Partner Program Specialist

Burwood Group; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 55,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) with company match

Generous vacation policy

Health, dental, and vision insurance

Life and accident insurance

Disability coverage

Financial planning resources

Mental wellness programs

Career development opportunities

Job summary

A technology consulting firm in Chicago seeks a Partner Program Specialist to manage partnerships with industry leaders. The role involves overseeing operations, supporting partner onboarding, and driving process improvements. Ideal candidates will have a strong analytical mindset and experience in partner operations. Competitive compensation of $55,000-$65,000, plus benefits including health insurance and a generous vacation policy.

Qualifications

• 1-3 years of experience in partner operations, sales operations, marketing operations, or program coordination, preferably in IT.
• Exceptional organization and attention to detail.
• Strong analytical mindset with the ability to interpret data and drive process improvements.

Responsibilities

• Manage the complete operational lifecycle of strategic partnerships.
• Support Partner Relations Managers with technical documentation.
• Analyze financial ROI of partner programs.

Skills

Analytical mindset

Organization

Problem-solving skills

Communication

Proficiency in Microsoft Excel

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Marketing, or related field

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Power BI

Microsoft Dynamics

Job description

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Burwood Group is a technology consulting firm focused on transforming business outcomes through managed technology. Founded in 1997, headquartered in Chicago, the firm has grown to 200+ employees with offices from Southern California to North Carolina.

Burwood fosters a culture that values teamwork and personal growth. Join our team and build a career as unique as you are.

Job Description

What You\'ll Do

The Partner Program Specialist plays a vital role on our Partner Alliance team, serving as the subject matter expert for our strategic partnerships with industry leaders such as Cisco, HPE, Palo Alto Networks, Microsoft, and Google Cloud. This role is responsible for the expert execution of all operational, financial, and compliance-related activities that sustain the health of our partner ecosystem. It also focuses on process innovation, data analysis, and cross-functional collaboration to ensure our partner programs drive profitable growth aligned with our go-to-market strategy.

Key Responsibilities

Program Management & Compliance

• Manage the complete operational lifecycle of our strategic partnerships, analyzing program requirements to ensure all compliance, certification, and specialization mandates are met in a timely manner. Ability to articulate ROI and benefits from time, cost, and resource investments.
• Oversee all partner portal administration and support onboarding of new partners into our ecosystem.
• Support Partner Relations Managers with technical documentation, sales enablement materials, and other resources to build partner relationships and accelerate adoption of new solutions.
• Oversee the end-to-end financial incentive process and claim submission, collecting proof-of-performance and reconciling rebates, MDF, and co-op payments with Finance.

Sales Go-to-Market & Marketing Collaboration

• Administer our presence on key partner portals, ensuring our profile is optimized and up to date.
• Advise marketing on partner-specific rules for co-op/MDF funds to ensure compliant and eligible campaigns.
• Collaborate with marketing to reflect the latest partner statuses, awards, and joint solutions in sales collateral and the company website.
• Inform on evolving branding guidelines and content compliance to meet contractual requirements.

Analytics, Reporting, & Process Improvement

• Develop and maintain dashboards for executive QBRs, joint business reviews, and sales account planning.
• Analyze the financial ROI of partner programs and incentive campaigns to guide investment decisions.
• Identify operational inefficiencies and drive process improvements through automation and new tools.

Qualifications

Who You Are

Required:

• 1-3 years of experience in partner operations, sales operations, marketing operations, or program coordination, preferably in IT.
• Exceptional organization and attention to detail.
• Strong analytical mindset with the ability to interpret data and drive process improvements.
• Critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
• High emotional intelligence and excellent communication across departments.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel; experience with data visualization tools (Power BI a plus).

Preferred:

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Marketing, or related field.
• Direct experience with partner programs and portals of vendors such as Cisco, Microsoft, HPE, Palo Alto Networks, or AWS.
• Experience using a CRM system (Microsoft Dynamics preferred) for reporting and data management.
• Foundational understanding of IT channel business models (rebates, deal registration, GTM strategy).
• Keen interest in emerging technologies and their business applications.

Additional Information

Why Join Our Team:

• Impact from Day One: You will own critical processes and provide insights influencing partner strategy and profitability.
• Growth and Development: Opportunity to gain experience in operations, finance, marketing, and analytics within a dynamic tech ecosystem.
• Culture of Innovation: A forward-thinking team focused on automation, innovation, and building a best-in-class partner program.

The compensation packages at Burwood Group are based on factors including work location, skillset, experience, and market conditions. The estimated salary range for this role is $55,000-$65,000. This role may be eligible for incentive compensation based on performance. Sales roles may offer additional variable compensation tied to quota achievement.

If you ask our employees what we love, the top answer is our culture. Our team is driven, innovative, and collaborative, with benefits such as:

• 401(k) and Roth 401(k) with company match
• Generous vacation policy
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• Life and accident insurance
• Disability coverage
• Flexible spending accounts for healthcare and transit/parking
• Financial planning resources
• Mental wellness programs
• Career development opportunities

Our Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion: We welcome all talent regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, religion, or age, and value diverse backgrounds and experiences.

We are not the largest company, but we strive to be the best. These are the words we live by.