Speaker Acquisition Specialist

The people on an Inc42 stage define the quality of the room.

From marquee summits and invite-only retreats to closed-door roundtables, executive programmes and courses, we bring together some of the most influential founders, investors, business leaders and emerging voices shaping India’s startup economy.

We’re looking for a Speaker Acquisition Specialist to help build that network.

You will own the speaker pipeline end-to-end: identifying the right people, researching and curating them for different Inc42 properties, crafting outreach that gets responses, building relationships, and taking conversations from the first message to a confirmed participation.

This is not just an event coordination role. Your job is to continuously expand Inc42’s access to the people shaping India’s startup and business ecosystem.

If you can spot the right voice before everyone else does and turn a cold LinkedIn message into a confirmed speaker, we want to hear from you.

About Inc42 Media

Inc42 is India’s #1 startup media & intelligence platform, informing, educating and empowering startup and business leaders through incisive journalism, market intelligence, research, curated events, communities and executive programmes.

Since 2015, Inc42 has grown into one of the most authoritative voices on India’s startup economy. We have broken stories around some of the ecosystem’s largest transactions, tracked the evolution of India’s fastest-growing startups and industries, and built platforms that bring together the country’s leading founders, investors and business leaders.

Our reporting has been cited and followed by publications including The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Reuters and TechCrunch. Through our intelligence platform, we track 10,000+ startups, publish in-depth industry research, and organise some of India’s most sought-after gatherings for startup and business leaders.

The Inc42 Impact

• 50 Mn+ people reached every month
• 55,000+ stories published
• 150+ events organised
• 100+ research reports launched
• 500+ startup applications received every month
• 350+ brands worked with

What You’ll Own

Speaker Research & Curation

Every Inc42 property needs a different room and therefore a different stakeholders as speakers.

You will:

• Understand the audience, format and objective of each Inc42 property before building its speaker universe
• Research and curate highly relevant founders, investors, CXOs, industry leaders, experts and emerging voices
• Build speaker shortlists based on relevance, credibility, expertise, seniority and fit for the conversation
• Go beyond obvious names to identify rising leaders and perspectives that can make a session genuinely valuable
• Keep a strong pulse on startups, technology, business and emerging industry trends to know who Inc42 should be speaking to next

Outreach & Speaker Acquisition

Getting the right person into the room often starts with one great message.

You will:

• Craft sharp, personalised invitations across email, LinkedIn, WhatsApp and other outreach channels
• Build and execute outreach strategies for different speakers and Inc42 properties
• Drive conversations from initial outreach through follow-ups, negotiations and final confirmation
• Find creative routes to reach difficult-to-access founders and leaders
• Maintain strong follow-up discipline without making outreach feel transactional
• Own speaker acquisition targets and pipelines across multiple events simultaneously

Speaker Relationships & Experience

A confirmed speaker should become part of Inc42’s network, not disappear after one event.

You will:

• Act as the primary relationship owner for speakers from first contact through post-event engagement
• Build long-term relationships with founders, CXOs, investors, communications teams and key ecosystem stakeholders
• Understand speaker interests, areas of expertise and preferred formats to identify future opportunities
• Ensure every interaction with Inc42 feels thoughtful, organised and seamless
• Coordinate speaker requirements including profiles, photographs, briefing notes, calendar blocks and pre-event calls
• Work closely with content, marketing, production and operations teams to ensure smooth execution

Speaker Intelligence & Database

You will help build one of Inc42’s most valuable internal assets i.e. its network.

You will:

• Build and maintain a structured, continuously evolving speaker database
• Categorise contacts by company, sector, expertise, designation, location, seniority, relationship strength and relevance
• Track outreach history, participation, preferences and relationship context
• Continuously add new founders, leaders, brands and emerging voices to the pipeline
• Ensure the database remains accurate, searchable and genuinely useful across Inc42 teams

Tools You’ll Work With

You should be comfortable using or quickly learning:

• Google Workspace: Docs, Sheets, Slides and Calendar
• CRM and database tools: Airtable, Notion, HubSpot or similar
• LinkedIn and LinkedIn Sales Navigator for research, prospecting and outreach
• Email and outreach platforms: Gmail, Mailchimp or similar
• Scheduling tools: Google Calendar, Calendly or similar
• Virtual meeting/event platforms: Zoom, Google Meet, StreamYard or similar

What We’re Looking For

• 3-5 years of experience in speaker acquisition, events, media, partnerships, community, public relations or a similar role
• A degree in Journalism, Mass Communication, English, Marketing, Business or a related field
• Excellent written and verbal communication - particularly the ability to write outreach that feels personal, sharp and persuasive
• Strong research instincts and the ability to quickly understand companies, industries and people
• A genuine interest in India’s startup, technology and business ecosystem
• Strong interpersonal skills and confidence interacting with founders, CXOs and senior industry leaders
• Excellent organisation and follow-through across multiple simultaneous conversations
• The ability to work independently, move quickly and operate comfortably with changing priorities
• Strong judgement around who matters, who fits, how to approach them and when to follow up
• Persistence without being pushy - you know when to follow up, when to change the approach and when to find another route in
• A proactive mindset: you spot gaps, anticipate problems and solve them before they become bottlenecks

You’ll Probably Thrive Here If

You’re naturally curious about who is building what, who is becoming influential, and who everyone will be talking about six months from now.

You enjoy building relationships, you’re comfortable opening doors that aren’t already open, and you get genuine satisfaction from putting the right people in the right room.