Director - Head of Partner Advantage Program

Director - Head of Partner Advantage Program

The Channel Partnership Enablement (CPE) team at Mastercard supports the Services Partnership business by driving the execution, governance, and scalability of global partner enablement activities. This highly visible Director role is central to the success of the recently launched Mastercard Partner Advantage Program, owning end-to-end program execution across partner onboarding, tier management, performance reporting, and compliance. The role partners closely with cross-functional leaders and external partners to drive alignment, manage risk, and deliver a high-quality partnership experience.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee end-to-end program execution:
  Ensure all partnership program deliverables and timelines are met by coordinating across Mastercard's internal teams (Marketing, Systems, Finance), establishing governance frameworks, and managing cross-functional project activities.
• Partner program tiers:
  Evolve and manage tiers based on performance KPIs (identify, measure and track those KPIs); monitor partner compliance with tier requirements, oversee the annual recalibration of tier thresholds, and administer the exception management process to address unique partner circumstances or deviations from standard criteria.
• Manage partner onboarding and integration:
  Lead the onboarding of new partners (such as banks, fintech firms, or merchant partners) into Mastercard's systems and programs, coordinating technical integrations and setup while ensuring partners meet Mastercard's network requirements and standards.
• Ensure compliance and risk management:
  Monitor partner activities for adherence to Mastercard policies, industry regulations, and contractual obligations, working with Legal and Compliance teams to implement controls and address any compliance issues (e.g., data security, regulatory changes) within partnership programs.
• Monitor performance and reporting:
  Track partnership program performance metrics (e.g., transaction volumes, service levels, key KPIs) and prepare regular reports or dashboards (including Quarterly Business Reviews) to update internal stakeholders and executives on program status, achievements, and areas requiring attention.
• Stakeholder communication and coordination:
  Serve as the primary operational liaison for partners, maintaining open communication channels and regular update meetings. Coordinate internally to ensure all stakeholders (including account teams and executives) are aligned and promptly address partner issues or escalations to maintain smooth collaboration.
• Internal process management and improvement:
  Maintain and continuously improve the internal processes, tools, and documentation governing partnership programs. This includes developing standard operating procedures (playbooks, partner guides), defining clear SLAs and workflow efficiencies, and implementing process enhancements that enable scalable and consistent partnership operations.
• Ad-hoc projects and requests: as needed, including rapid response initiatives, executive briefing preparation, cross-functional task force participation, support for strategic partner escalations, and coordination of time-sensitive deliverables across internal teams and external stakeholders.

All About You

• Highly motivated with strong work ethic and ability to act with urgency and flexibility to drive results, especially in an ambiguous environment.
• Great interpersonal and collaborative skills to develop relationships and partnerships with a broad range of individuals throughout the organization.
• Self-starter / motivated to work independently and as an effective team member.
• Confident and comfortable with engaging executives, presenting with conviction.
• Strong intellectual curiosity, out of the box thinker, creative, with strong analytical skills, proficient with data and newly developed and deployed AI tools
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Bachelor's Degree required; MBA preferred.

Mastercard is a merit-based, inclusive, equal opportunity employer that considers applicants without regard to gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disabled or veteran…