Director, Partner Operations

Kiteworks•San Mateo, CA

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

This is an exciting opportunity to join a newly formed Strategic Partnerships organization at Kiteworks and own the operational engine behind the most strategic partnerships in the company. This role is for someone who is ready to build the structures, systems, and reporting that turn those partnerships into delivered integrations and new opportunities for Kiteworks. This is not a sales job. This is a Strategic Partnerships job to build solutions, a partner ecosystem, and new business opportunities. It is a role for someone who is ready to roll up their sleeves, anticipate the partnership and business needs before they land on the team, and move quickly. The Director, Partner Operations sits at the operational center of the Kiteworks Strategic Partnerships organization, enabling the business flow across Technology Partnerships, GSI Partnerships, Partner Architecture, Product Management, and the broader cross-functional teams (Marketing, Finance, Legal, Support, Customer Success, Renewals, Sales, and Channel Alliances). Reporting to the SVP, Strategic Partnerships and Strategy, this leader owns the operational backbone of the partner business: reporting and dashboards, partner program memberships, marketplace reporting and output visibility, integration lifecycle tracking, partner-related budget and investments, and the operational cadence that keeps the team moving. This person anticipates rather than reacts. They see the chess pieces moving and prepare before the need lands on the team. They are the point of contact when others are unavailable, the operator who keeps the data accurate and the reporting flowing, and the orchestrator who pulls the right teams together at the right moment. The current focus of the role is Kiteworks joining and maintaining membership in strategic partner programs (such as CrowdStrike, ServiceNow, Palo Alto Networks, AWS, Microsoft, Accenture, Deloitte, Leidos, and Booz Allen Hamilton) and operationalizing the strategic partnerships that are being built. When the Kiteworks partner program is updated and launched, this leader will own its operational rollout and ongoing administration. The ideal candidate is a balance of business, finance, technical, and operations: comfortable reading a contract and a budget, conversant in APIs and integration terminology, fluent in dashboards and reporting, and energized by the complexity of strategic partnerships that are building game-changing joint integrations for the Kiteworks business. This is a hybrid position based out of our San Mateo, CA office.

Requirements

12+ years of experience in partner operations, channel operations, or alliances operations roles, with a minimum of 5 years leading partner program operations at a Director or Sr. Director level.
Demonstrated track record of operationalizing partner programs in enterprise software, cybersecurity, or data protection, including direct experience with vendor-as-member partner programs (AWS, Microsoft, ServiceNow, CrowdStrike, Palo Alto Networks, or similar).
Strong command of partner management platforms (PRM), CRM tools, BI/dashboard tooling, and program analytics.
Operational Leadership. Proven ability to design, run, and scale partner operations at an enterprise level, with an anticipatory rather than reactive operating style.
Balance of Business, Finance, Technical, and Operations. Comfortable moving between a contract, a budget, an API discussion, and an operational dashboard within the same day.
Cross-Functional Orchestration. Skill in aligning Marketing, Product, Engineering, Support, Renewals, Finance, Legal, Sales, and Partnerships leadership around a shared program.
Reporting and Analytics Fluency. Strong command of dashboards, BI tooling, and operational reporting, with the ability to translate partner activity into the metrics and narratives executives need.
Partner Program and Marketplace Reporting Mechanics. Familiarity with how major partner programs operate (Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program, AWS Partner Network, ServiceNow Partner Program, CrowdStrike, etc.). This role should understand marketplace workflows well enough to report on status and outcomes, but does not own marketplace operations.
Integration Fluency. Comfort engaging technically with Partner Architecture, Product, and Engineering on integration lifecycle and supportability topics (APIs, MCP, AI Skills, agentic AI), and familiarity with how integrations flow through the partner program lifecycle from intake to GA to support.
Execution and Accountability. Discipline in managing complex programs with multiple concurrent workstreams and deliverables.
Business Acumen. Understanding of partner economics, program structures, and the operational mechanics of enterprise software go-to-market.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with modern integration paradigms (APIs, MCP, AI Skills, and AI-driven partner solutions) and how they affect partner program operations is preferred.
MBA or advanced degree preferred.

