Partner Development Manager

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Japan.

📋 Description

• Craft and implement Cohere’s partner go-to-market strategy for the Japan Enterprise Market, ensuring alignment with regional business goals.

• Collaborate with the broader GTM team to identify and onboard high-impact partners, including system integrators, distributors, resellers, ISVs, and cloud providers.

• Establish relationships with key stakeholders within the partner ecosystem to guarantee partnership success.

• Spearhead partner onboarding, certification, and training initiatives to equip partners for effective sales, deployment, and management of Cohere’s solutions.

• Work together with enablement teams to enhance partner readiness in Japan via sales and technical workshops, empowering them to provide value to enterprise clients.

• Own the generation of joint pipeline by developing co-sell strategies, solution plays, and strategic joint go-to-market initiatives that align Cohere’s offerings with enterprise mission requirements and procurement cycles.

• Collaborate with partners to discover and target high-value opportunities within key segments in Japan.

• Ensure that partners are aligned with Cohere’s strategic objectives and performance metrics.

• Conduct joint business planning sessions and quarterly business reviews (QBRs) with partners, monitoring sourced and influenced ARR against established targets.

• Act as the representative voice of the partner within Cohere, providing feedback to Product, Engineering, and Legal teams.

• Collaborate with Cohere's Public Policy teams to navigate Japanese government AI regulations and guide partners on risk management and responsible AI best practices.

• Promote Cohere’s vision and solutions at partner and industry events, establishing Cohere as a leader in responsible GenAI within the Japanese market.

• Foster thought leadership through briefings, speaking engagements, and collaborative initiatives.

⛳️ Requirements

• Fluent in Japanese at a native level and proficient in English at a business level.

• Over 8 years of experience in partner development, channel sales, or alliance management in the tech industry, ideally within AI or cloud solutions, demonstrating a history of enterprise ARR contributions.

• Profound knowledge of the Japanese enterprise market and its key industry verticals.

• Exceptional relationship-building and negotiation skills, with proven success in driving partner achievements.

• Competence in navigating complex regulatory and compliance frameworks, including AI ethics and government policies.

• A working knowledge of AI technologies, such as LLMs, retrieval-augmented generation, and agentic workflows.

• Experience collaborating with major system integrators, global consultancies, and hyperscalers, including joint GTM and co-sell initiatives; pre-existing relationships with Fujitsu are preferred.

• Outstanding communication and presentation abilities, capable of promoting Cohere’s vision to partners and industry stakeholders effectively.

• A results-oriented growth mindset with a proactive approach. You excel in a fast-paced start-up environment and are passionate about building and scaling partner programs.

🏝️ Benefits

• A weekly lunch stipend of $75/£75 or its equivalent in your local currency for meals.

• Comprehensive health and dental coverage, including a dedicated budget for mental health support.

• RRSP matching, 401K, and a Pension Scheme.

• 100% Parental Leave top-up for up to 6 months for either parent.

• Annual enrichment benefits that include arts & culture, fitness/wellness, quality time, and workspace improvement credits.

• Education and learning stipend to cover conferences, courses, and coaching opportunities.

• Six weeks of paid vacation (30 working days!).

• Budget for travel to other offices if you are working remotely, along with an annual company offsite.