Partnerships & Business Development Manager

The Fortunate; Madison (WI); Hybrid; USD 70,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental and vision

401(k) with employer match

Company-provided laptop

Paid time off

Job summary

The Fortunate is seeking a Partnerships & Business Development Manager to cultivate relationships with venues, hotels, private clubs, photographers, and other referral sources to generate premium opportunities in Madison and nearby markets.

The role emphasizes a long-term, trusted network over cold outreach, with compensation combining base salary and performance-based commissions. Expect growth in measured relationship value and brand presence.

Qualifications

• Open background welcome; networking experience preferred.
• Ability to build a durable referral network is valued over existing contacts.
• Experience in luxury hospitality, hotels, private clubs or premium venues is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Venue relationships
• Hotel and private-club relationships
• Nonprofit and gala relationships
• Partner outreach and follow-through
• Referral-source tracking
• Industry and networking events
• Strategic introductions
• Partnership opportunities
• Coordination of press and industry opportunities
• Maintaining relationships after an introduction becomes business

Skills

High-trust relationships

Opportunity identification

Follow up consistently

Pipeline discipline

Sales cycle understanding

Brand representation

Strategic introductions

Relationship timing

Job description

The Fortunate does not need someone to 'do sales.' We need someone to build relationships that create the right opportunities.

The Partnerships & Business Development Manager develops and maintains relationships with the people and organizations most likely to introduce The Fortunate to exceptional commissions.

That includes venues, hotels, private clubs, photographers, floral studios, caterers, corporate decision-makers, nonprofit organizations, hospitality professionals, and other trusted referral sources.

Dave will remain closely involved in important prospect conversations and closing significant commissions. Your job is to make sure there are more of the right conversations to have.

What you'll own.

• Venue relationships
• Hotel and private-club relationships
• Nonprofit and gala relationships
• Partner outreach and follow-through
• Referral-source tracking
• Industry and networking events
• Strategic introductions
• Partnership opportunities
• Coordination of relevant press and industry opportunities
• Maintaining relationships after an introduction becomes business

What this isn't.

The Fortunate's reputation should grow through excellent work and excellent relationships. This position owns the second half of that equation.

• A social-media-manager position
• Cold-call volume sales
• Generic digital marketing
• A commission-only sales job
• Networking without measurable business development

What we're looking for.

We are deliberately open about background. Strong candidates may come from luxury hospitality sales, hotels and resorts, private clubs, premium venues, high-end catering, experiential agencies, corporate events, relationship-driven professional services, wedding and event businesses, or another field where trust creates opportunity.

An existing network in Madison, Milwaukee, Chicago, luxury hospitality, private events, corporate events, or adjacent industries is valuable, but the ability to build the right network matters more than already knowing everyone.

• Build high-trust relationships
• Identify worthwhile opportunities
• Communicate a premium service without sounding performative
• Follow up consistently
• Maintain a disciplined pipeline
• Understand long sales cycles
• Represent a brand well in person
• Know when a relationship matters even if it does not create immediate revenue

Compensation.

Base salary: $70,000–$85,000. We expect the initial offer to land around $75,000–$80,000 depending on network, relevant experience, and demonstrated business-development capability.

Commission: 5% of collected professional fees from eligible new commissions directly sourced by the employee. Commission is calculated on The Fortunate's collected professional fees, not a client's total event budget, pass-through purchases, taxes, reimbursements, or vendor spending.

Commission becomes payable after the applicable client payment has been collected. Existing clients, active opportunities, house-generated inquiries, and referrals already in the company's pipeline are not automatically employee-sourced business. Attribution is recorded when an opportunity enters the pipeline rather than decided after a commission closes.

Expected total cash compensation with successful performance is approximately $95,000–$115,000+, but incentive compensation is not guaranteed.

What the incentive plan rewards.

This role is not intended to reward indiscriminate lead volume. A smaller number of well-qualified relationships and commissions that fit The Fortunate is more valuable than filling the pipeline with work the House should not accept.

Renewals, repeat clients, expansions, and shared-source opportunities follow written attribution rules in the compensation plan.

• Medical insurance with 80% of the employee premium covered by The Fortunate
• Dental and vision coverage available
• 15 days paid time off
• 8 paid company holidays
• Paid company closure week after New Year's
• One paid recovery day following qualifying event weekends
• 401(k) with 4% employer match after 90 days
• Company-provided laptop and phone
• Business mileage reimbursed at the current IRS business mileage rate
• $65/day meal and incidental allowance for qualifying travel events
• Approved lodging and transportation for required overnight business travel
• Up to $2,000 annually for professional development, industry organizations, conferences, and relevant relationship-building education

Relationship-building expenses.

Relationship development is part of the job. Employees should not be expected to personally finance it.

The Fortunate will establish an approved budget for legitimate business-development activity, including partner coffees and meals, venue visits, industry events, association participation, hosted partner gatherings, regional travel, conferences, and approved client or partner hospitality.

How success is measured.

This position will not be evaluated solely on closed revenue.

• Qualified opportunities created
• Collected revenue from employee-sourced commissions
• Quality and fit of opportunities
• Venue and hospitality relationships developed
• Corporate and nonprofit relationships developed
• Pipeline quality and accuracy
• Relationship retention
• Contribution to the House's reputation in target markets

Success after one year.

• Be known by the venues and hospitality partners most relevant to our work
• Build meaningful relationships with photographers, caterers, creative partners, and referral sources
• Introduce opportunities that genuinely fit the House
• Increase qualified referral business without weakening pricing or positioning
• Become someone good partners are comfortable introducing to good clients

Growth.

This is intentionally a Manager, not Director, position. The title reflects the current size of the organization rather than a limit on the role's potential.

A successful Partnerships & Business Development Manager who establishes a durable referral network, creates meaningful new revenue, and eventually requires additional people or resources beneath the function should have a credible path toward broader leadership of partnerships and growth.

Interested?

Tell us what you've made better.