Responsibilities

Own the operational lifecycle of Kiteworks' participation in strategic partner programs, including onboarding into new programs, maintaining membership requirements, tracking tier compliance, renewing memberships on time, and ensuring Kiteworks is in good standing across every program.
Maintain and update partner program documentation, including program guides, FAQs, and benefit structures.
Centralize program communications and ensure Kiteworks has clarity on partner program expectations, milestones, and resources, and that partners have clear visibility into Kiteworks' commitments in return.
Prepare for the future-state Kiteworks partner program by capturing operational requirements now, so the program can be launched and scaled cleanly when it is ready.
Maintain and update the Strategic Partnerships dashboard, keeping the information current. Where there are data gaps or technical issues, work with the BI team to resolve them and ensure data accuracy for reporting.
Own the operational reporting cadence for the Strategic Partnerships team, including bi-weekly, monthly, and quarterly views of integration progress, partner program health, pipeline contribution, and partnership-driven activity.
Translate partner activity into the metrics and narratives the SVP and executive team need to make decisions, partnering with Finance and Product Operations on shared definitions and data sources.
Deliver a consolidated Partner Operations business review to the executive leadership team, covering program health, integration throughput, enablement coverage, membership status, marketplace reporting outputs, and partner satisfaction.
Operationalize the partner integration lifecycle from intake and discovery, through roadmap commitment, development, GA, and post-GA support, in tight partnership with Partner Architecture, so every integration (including API, MCP, AI Skills, and agent-based integrations) has documented artifacts, owners, and status visibility.
Track partner integration milestones across all active integrations and escalate blockers to ensure timely delivery.
Work with Kiteworks Support, Customer Success, and Product Management to ensure every released partner integration has a defined support model, escalation path, and runbook in place before GA.
Coordinate cross-functional triage for partner-impacting issues spanning Kiteworks Engineering, Support, the partner's technical teams, and affected customer accounts.
Partner with Marketing to track partner marketing briefs, deliverables, and timelines, ensuring on-time execution and alignment with each partner pillar's strategic priorities (Technology Partnerships and GSI Partnerships).
Track and manage the overall Strategic Partnerships budget, including marketing spend, training investments, partner program membership fees, certification costs, operational costs, and marketplace-related spend inputs for reporting purposes. Provide regular budget reporting and forecasting to executive leadership and identify opportunities for optimization.
Work closely with the Renewals team to support and track partner renewal processes, ensuring timely engagement, identifying at-risk partners, and maintaining accurate renewal timelines in the CRM and partner management platform.
Partner with Legal on partner program agreements and operational contracting matters, including marketplace-related terms where they affect partner reporting, program status, or commitments; partner with Finance on partnership economics and joint investment cases.
Lead cross-functional efforts to develop and maintain partner training programs covering joint solutions built, APIs, MCP, AI Skills, and emerging integration patterns, coordinating input from Product, Sales, Support, and Marketing, with technical input from Partner Architecture.
Manage the rollout of training materials and certifications to the field, tracking adoption and completion rates.
Track Kiteworks employees' certifications on partner platforms (e.g., AWS, Microsoft, ServiceNow) where required to maintain partner program tier status, anticipating renewals and new requirements ahead of deadlines.
Continuously evaluate training effectiveness and iterate based on partner feedback and performance data.
Anticipate the operational needs of the partnerships business two and three moves ahead, putting processes, tooling, and capacity in place before the team is blocked.
Identify operational risks (program compliance, contract gaps, expiring certifications, marketplace reporting dependencies, integration support readiness) and resolve them proactively.
Design and maintain the operational rhythm of the Strategic Partnerships team, including weekly stand-ups, partner QBR cadence, executive reviews, and the partner-program calendar.
Serve as a senior point of contact for strategic partners, stepping in when their designated Partner leader is unavailable and when issues are not being resolved through normal channels, and triaging inquiries to the appropriate internal teams for resolution.