Partnerships Manager

Navient

About The Position

Navient Solutions LLC Navient (Nasdaq: NAVI) helps students and families confidently manage the cost of higher education. We create long-term value for customers and investors through responsible lending, flexible refinancing, trusted servicing oversight, and decades of portfolio management expertise. Our employees thrive in a culture of belonging, where they are supported and proud to deliver meaningful outcomes. The Partnerships Manager will lead our partnership strategy—managing existing relationships while identifying and onboarding new partners to support our evolving priorities. This role is all about collaboration and impact: you’ll work cross-functionally with Product, Legal, and Engineering to create efficiencies and ensure initiatives are cohesive across the marketing team. You’ll own end-to-end execution of partnerships that drive business growth, negotiate agreements, and push partners to meet monthly, quarterly, and annual targets. The ideal candidate is a strategic thinker and expert negotiator who thrives in a fast-paced environment, can juggle multiple projects, and delivers meaningful insights through performance measurement and reporting. If you’re a relationship builder with a knack for problem-solving and driving results, we’d love to hear from you!

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree Business/Finance/Marketing/Operations.
5+ years of experience in account management, or marketing.
2+ years of experience in Partnerships or Business Development, ideally within financial services—preferably in lending, with a strong preference for student loan expertise.
Deep expertise in user growth strategies and partnership models, with a strong understanding of how to drive business expansion through strategic collaborations.
Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to deliver clear, professional presentations and recommendations to executive-level audiences.
Strong interpersonal and client relationship management, with a proven ability to build trust and maintain credibility with senior stakeholders.
Advanced problem-solving and adaptability, including the ability to analyze complex issues, make sound decisions quickly, and thrive in dynamic, changing environments.
Experience implementing marketing automation best practices across email, landing pages, and campaign infrastructure.
Prior success working cross-functionally with Product, Legal, and Engineering teams to drive partnership initiatives forward.
Strong presentation development skills with the ability to tailor messaging for executive audiences.
Background in a high-growth, fast-paced environment within fintech or related industries.
Additional equivalent education above the required minimum substitute for level of experience.

Responsibilities

Strategic Partnership Building and Retention Able to successfully manage a program or channel (multiple campaigns) from end to end, setting and executing a strategy.
Oversee and grow strategic partnerships to drive key business goals for the Student Loan Originations product.
Identify, evaluate, and analyze new partnership opportunities – both traditional and non-traditional that align with Earnest/Navient’s strategic goals.
Negotiate and structure deals that meet internal efficiency metrics and performance standards.
Define and measure the long-term vision and success of partnerships, including setting clear goals and reporting on progress.
Collaborate cross-functionally with Marketing, Product, Engineering, Legal, and Client teams to ensure seamless partner onboarding and retention.
Drive revenue growth opportunities with existing partners through conversion optimization and marketing collaboration.
Demonstrates complex problem-solving by developing solutions for large-scale challenges and growth barriers.
Proactively scouting for new markets, potential partners, and opportunities.
Has competitive awareness and stays ahead of industry trends and competitor activity.
Lead cross-departmental projects aligned with corporate objectives, managing multiple priorities while delivering high-quality results.
Continually assess and improve operational systems and processes, proactively identifying and implementing process improvements.
Project and Compliance Management Constructively challenge current practices, identifies trends affecting the business and articulates implications to upper management.
Actively participates in discussions to resolve issues and/or implement new processes.
Plan and lead cross-departmental initiatives in support of division and corporate business objectives.
Handle multiple priorities while producing high-quality results.
Regularly seek out knowledge and insights to improve and evolve work products and processes.
Ensures that all operational systems are continually evaluated.
Continually investigates and introduces process improvement measures and presents suggestions to the executive team for consideration.