Senior Strategic Growth Partner

The Senior Partnership Account Manager role is a strategic position responsible for driving growth and performance of complex and/or strategic partnership accounts. The successful candidate will ensure consistent delivery against account priorities, serving as a technical consultant, business advisor, and implementer of partner-facing business plans and related programs.

This role acts as a catalyst for the partner's vision, bringing an exceptional customer success mindset to delivering appropriate solutions to assigned partner accounts that leverage Water.org's unique value.

1. Build and maintain trust-based, strategic relationships with financial institution partners, ensuring alignment with partners' goals and mission;
2. Facilitate regular engagement and collaboration with partner teams, ensuring clear communication, mutual accountability, and ongoing alignment with partnership objectives;
3. Lead the implementation of partner-facing programs, including onboarding, capacity building, product design, marketing support, and impact tracking;
4. Provide technical guidance and advisory support to partners on inclusive financial products and delivery models, particularly those targeting low-income households for water and sanitation access (or similar impact areas);
5. Ensure timely and effective issue resolution, performance monitoring, and adaptive management of partnership activities;
6. Maintain high-quality data on partner activities, ensuring completeness, accuracy, and timely updates in internal systems and dashboards to inform decision-making;
7. Actively contribute to the expansion of reach by identifying new opportunities within existing partnerships and building strategic relationships with key decision-makers and influencers in the financial services ecosystem;
8. Collaborate with internal teams to craft tailored value propositions for potential partners, drawing from tools, products, research, and success stories;
9. Stay informed on financial sector trends, regulatory developments, and market opportunities that could influence partner priorities or open new avenues for collaboration;
10. Represent at relevant forums, meetings, and industry events to increase visibility and build credibility with potential partners and stakeholders;
11. Monitor partner performance against agreed milestones, including disbursement targets, outreach goals, and impact metrics (e.g., number of households served, portfolio performance);
12. Prepare and deliver regular internal and external reports on partnership status, challenges, lessons learned, and contributions to broader organizational goals;
13. Track and forecast partner-level fund utilization and ensure alignment with grant conditions, donor reporting needs, and impact strategies;
14. Collaborate with M&E and portfolio teams to interpret results, support learning, and inform improvements in partnership strategies and service delivery;
15. Act as a subject matter expert on strategic account management principles, tactics, and partnership/program design;
16. Provide insights and advisory support to strengthen business decision-making and program outcomes;
17. Collaborate with cross-functional workgroups, teams, and committees to drive alignment and shared objectives;

Qualification and Experience:

• Bachelor's degree and/or equivalent required;
• Minimum seven years of experience in microfinance, inclusive finance, or rural banking, preferably with exposure to water, sanitation, or housing loan portfolios;
• Demonstrated experience managing MFI partnerships and large loan portfolios;
• Experience in strategic account management, business development, or credit product innovation in the development finance ecosystem;
• Familiarity with MFI operating models, NBFC-MFI regulatory norms, SHG-based finance, and low-income client engagement;
• Fluency in English and proficiency in Hindi or other regional language preferred;

Skills and Competencies:

• Customer Focus: Builds strong customer relationships and delivers customer-centric solutions;
• Optimizes Work Processes: Knows the most effective and efficient processes to get things done, with a focus on continuous improvement;
• Communicates Effectively: Develops and delivers multi-mode communications that convey a clear understanding of the unique needs of different audiences;
• Values Differences: Recognizes the value that different perspectives and cultures bring to an organization;
• Nimble Learning: Learns through experimentation when tackling new problems, using both successes and failures as learning fodder;

Complex Problem-Solving Skills:

• Ability to manage multiple complex internal and external relationships, requiring application of existing standards and processes related to account management and/or business development;
• Functional knowledge of related industry and/or market segments within the assigned portfolio of accounts in one or more of the following partnership areas: public or private enterprises focusing on water and/or sanitation projects/finance and financial institutions;
• Broad knowledge of programmatic planning and experience appropriately mitigating and/or escalating risks within the assigned accounts;