Partnerships & Alliances recruitment
Partnerships and alliances teams grow revenue through others: technology partners, resellers, systems integrators and cloud marketplaces. As buyers consolidate spend, partner-sourced revenue is a growing share of the plan.
What the job really covers
Partnerships and alliances in a software company covers the people who build revenue through other companies: resellers and channel partners who sell the product, technology partners who integrate with it, systems integrators and consultancies who implement it, and cloud providers and marketplaces through which customers buy it.
- Recruiting, enabling and managing reseller and SI partners
- Building co-sell motions and marketplace listings with cloud providers
- Managing technology integrations with Product
- Tracking partner-sourced and partner-influenced pipeline
Titles we recruit
- Partner Manager
- Channel Account Manager
- Alliance Manager
- Technology Partnerships Manager
- Cloud Alliances Manager
- Head of Partnerships
- VP Alliances
What we assess, and how
Every shortlist comes with notes on all four- 01
Partner-sourced revenue
What they sourced, not just influenced, and how they proved it. - 02
Co-sell execution
How they got a partner's sales team to actually bring them into deals. - 03
Programme design
The tiers, incentives and enablement they've built. - 04
Internal influence
Getting direct sales to work with partners rather than around them.
A question we always ask
“Name a deal a partner brought you that you'd never have found yourself.”
Pay benchmarks
Indicative 2026 ranges from the TRG GTM Salary Guide. Varies by company stage and city.| Role | UK | US |
|---|---|---|
| Partner / Channel Manager | £55–72k base£70–95k OTE | $100–135k base$130–175k OTE |
| Senior Partner Manager | £70–90k base£90–120k OTE | $130–160k base$165–210k OTE |
| Head of Partnerships / Alliances Director | £95–130k base£125–170k OTE | $150–200k base$200–260k OTE |
| VP Partnerships & Alliances | £130–170k base£170–230k OTE | $200–250k base$260–340k OTE |
Career path
- Partner Manager
- Senior Partner Manager
- Alliance Director
- Head of Partnerships
- VP Alliances
Tools of the trade
- Salesforce
- Crossbeam
- Reveal
- PartnerStack
- Impartner
- AWS Marketplace
Market notes
UK partner roles often cover EMEA resellers and the large SIs such as Accenture, Deloitte and Capgemini. Distributor experience is useful for security and infrastructure vendors.
UK partnership roles often cover EMEA and work with European resellers, distributors and systems integrators. The UK has a strong channel culture in IT, security and infrastructure software. Public sector partnerships often run through frameworks such as G-Cloud and partners already approved for them. London is the main hub.
Coburg Banks (2026) reports a London partnerships manager median of £66k (typical £49k–£82k) and says bonus or commission typically adds 20–35% of base. SaaS partner roles with sourced-pipeline targets sit at the upper end.
Hiring in the UK →Market notes
US alliances hiring is dominated by cloud marketplace roles. Experience with AWS co-sell and private offers is one of the most requested skills.
The US partnerships market is the largest, with intense focus on cloud alliances (AWS, Microsoft, Google), marketplaces and global systems integrators. Hubs include the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle (for cloud provider relationships), New York and Austin. Federal partnerships often require experience with resellers on government contract vehicles.
PartnerStack's 2026 guide puts partner managers at $110k–$140k, channel account managers at $95k–$130k and strategic alliances directors at $150k–$200k. Founderpath's US SaaS medians are lower ($87.5k partnerships manager, $110k director) because they include early-stage companies. VP ranges are indicative; public data is thin.
Hiring in the US →Partnerships and alliances recruitment for software companies, UK & US
Skills in demand
- Partner recruitment and onboarding
- Joint business planning
- Channel sales management
- Cloud alliances (AWS, Microsoft, Google)
- Marketplace private offers
- Partner programme design
- Co-selling
- Partner enablement
- Partner marketing
- Negotiation
- PartnerStack or Impartner
- Crossbeam or Reveal
- Salesforce partner reporting
What partnerships teams do
Partnerships turn other companies’ customers, credibility and sales capacity into your pipeline. Partner managers recruit and onboard partners, build joint business plans, train partner sales and technical teams, run co-marketing and co-selling, and manage the commercial terms that make the relationship work for both sides.
