Manager Strategic Partnerships

Company Description Startup Stairs

Startup Stairs is a recognized seed-stage accelerator dedicated toempowering founders and elevating innovations, with a strong focus on India'sinformal sectorsand high-potential grassroots markets. Over the last few years, India's startup and skilling ecosystems have expanded rapidlyyet a large share of entrepreneurs, students, and micro-businesses in Tier 2/3/4 and rural India still struggle to access structured support, credible programs, and scalable business models.

Startup Stairs exists to solve this gap. Weoperateat the intersection ofentrepreneurship, education, skilling, and industry partnerships, enabling founders and local institutions to build sustainable outcomes through mentorship, structured programs, and market linkages.

Our model is built on a simple belief:talent is everywhere, opportunity must be made accessible everywhere. We are building scalable pathways to careers and entrepreneurship by creating strong partnerships and a distribution network that brings education, future skills, and entrepreneurship enablement to districts and underserved markets.

Joining Startup Stairs means joining a mission-first team working on a national-scale platform.It'san opportunity to build institutions, partner networks, and outcome engines that help India achieve its larger goalbecoming theSkill Capital of the World.

About WISH World Incubation & Skill Hub

WISH (World Incubation & Skill Hub) is Startup Stairs flagship initiative designed to deliverAll Education & Entrepreneurship Under One Roofthrough integrated, multi-vertical hubsprimarily inTier 3, Tier 4citiesand rural clusters.

WISH centres are envisioned as modern Career + Entrepreneurship Hubs that aggregate multiple learning and outcome pathways such as:

• Education & skilling programs
• Certifications (industry-recognized / university-linked / IIT-aligned wherefeasible)
• Competitive exam coaching partnerships
• Language training
• AI / GenAI / Data / ML programs
• Robotics & coding programs
• Drone training (where applicable)
• Domestic and international placement pathways
• Startup incubation and entrepreneurship enablement
• Micro-franchise and business kit partnerships for traditional sectors

WISH is not just a training centre. It is adistribution platformwhere multiple partners can deliver programs through a physical network with standardized operations, strong learner acquisition, counselling, delivery support, and outcome management.

The Manager Strategic Partnerships will play a core role in building this partner ecosystem and making WISH centres product-ready with a strong, continuously expanding catalogue.

Role Description

This is a full-time, on-site role based inGurugram. The Manager of Strategic Partnerships willbe responsible forbuilding and managing business relationships,identifyingopportunities for strategic alliances, and developing partnership initiatives to drive growth.

Daily responsibilities will include:

• Identifying and onboarding new partners into the WISH ecosystem
• Managing strategic partner accounts end-to-end
• Aligning partner offerings with WISH centre requirements and field realities
• Tracking partnership performance through KPIs and dashboards
• Coordinating cross-functional execution with internal teams (Operations, Franchise, Product, Finance, Legal, Marketing, Tech/MIS, Centre teams)
• Building a scalable partnership playbook that supports national expansion

This role is abackend enginefor WISH. While franchise teams build centres andenrolllearners, the partnerships team ensures the centres havehigh-quality, market-relevant programs and productsto sell and deliveralong with clear commercials, SOPs, enablement assets, and partner governance.

Role Purpose & Outcomes

We are seeking aManager Strategic Partnerships who will drive onboarding of:

• EdTech companies
• Education brands
• Certification partners
• Coaching networks
• Future-tech training providers
• Entrepreneurship and franchise brands

The end goal is to ensure every WISH Centre has:

1. Ahigh-demand portfoliorelevant to its local market
2. Clear partner commercials and profitability clarity
3. Operational readiness (SOPs, training, support, reporting)
4. A high adoption rate by centres and strong learner outcomes

Key Responsibilities

Partner Identification & Onboarding (EdTech + Education Brands)

You will build and manage a strong partner pipeline across categories and continuously onboard partners that can scale across WISH centres.

