Director, Channel Development - Managed Cloud

Nexcess

3d•Remote

About The Position

The Director, Channel Development will build and scale the Managed Cloud partner program from the ground up, with a focus on generating measurable new-logo revenue through resellers, referral partners, MSPs, and other strategic partners. This is a hands-on, individual-contributor role for a proven channel leader who has successfully built a partner program from the ground up and can demonstrate measurable revenue results. The Director will own the partner lifecycle, from prospecting and recruitment through onboarding, enablement, co-selling, and ongoing growth. With no existing team or year-one headcount, the Director will be responsible for establishing the strategy, building the pipeline, developing partner relationships, and creating the processes needed to scale the function. The role will work closely with Sales and cross-functional leadership and will have significant autonomy to build and execute the channel strategy.

Requirements

7+ years of experience in channel sales, partner development, alliances, business development, or a related field.
Proven ability to build and scale partner programs that generate measurable pipeline and revenue.
Track record of personally carrying and achieving a revenue quota or comparable sales responsibility.
Established relationships or demonstrated ability to develop relationships within the MSP, VAR, agency, IT services, hosting, cloud, or related ecosystem.
Strong knowledge of partner-led sales models, including referral, reseller, and white-label programs.
Experience with partner recruitment, commercial negotiations, enablement, and program development.
Technical understanding of hosting, cloud infrastructure, web technologies, or related platforms.
Strong communication, negotiation, analytical, and relationship-management skills.
Ability to work independently, build structure, and execute in a developing business function.
Ability and willingness to travel approximately 10–20% as business needs require, including partner meetings, conferences, and industry events.

Nice To Haves

Background in managed hosting, cloud infrastructure, WordPress, web/eCommerce technology, or a related industry.
Familiarity with partner economics, tier structures, incentive programs, and referral models.
Proficiency with CRM and channel-management tools.
Experience building programs in a high-growth or entrepreneurial environment.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute a channel strategy aligned with Managed Cloud business objectives, revenue targets, customer segments, and go-to-market priorities.
Design and launch the initial partner program, including partner segmentation, program tiers, eligibility criteria, engagement models, referral and margin structures, and onboarding requirements.
Establish scalable processes, documentation, tools, and operating standards for partner recruitment, activation, opportunity management, and ongoing engagement.
Monitor market and competitive trends to identify opportunities for new partner relationships and channel growth.
Identify, prospect, qualify, and recruit resellers, referral partners, MSPs, VARs, digital agencies, and other organizations with the potential to generate qualified business opportunities.
Develop relationships with prospective partners through outbound prospecting, networking, industry events, referrals, and other appropriate business-development activities.
Manage the partner lifecycle from initial engagement through qualification, commercial negotiation, agreement execution, onboarding, opportunity development, and ongoing growth.
Evaluate partner performance and engagement and recommend adjustments to partner investment, support, or program participation based on business results and strategic value.
Develop and maintain strong relationships with key partner stakeholders and decision-makers.
Develop qualified partner-sourced pipeline and convert partner opportunities into new-logo revenue.
Work directly with partner representatives and their customers to support opportunity development, solution positioning, presentations, and sales activities.
Collaborate with internal Sales and other business functions to ensure appropriate ownership, opportunity management, forecasting, and sales-crediting practices.
Support partners through their initial sales opportunities and develop the capabilities necessary for partners to independently generate and progress opportunities.
Monitor partner-sourced pipeline, revenue, conversion, and other agreed performance indicators and provide regular reporting to Sales leadership.
Develop and maintain partner-facing enablement materials, including presentations, battlecards, pricing resources, product information, demo materials, technical resources, and onboarding documentation.
Deliver partner training and enablement sessions as appropriate.
Work with internal subject-matter experts to ensure partner materials and training accurately represent the company's products, services, pricing, and capabilities.
Identify recurring partner questions, obstacles, and enablement gaps and recommend improvements.
Partner with Sales, Marketing, Product, Finance, Legal, Support, and other functions to establish effective processes for channel development and partner management.
Provide feedback from partners and prospective partners to help identify opportunities to improve products, services, messaging, pricing, and the overall customer experience.
Coordinate with Finance and Sales leadership regarding partner economics, revenue attribution, forecasting, and performance reporting.
Work with Legal and other appropriate stakeholders to ensure partner agreements and program structures follow established company requirements.
Maintain accurate and timely partner information, opportunities, activities, and forecasts in the company's designated CRM and business systems.
Establish a regular operating cadence for partner pipeline reviews, performance reporting, and program optimization.
Analyze channel performance and use data to prioritize partner recruitment, development, and resource allocation.
Provide regular updates to Sales leadership regarding channel pipeline, revenue performance, partner activity, risks, and opportunities.
Perform other related duties and responsibilities as assigned based on organizational and business needs.