The work varies by partner type. Channel and reseller partnerships are about partners selling your product, often with margins or referral fees. Technology partnerships are about integrations that make both products more valuable and create co-selling opportunities. Systems integrator and consulting partnerships bring implementation capacity and influence over large customers. Cloud alliances with AWS, Microsoft and Google bring access to their sales teams and to marketplace buying, where customers use committed cloud spend.
Partnerships take longer to pay back than direct sales, which makes strong partner leaders valuable and rare. They need patience, commercial judgement and the ability to influence people who do not work for them.
- Recruit, onboard and enable partners
- Build joint business plans and co-selling motions
- Manage reseller, referral and marketplace programmes
- Run technology and integration partnerships
- Report partner-sourced and influenced pipeline and revenue
Roles we recruit
We recruit partner managers and partner account managers, channel sales managers, alliance managers and directors (including cloud alliances with AWS, Microsoft and Google), technology and integration partnership managers, partner marketing managers, partner solutions engineers, and heads, directors and VPs of partnerships and ecosystem.
We also recruit for marketplace roles. Cloud marketplace sales has grown fast as enterprise customers buy software through AWS Marketplace, Microsoft’s commercial marketplace and Google Cloud Marketplace to use committed spend. Companies need people who understand private offers, co-sell programmes and how to work with cloud providers’ field teams.
Titles vary between companies and markets. In the UK, “channel account manager” is still common in IT and security software; in the US, “partner development manager” and “alliances director” are widely used. We map titles by partner type and what the role owns.
- Partner, channel and alliance managers
- Cloud alliances and marketplace leads (AWS, Microsoft, Google)
- Technology and integration partnership managers
- Partner marketing and partner solutions engineers
- Head, Director and VP of Partnerships or Ecosystem
Metrics that show a partner leader is good
The core measures are partner-sourced pipeline and revenue, partner-influenced pipeline and revenue, and how they compare with targets. We ask candidates how their programmes were measured, what share of company revenue came through partners, and how that changed under their leadership.
We also look at programme health: how many partners were active rather than just signed, how quickly new partners produced their first deal, the number of certified partner sellers and engineers, and the win rate and deal size on partner-involved opportunities, which are often higher than direct deals.
For marketplace and cloud alliance roles, we look at marketplace transaction volume, co-sell opportunities with cloud providers and the relationships candidates have built with those field teams.
- Partner-sourced and influenced pipeline and revenue
- Active partners and time to first deal
- Win rate and deal size on partner deals
- Partner certifications and enablement
- Marketplace transactions and co-sell volume
Skills employers want
Partner leaders need commercial judgement and influence. They choose which partners to invest in, negotiate terms, and persuade partner sales teams to prioritise a product among many. They also need to manage internal stakeholders, especially direct sales teams who may see partners as competition for deals.
Programme design is a key skill for senior roles: tiers, incentives, deal registration, rules of engagement between partner and direct sellers, and enablement and certification. Candidates who have built a programme from scratch are in high demand.
Tools include partner relationship management (PRM) platforms such as PartnerStack, Impartner, Crossbeam or Reveal for account mapping, the CRM, and cloud marketplace tools such as Tackle or Clazar.
- Partner programme design and incentives
- Joint business planning
- Co-selling and rules of engagement
- Cloud marketplace and private offers
- PRM and account mapping (PartnerStack, Crossbeam, Reveal)
How we run a partnerships search
We start by understanding your partnership strategy: which partner types matter most, which partners you already have, how partner and direct sales work together, how partners are paid and what share of revenue partners should drive in the next two years.
We map candidates by partner type and ecosystem. Someone who built an AWS alliance has different relationships and knowledge from someone who ran a reseller channel in cybersecurity. We match on the detail and on existing relationships where they matter.
