PowerPoints and other prize communication assets.
• Organizes and develops ecosystem-wide newsletters in conjunction with prize staff, including editing reports, presentations, prize newsletters, blog posts, and event descriptions.
• Travel for this role is expected to be at 40%, which will include domestic and international travel.

Qualifications

• Undergraduate Degree with 2-3 years of work experience in similar field.
• Excellent communication skills (both oral and written).
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including relationship building and collaboration within a diverse, cross-functional team.
• Exceptional organizational abilities; aggressive attention to detail and ability to multi-task with rigorous time management.
• Strong collaborator across teams with a high degree of discretion and diplomacy.
• Some familiarity with prize content areas such as rainforest biodiversity, climate change, environmental science, forestry practices preferred.
• Strong problem solving, analytical and troubleshooting skills with the ability to exercise mature judgment.
• Versatile and flexible team player who remains calm under pressure.
• Microsoft Office and Google Suite knowledge & expertise.

Come change the world with us.

XPRIZE Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to having a truly inclusive workforce. We do not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, national origin, marital status, age, disability, sexual orientation, political affiliation or on the basis of actual or perceived gender as expressed through dress, appearance, or behavior.