Amazon - Manager - Partner Development (6-13 yrs)

Are you a customer-obsessed, flexible, smart and analytical, strategic yet execution-focused, hungry and passionate about e-commerce, experienced, and entrepreneurial leader with a strong work ethic? If yes, this opportunity will appeal to you.

Partner Led Sales (PLS) comprises 500+ third-party channels that contribute to Amazon India's mission of 'transforming the way India buys and sells' by on-boarding and managing new sellers on Amazon. Since its inception, PLS in India has pioneered several operating and payout models that have been adopted by other marketplaces.

We are looking for a leader who would spearhead our efforts to continue advancing the PLS partner playbook as a global benchmark, making first-time experiments with policies, practices, and mechanisms. This is a people manager role and offers the incumbent the exciting opportunity to help shape and deliver successful sellers and partners in the marketplace.

- The ideal candidate will have a background in sales with a focus on driving operational rigor, possess strong communication skills, have a consistent track record of delivering results and managing a frontline team.

- S/he should be able to think strategically and analytically about the business, product, and market opportunities and challenges.

- S/he should have the ability to work cross-organizationally to drive consensus and results.

- S/he should be able to hire and nurture the right talent. S/he will have a keen sense of ownership, drive, and desire to win!

- This position is based in Bangalore.

Key job responsibilities:

The Partner Development Manager (PDM) would be responsible for:

i) Partner recruitment:

- Develop a template to identify and recruit new partners by standardizing the recruitment template.

- Periodically review the effectiveness of this recruitment model and implement improvements as needed to optimize the selection process.

- Create a strategy to facilitate partner growth into untapped (whitespace) geographies by exploring multiple lead generation avenues.

- Assess the efficacy of existing payout structures in sustaining partnerships in these new geographies.

ii) Partner Engagement:

- Review current partner engagement practices at both the large-scale level (Partner Connect Program and Contests) as well as the one-on-one level (market working).

- Establish gold standard practices by driving consistency in execution, designing standard operating procedures (SOPs) based on best practices, tracking and reviewing on-the-ground execution, seeking partner feedback to drive improvement, measuring the correlation between each engagement practice and its intended output, etc.

- In addition, the growing complexities of launching and managing sellers necessitates collaborating with partners to strengthen their teams' skills.

- This would be achieved through 'Deep Integration' initiatives.

- The Seller Development Manager (SDM) would spearhead leading these initiatives as part of establishing meaningful partnerships.

iii) Partner Retention:

- Maintaining a strong partner network is vital for growing our sales channel. The Partner Development Manager will lead initiatives to keep partners engaged and dedicated to our IN PLS platform. Key responsibilities include:

a. Partner profitability:

- Automate systems to track partner earnings and identify opportunities to boost profits and reduce unnecessary expenses.

- Publish return-on-investment (ROI) reports and optimize profitability within the Club Vishesh partner program.

b. Payouts:

- Payouts form the backbone of the PLS channel. The SDM will be responsible for multiple aspects related to payouts such as

i. Ensure timely and accurate partner payout computations and disbursements.

ii. Provide monthly payout reports highlighting potential process inefficiencies and growth opportunities for the team.

iii. Benchmark incentive criteria against ICs to assess impact on partner retention.

iv. Ensure continued compliance with payout policies and regulations.

c. Rewards and Recognition: Drive initiatives to reward top-performing and loyal partners through exclusive programs like Club Vishesh. Enhance the value proposition of the Club Vishesh rewards program through ongoing recognition of top partners.

d. NPS Survey: Measure partner loyalty using an NPS survey. Leverage this as an EWS (Early Warning Signal) for any foreseeable partner attrition.

Basic qualifications

- 6+ years of sales experience

- Experience analyzing data and best practices to assess performance drivers

- Experience and understanding of the retail and wholesale landscape in India and exposure to prior interactions with sellers and distributors

- Experience managing teams

- Experience planning, managing and closing competitive sales efforts and managing deals from negotiation, to closing and through delivery

- Experience proactively growing customer relationships within an account while expanding their understanding of the customer's business

Preferred qualifications:

- Experience influencing C-level executives

- Experience managing a team and training/on-boarding new members