Partner categories include:

A) Certifications & Credential Partners

• Industry-recognized certifications, university-linked certifications
• IIT ecosystemaligned programs (wherefeasiblevia authorized partners)
• NSDC/SSC-aligned certifications and assessment partners

B) Coaching & Competitive Exam Partners

• SSC / Banking / Railways / Defence / State exam coaching brands
• JEE / IIT coaching partners (via partner networks)
• UPSC coaching partners (where applicable via partner channels)

C) Language & Employability Partners

• English communication and employability programs
• Foreign language partners (German/Japanese/other languages by demand)
• Interview skills and soft skills programs

D) Future-Tech Education Partners

• AI/GenAI/Data/ML training providers (beginner to advanced tracks)
• Robotics training providers (school-to-college pathways)
• Coding platforms and offline coding academies
• IoT, cybersecurity, AR/VR basic skill providers

E) Drone Training & Allied Partners (where applicable)

• DGCA RPTO / drone training partners
• Drone maintenance/repair ecosystem partners (if part of hub scope)

F) Placement & Outcome Partners

• Domestic placement partners (recruiters/employers/aggregators)
• International placement partners (where compliant and relevant)

G) Entrepreneurship & Micro-Franchise Partners

• Brands offering entrepreneurship pathways for traditional sectors
• Micro-franchise, business kit providers, retail/service franchise models
• Startup incubation partners, mentors, and tool providers

Your responsibilities within onboarding:

• Create partner prospect lists andmaintaina structured pipeline
• Run discovery calls, capability assessment, and fitment evaluation
• Evaluate partner scalability, quality standards, and operational maturity
• Close onboarding with clear commercials, activation plan, and timeline

Partnership Structuring & Commercial Negotiations

You will structure partnerships with clarity on value, scope, commercials, and performance expectations.

Commercial frameworks may include:

• Revenue share (centre vs partner split)
• Licence fee / subscription model
• Per-student fee model
• Referral commissions and lead-sharing
• Royalty structures for branded programs
• Minimumguarantees (where relevant)
• Marketing contributions and co-branding guidelines

Partnerships for Labs & Infrastructure Enablement

WISH centres require practical learning environments. You will support onboarding of lab solution providers and sponsorship partners.

Lab partner categories:You may also support CSR/government/industry sponsorship discussions for:

• AI lab enablement (devices/tools/software bundles)/Robotics kits, maker tools, project kits/Coding lab and proctoring/exam lab setups/Drone lab setups/ Solar /EV

Key Deliverables / Success Metrics

Your performance will be evaluated on:

1. Number of EdTech/brand partners onboarded (monthly/quarterly)
2. Number of partner products activated at WISH centres (live offerings)
3. Partner revenue contribution and margin performance
4. SLA compliance and fulfilment quality (delivery + certification + support)
5. Centre adoption rate and repeat/upsell metrics
6. Speed of onboarding:lead agreement activation timeline
7. Quality and completeness of partner enablement assets (SOPs, catalog, scripts, dashboards)

Qualifications & Experience

Must-have:

• 58 years experience inStrategic Partnerships / Alliances / Business DevelopmentinEdTech, education services, skilling, or training ecosystems
• Proven track record of onboarding and managing partners and enabling multi-location rollout
• Strong documentation and stakeholder management skills
• Ability to work cross-functionally with product, operations, legal, finance, marketing, and sales
• Comfort with performance tracking, metrics, reporting, and partner reviews
• Bachelor's degree required (MBA preferred)

Preferred Skills / Strengths

• Understanding of Tier 2/3/4 education market dynamics and distribution
• Experience with revenue share models, channel partnerships, and partner governance
• Strong operational thinking: SOP design, activation playbooks, service delivery alignment
• Familiarity with NSDC/SSC ecosystem, certifications, or vocational program structuring
• High ownership mindset, hustle, and ability to execute in a scaling environment

Why Join Startup Stairs & WISH

• Build a first-of-its-kindphysical + digital education and entrepreneurship distribution networkacross Bharat
• Work with leading EdTech brands, institutions, and future-tech providers while creating outcomes at scale
• Build national infrastructure that supports India's mission to become theSkill Capital of the World
• Opportunity to create real impact in Tier 3/4 and rural markets by enabling future-tech access locally
• High ownership role with deep ecosystem exposure across partners, centres, and franchise network