We recommend a practical exercise for senior roles, such as a 90-day plan for one priority partner or a design for a partner tier structure. It shows commercial thinking and programme design skill.
- Discovery on strategy, partner types and current programme
- Market map by partner type and ecosystem
- Screen for partner revenue record and programme design
- Shortlist with notes on relationships and fit
- Recommended 90-day partner plan exercise
Hiring challenges and how to beat them
The biggest risk is starting partnerships too early or without commitment. Partner programmes need a proven product, clear value for partners, internal support and time. Hiring a partner leader without those often leads to disappointment on both sides. We discuss readiness openly at the brief.
The second is channel conflict. If direct sellers are not paid fairly on partner deals, or rules of engagement are unclear, the partner leader will struggle. Settling compensation and rules before the hire helps a lot.
The third is unrealistic timelines. Partner revenue usually takes several quarters to build. Set milestones for partner recruitment, enablement and first deals, not just revenue, in the first year.
- Check readiness: product, partner value, internal support
- Agree rules of engagement and compensation with direct sales
- Set leading milestones as well as revenue targets
- Prioritise a few strategic partners over many sign-ups
- Invest in partner enablement and marketing
Career paths in partnerships
Partner professionals come from sales, account management, business development, consulting and solutions engineering. They move from partner manager to senior partner manager, partner director, head of partnerships and VP of partnerships or chief partner officer.
Partnerships experience is valuable in general management and corporate development roles, and some partner leaders move into those. Others move into sales leadership, especially in companies with a large indirect channel.
Cloud alliance and marketplace expertise is one of the fastest-growing specialisms, with demand from both software companies and cloud providers.
- Partner Manager → Senior Partner Manager → Partner Director
- Partner Director → Head / VP of Partnerships → Chief Partner Officer
- Partnerships → Corporate development or business development
- Partnerships → Sales leadership
- Partner manager → Cloud alliances and marketplace specialist
Partnerships terms explained
Partnership programmes depend on clear rules and shared language between partners, partner managers and direct sales. These are the terms we use most when we brief and assess partnership roles.
Rules of engagement matter most. They decide who owns a deal when a partner and a direct seller are both involved, how each is paid and how conflicts are resolved. Partner leaders who have written and enforced good rules of engagement are in strong demand.
We ask candidates to explain the programme structure they worked within, and what they would change.
- Partner-sourced revenue: deals a partner brought to you
- Partner-influenced revenue: deals where a partner helped win or expand the account
- Deal registration: a process that lets partners claim an opportunity and protects their margin
- Rules of engagement: how partner and direct sellers work together on the same accounts
- Private offer: a negotiated deal transacted through a cloud marketplace
Our advice before you hire
Agree how partner-sourced deals are credited and paid before you hire. If direct sellers and partner managers compete for the same credit, the partnership motion stalls.
Brief us on a Partnerships & Alliances role →Partnerships & Alliances recruitment FAQs
A partner manager builds revenue through other companies: recruiting and enabling resellers, referral partners, technology partners or systems integrators, building joint plans, and supporting co-selling. They are usually measured on partner-sourced and influenced pipeline and revenue.
Channel sales usually means partners who resell or refer your product, often for a margin or fee. Alliances usually means strategic relationships with larger companies, such as cloud providers or global systems integrators, focused on co-selling, integration and joint go-to-market.
Cloud marketplace selling lets customers buy software through AWS Marketplace, Microsoft’s commercial marketplace or Google Cloud Marketplace, often counting the purchase against committed cloud spend. Vendors use private offers and co-sell programmes with the cloud providers.
Usually once the product is proven with direct customers, there is a clear value proposition for partners and the company can support partners with enablement and marketing. Starting too early often leads to many signed partners and little revenue.
We look at partner revenue results, programme design experience, relationships in the relevant ecosystem, and how they managed channel conflict. For senior roles we recommend a 90-day plan exercise for a priority partner.
Partner managers usually have a base salary and a variable element tied to partner-sourced or influenced revenue. See our 2026 salary guide for indicative ranges in the UK and US.