Senior Strategic Partnership Manager

Microsoft's Global Skilling organization is responsible for empowering learners around the world through innovative skilling experiences, industry-recognized credentials, and workforce development programs that help individuals and organizations build the skills needed to thrive in a rapidly changing economy.

The Strategic Partnerships team serves as the connective tissue between Microsoft and our external ecosystem, identifying, developing, and scaling partnerships that accelerate learner reach, expand capabilities, drive innovation, and create measurable impact across the Global Skilling portfolio.  We are seeking a Senior Strategic Partnership Manager  to help identify, develop, and manage strategic partnerships that expand Microsoft’s global skilling impact, support learner skill acquisition and validation, and drive meaningful outcomes for the workforce. This role will collaborate across internal teams and external organizations to transform partnership opportunities into scalable programs, measurable results, and long-term business value.

In this role, you will need to apply your capabilities to drive and develop program leadership, stakeholder management, operational rigor, analytical thinking, and a proven ability to move work forward in a complex, cross-functional environment.

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

• Identify, evaluate, and develop strategic partnership opportunities that align to Global Skilling priorities and business objectives.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with internal stakeholders and external partners to drive mutually beneficial outcomes.
• Develop partnership plans, business cases, recommendations, and decision materials that clarify strategic value, investment needs, risks, and expected outcomes.
• Support the end-to-end partnership lifecycle, including discovery, planning, onboarding, execution, governance, performance tracking, and renewal or transition planning.
• Translate strategic priorities into actionable workplans with clear milestones, owners, dependencies, and success measures.
• Coordinate across Product, Content, Marketing, Field, Operations, Finance, Legal, Procurement, and other partner-facing teams to drive alignment and execution.
• Establish and maintain operating rhythms, governance mechanisms, and communications that keep stakeholders informed and enable timely decision-making.
• Track partnership performance, milestones, business impact, and risks; use insights to recommend improvements and guide portfolio decisions.
• Prepare executive-ready updates, briefing materials, meeting summaries, and business review content that clearly communicate progress, decisions, and asks.
• Identify opportunities to improve partnership processes, increase operational efficiency, and scale repeatable approaches across the portfolio.

• Other

  • Embody our culture and values

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent AND 2+ years of experience in learning and development, relevant technical roles, business development, customer success, industry, program/project management, or corporate education
  • OR Master's Degree or equivalent 1+ year(s) of experience in learning and development,  business development, field or sales, customer success, industry, or program/project management, corporate education
  • OR equivalent experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent AND 8+ years experience in learning and development,  business development, field or sales, customer success, industry, or program/project management, corporate education
  • OR Master's Degree or equivalent  AND 6+ year(s) experience in learning and development, relevant technical roles, business development, customer success, industry, program/project management, or corporate education
  • OR equivalent experience.
• Experience managing external relationships, vendors, partner programs, or multi-organization initiatives.
• Experience leading complex, cross-functional initiatives with multiple stakeholders, dependencies, and decision points.
• Experience developing business cases, strategic recommendations, operating plans, or executive-facing communications.
• Effective verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to synthesize complex information into clear, actionable updates.
• Demonstrated ability to operate with accountability, sound judgment, and bias for action in ambiguous environments.
• Experience using data, business insights, or performance measures to inform decisions and track outcomes.

• Strategic thinker with strong business acumen and a practical execution mindset.
• Collaborative relationship builder who creates trust, alignment, and clarity across teams.
• Program leader who can manage details without losing sight of the broader business objective.
• Clear communicator who can influence without authority and tailor messages for different audiences.
• Analytical problem solver with strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Growth mindset with curiosity, resilience, and a passion for continuous improvement.

#E&OJobs, #EOJobs

Integrated Learning & Skilling IC4 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $97,600 - $188,400 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $125,000 - $206,400 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.