Partnerships Manager

Plain plain.com Open · verified Sep 14, 2026

Hybrid San Francisco Full-time Manager Channel & Partnerships

Mid-level Channel & Partnerships role at Plain. San Francisco · full-time · $140,000–$180,000 base.

SalaryStated by Plain

$140,000 – $180,000

Base salary for this role, in USD per year, as published in the posting.

Role brief

Growth Roles summary, based on the employer's posting.

What you'll do

Launch Plain’s partnerships function by building an ecosystem that supports upmarket growth and selects strategic allies
Find target companies, build relationships, and negotiate commercial terms for mutually valuable partnerships
Work with Sales to choose partners that can expand revenue and open new markets
Help Product weigh roadmap priorities against the revenue impact of potential features
Sustain existing partner relationships and keep creating value across the ecosystem

What you bring

Bring at least five years of experience in software partnerships
Have helped an early go-to-market team build from scratch between Series A and Series B
Use AI tools comfortably to execute more effectively
Show strong attention to detail and thrive amid ambiguity, fast change, and varied deals
Care about product direction as much as partner relationships

Who this fits

You’ll suit a visible, externally facing role where you create the partnerships function, close individual deals, and build the playbooks as you go. You’ll work in a hybrid San Francisco setup with three office days each week, including in-market partner meetings. This role calls for comfort with early-stage uncertainty and frequent change.

From the employer

I'm Phil, Head of Sales at Plain, and the hiring manager for this role.

Plain is redefining customer support for the next generation of B2B companies. We're building the fastest, most powerful platform to help companies move beyond reactive support and build true customer relationships.

Some of the world's most forward-thinking companies, like Cursor, Ashby, and Sanity, trust Plain to unify all customer interactions, enable faster team collaboration, and supercharge their workflows with AI.

We're a small team with offices in SF and London. This role is hybrid with 3 days a week in our SF office.

Why this role is special

You’ll be the first hire to start up our Partnerships organization. You will be helping to drive focus and priority partnerships across sales and product to help drive product roadmap and sales pipeline.

What you'll do

Build a strategic ecosystem to help drive Plain up market while also determining strategic partnership with like-minded companies.
Develop and build mutually beneficial partnership relationships. Everything from targeting, relationship and negotiating commercial terms with target partner companies
Work with Sales to identify what companies will help drive revenue forward and open up additional markets for us.
Align with Product on what Plain should prioritize to build and what would be the revenue impact of building features.
Maintain relationships of existing partners and how we continue to generate value on an ongoing basis with the entire ecosystem.

This is a great fit if you…

Have 5+ years experience working in software partnerships.
Have been part of an early GTM team (Series A to Series B) and know what “building from scratch” looks like.
Are comfortable using various AI tools to increase your ability to execute.
Are detail-oriented and thrive in a fast-moving environment where no two deals look exactly the same.
Care as much about shaping product as you do about driving partnership relations.
Want to be in office, and being in-market in San Francisco, meeting Partners and learning from peers.

This won't be the right role if you…

Are uncomfortable with ambiguity. We have some really exciting traction but are still at an early stage and are constantly learning and trying new things as our company grows. There is a ton of growth opportunity in a role like this, but right now we need someone who is excited by closing individual deals and helping us to keep up with our growing pipeline.
Prefer to stay in the background, this is a high-visibility role, internally and externally.
Need everything figured out before you can operate confidently. There are no playbooks here yet - this is an opportunity to build them yourself.
Aren't energized by the idea of being the first person in this function at a company that's still being built.