Strategic Partner Manager New

OpenSesame; California, Northern (MO, KY); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

OpenSesame is seeking a Strategic Partner Manager to own a portfolio of strategic partners, drive sourced and influenced revenue, and deliver consistent partner value. You will partner with Marketing, Sales, Product, and Operations to activate partners, create joint go-to-market motions, and drive pipeline.

The role blends relationship management, commercial acumen, strategic thinking, and execution—with weekly touchpoints, quarterly business reviews, and clear metrics to measure success across

Responsibilities

• Own a portfolio of strategic partners and drive sourced and influenced revenue.
• Lead partner planning, activation, and quarterly business reviews (QBRs).
• Coordinate with Marketing, Sales, Product, and Operations on joint go-to-market motions.
• Ensure partners have enablement content, training, and certifications for selling OpenSesame.
• Represent partners internally and escalate issues to cross-functional teams.

Job description

OpenSesame is transforming workforce development with an AI-powered marketplace of skill-building courses and learning pathways. We help organizations build skills and stay compliant through a high-quality content catalog, seamless LMS/LXP integrations, and advanced capabilities like skills-based curation and multilingual content creation. More than 2,000 companies, including 150+ of the Global 2000, rely on OpenSesame to develop the world's most productive and admired workforces.

About the Team

The Partnerships team builds and scales OpenSesame's global partner ecosystem . We work across technology, channel, referral, reseller, marketplace, and strategic alliances to expand reach of our joint solutions and deliver exceptional experiences for our partners and their customers.

The Strategic Partner Manager (SPM) is the relationship owner responsible for driving revenue growth, partner activation, and strategic alignment with assigned partners. SPMs operate within a system designed for partner success—they maintain consistent cadences, deliver quick wins, build trust, and drive pipeline behavior. Through partner planning, enablement, and execution, SPMs translate company strategy into partner-led revenue.

About the Role

OpenSesame is seeking an entrepreneurial, relationship-focused Strategic Partner Manager to own a portfolio of strategic partners, drive sourced and influenced revenue, and deliver consistent partner value.

As an SPM, you will manage a book of partner relationships, each with its own business model, sales structure, and growth opportunity. You'll partner with Marketing, Sales, Product, and Operations to activate partners, create joint go-to-market motions, and drive pipeline. This is a blend of relationship management, commercial acumen, strategic thinking, and execution—combining partner business planning with day-to-day touchpoints that keep partners engaged and accountable.

What You'll Do

Know & Own Your Partner Portfolio

You are the primary expert and relationship owner on/for your assigned partners. You segment and prioritize partners based on strategic potential, current performance, partner health, and market opportunity and identify when a partnership should be accelerated, remediated, restructured, or deprioritized. You maintain consistent touchpoints (weekly/bi-weekly), drive quarterly business reviews (QBRs), align on joint strategies, and keep partners accountable to their OpenSesame revenue targets. You build trust through reliability and genuine enthusiasm for partner success.

You own sourced and influenced pipeline and booking targets for your partner portfolio. You work with partners to identify co-sell opportunities, activate referral channels, and expand OEM relationships. You maintain pipeline visibility, align with Sales on shared opportunities, and work with partners to move deals forward.

Plan & Execute Partner Growth

You identify opportunities to expand the scope and value of your partnerships by understanding each partner’s strategy, customer base, sales motion, product roadmap, and economics. You evaluate new routes to market, commercial models, integrations, and joint offerings, then align stakeholders and drive the highest-potential opportunities from idea through execution. You develop partner business plans that outline quarterly targets, go-to-market motions, campaign priorities, and success metrics. You coordinate with Partner Marketing to execute co-marketing campaigns, sales plays, and enablement activities. You use planning frameworks and tools (Euler, Crossbeam, Salesforce, Gong) to drive accountability and measure progress.

Enable & Activate Partners

You ensure partners have the content, messaging, demos, training, and certifications they need to effectively sell and support OpenSesame. You equip partners to understand OpenSesame’s value proposition, confidently position our solutions, and generate pipeline in alignment with OpenSesame sales teams and GTM priorities. Using Highspot and other enablement tools, you coordinate partner onboarding, training, and ongoing enablement while reinforcing best practices that improve partner effectiveness, sales alignment, and operational efficiency.

Be a Strategic Partner Internally

You represent your partners internally. You escalate integration requests, coordinate with Product and Support for critical issues, align Sales on shared accounts, and surface insights that help OpenSesame serve partners better. You maintain visibility into partner technical contacts and ensure proper escalation paths during critical issues.

Performance Objectives

Build a strong understanding of OpenSesame's partner ecosystem, your assigned partner portfolio, and how you'll succeed in this role.

Success looks like:

• Complete OpenSesame onboarding, partner playbook training, and system access (Salesforce, Highspot, Crossbeam, Euler, Gong)
• Introduce yourself to each partner in your portfolio and schedule recurring touchpoints
• Understand each partner's business model, OpenSesame integrations, current pipeline, key contacts, and the relevant technology and SaaS context needed to effectively manage the portfolio.
• Meet with your SPM team, manager, and cross-functional stakeholders (Marketing, Sales, Product, Operations)
• Align with leadership on expectations, goals, and your plan for the first 90 days

Days 30–90: Build Relationships & Demonstrate Impact

Establish yourself as a trusted partner by delivering quick wins, maintaining consistency, and driving early revenue momentum.

Success looks like:

• Develop a business plan for each partner, including quarterly targets, key initiatives, and success metrics
• Schedule and conduct first QBRs with each partner, establishing alignment and cadence
• Maintain weekly/bi-weekly touchpoints and respond quickly to partner requests
• Coordinate one partner marketing campaign or enablement initiative
• Present an assessment of your partner portfolio, including early wins and challenges

Demonstrate consistent progress toward quarterly targets while identifying opportunities to improve partner execution and OpenSesame alignment.

Success looks like:

• Maintain pipeline visibility and pacing toward quarterly revenue targets
• Keep partners engaged through consistent communication, quick wins, and clear next steps
• Identify operational or program friction points and surface recommendations for improvement
• Build relationships with key technical and commercial contacts at strategic partners

Months 4–12: Mature Partnerships & Drive Sustained Growth

Lead mature, predictable partnerships that consistently generate sourced and influenced revenue while exploring opportunities for deeper strategic collaboration.

Success looks like:

• Consistently meet or exceed quarterly targets (sourced and influenced)
• Maintain partner health through regular QBRs, strategic planning, and alignment on joint goals
• Proactively identify and solve partner challenges before they impact trust or revenue
• Lead strategic initiatives that deepen partner relationships (e.g., joint roadmap planning, co-marketing)
• Be recognized as a trusted partner across OpenSesame (Sales, Marketing, Product, Operations)

What Success Looks Like

• Partners consistently generate meaningful sourced and influenced revenue.
• Your partners are engaged, responsive, and aligned on OpenSesame's positioning and value.
• You maintain pipeline visibility and demonstrate pacing toward targets.
• Cadence matters—your partners expect consistent touchpoints and know what to expect from you.
• Relationships run deep—key partner contacts trust you, advocate for you, and come to you with opportunities.
• You're a trusted partner internally—Sales, Marketing, and Product come to you for partner insights.