Mandarin speaking Partnerships Manager

People First (Recruitment) Ltd; Liverpool; Hybrid; GBP 38,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

A recruitment agency seeks a Mandarin speaking Partnerships Manager to drive the UK–China commercial partnerships. The ideal candidate should have at least 5 years of experience in high-performance sales, fluent in Mandarin and English, and a strong knowledge of the China market. This role involves building and managing partnerships and leading sales cycles to meet revenue targets. Competitive salary of up to £45k with performance-based incentives. Initial office-based work with flexible hybrid options after probation.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years’ experience in high-performance sales or commercial roles.
• Proven success in complex B2B & B2C sales.
• Willingness to travel regularly between the UK and China.

Responsibilities

• Drive commercial performance for UK–China travel programmes.
• Build and manage partnerships with schools and education groups.
• Lead end-to-end sales cycles from prospecting to delivery.

Skills

Fluent in Mandarin

Fluent in English

Sales experience

Contract negotiation

Knowledge of the China market

Tools

CRM tools

Microsoft 365

HubSpot

WeChat

Job description

Ref : 23259

Job Title - Mandarin speaking Partnerships Manager UK–China Commercial Partnerships

The Skills You'll Need : Mandarin and English fluent, management experience in international education or cultural exchange programmes

Your New Salary : Up to £45k (with performance-based incentives)

Permanent

Office based initially, with Flexible hybrid working opportunities once passed probation.

Start : ASAP

Reports to : Chief Operations Officer

Working hours : 8 : 30am-5 : 00pm (with 1 hour lunch break)

Location : Liverpool

Travel Required : Regular travel between the UK and China

Mandarin speaking Partnerships Manager - What You'll be Doing :

• Own and drive commercial performance for UK–China travel programmes, meeting and exceeding revenue targets.
• Build and manage a robust pipeline of opportunities with schools, education groups, and institutional partners.
• Lead end-to-end sales cycles : prospecting, pitching, proposal development, negotiation, and delivery.
• Represent the company at international events, school visits, education forums, and trade delegations in the UK and China.
• Identify, secure, and grow strategic partnerships with UK and Chinese schools, education organisations, DMCs, and suppliers.
• Lead all commercial negotiations, including pricing models, margin structures, contracts, and long-term framework agreements.
• Maintain senior-level relationships with key clients and partners, acting as trusted commercial advisor.
• Manage escalations and commercial risk, working with operations teams to resolve issues without direct operational involvement.
• Identify upsell, cross-sell, and renewal opportunities across existing accounts.
• Develop and execute a UK–China commercial growth strategy informed by market trends, regulatory considerations, and customer demand.
• Provide commercial direction to China-based and UK teams without day-to-day operational management.

Mandarin speaking Partnerships Manager - The Skills You'll Need to Succeed :

• Minimum 5 years’ experience in high-performance sales or commercial roles, ideally within travel, education, or hospitality.
• Proven success in complex B2B & B2C sales, international deal-making, and contract negotiation.
• Fluent in Mandarin and English (written and spoken).
• Strong understanding of the China market, including education, travel, and commercial practices.
• Comfortable working across borders, time zones, and cultures.
• Proficient with CRM and collaboration tools (e.g. HubSpot, Monday,com, Microsoft 365, WeChat).
• Willingness and flexibility to travel regularly between the UK and China.
• Legally eligible to work full-time in the UK.
• Able to pass an enhanced DBS check.

Preferred Experience

• Background in international education, student travel, or cultural exchange programmes.
• Experience selling high-value, multi-stakeholder programmes.
• Existing network within UK or Chinese education sectors.
• Knowledge of safeguarding, compliance, and risk considerations

Please follow us on Linkedin : people-first-team-china

We would be grateful if you could send your CV as a Word document. If your application is successful, you will be contacted within 7 days. We regret that due to the high volume of applications we receive we cannot provide feedback on individual CVs. Please note that we can only consider candidates who are eligible to work in the UK and are able to provide relevant supporting documentation.

People First is committed to increasing diversity, and maintaining an inclusive workplace culture. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates regardless of their ethnicity, race, gender, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, age, marital status or whether or not they have a disability.

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