Partnership Manager -Merchant Partnerships & Loyalty

Project Overview Requirement description: Our client, a Global Payments Firm, is currently carrying out a project for a leading bank in Qatar. To support with this, our client is looking to onboard a Partnership Manager Merchant Partnerships & Loyalty to join their team. This individual will be required to support the bank s Loyalty and Cards function by accelerating merchant ecosystem expansion and developing commercially impactful cardholder offers. They will manage the end-to-end merchant partnership lifecycle, including sourcing, onboarding, relationship management, offer design, commercial negotiation, performance analysis, and ongoing optimisation. Roles and Responsibilitites: • Merchant Acquisition & Onboarding (~35%) -Source, evaluate, and onboard new merchant partners across retail, dining, travel, e-commerce, and lifestyle sectors, ensuring alignment with the client's card portfolio strategy and customer segmentation. • Relationship Management (~25%) -Serve as the primary point of contact for existing merchant partners; conduct regular business reviews, resolve issues proactively, and identify upsell and cross-sell opportunities to deepen partnerships. • Offer Design & Commercial Negotiation (~20%) -Design, negotiate, and optimise merchant-funded offers, cashback structures, and loyalty rewards that drive cardholder engagement and measurable spend uplift. • Market Intelligence & Competitive Benchmarking (~10%) -Monitor competitor loyalty programmes, emerging merchant categories, and regional consumer trends across the Qatar and broader GCC to inform partnership strategy. • Cross-Functional Coordination (~10%) -Collaborate with product, marketing, digital, risk, and compliance teams to ensure seamless offer execution, regulatory alignment, and go-to-market delivery. • Identify, negotiate, and onboard new merchant partners across diverse sectors (retail, F&B, travel, entertainment, e-commerce), ensuring each partnership aligns with the client's strategic objectives and target cardholder segments. • Build and maintain strong, long-term relationships with existing merchant partners -acting as their trusted point of contact, driving satisfaction, retention, and incremental commercial value through regular performance reviews. • Design, implement, and optimise loyalty offers and merchant-funded promotions, leveraging data-driven insights to create compelling value propositions that increase cardholder engagement, activation, and spend. • Lead commercial negotiations with merchants to secure favourable terms (revenue-share, exclusivity, co-funding), ensuring compliance with Bank regulations, card scheme rules, and internal risk policies. • Track and analyse the performance of merchant partnerships and loyalty initiatives against defined KPIs, producing regular reporting with actionable recommendations to refine strategy and maximise ROI. • Conduct market research to identify emerging trends, new merchant categories, and competitive offerings within the Qatar and broader GCC -translating insights into a prioritised partnership pipeline. • Collaborate cross-functionally with product, marketing, digital channels, CRM, and compliance teams to ensure end-to-end execution of partnership initiatives, from offer design through campaign delivery and post-campaign analysis. KPIs : • New Merchant Partners Onboarded -Number of new partners activated per quarter • Offer Redemption Rate % of cardholder base engaging with merchant offers • Incremental Card Spend Uplift % spend increase attributable to merchant-driven offers vs. baseline • Partner Retention / Renewal Rate % of merchant partnerships renewed at contract end • % of merchant partnerships renewed at contract end • Average days from partner agreement to offer going live • Cardholder Engagement Score Composite metric: offer views, redemptions, repeat usage Knowledge & Experience : • 5 8 years in partnership management, merchant acquisition, or loyalty program management within banking, payments, or fintech • Merchant acquisition, partnership management, or business development within card issuing, acquiring, or payments • Loyalty programme design, management, and optimisation (points-based, cashback, merchant-funded offers, coalition models) • Understanding of interchange economics, scheme rules, and merchant-funded offer mechanics • Banking, payments, fintech, or card scheme environment • CRM platforms (Salesforce, HubSpot, or equivalent) for pipeline and relationship tracking • Loyalty management platforms (e.g., Comarch, Collinson, Giift, Novus Loyalty, or similar) • Campaign management and offer publishing tools • Data analytics and reporting tools (Excel advanced, Tableau, Power BI, or equivalent) • Familiarity with digital channels (mobile banking apps, e-wallets) for offer distribution • Excellent negotiation, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills • Strong analytical and data-driven decision-making capabilities • Ability to manage multiple partner relationships and competing priorities simultaneously • Stakeholder management across senior internal and external contacts • Commercially minded with an ability to balance strategic vision and tactical execution • Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Finance, or related field; MBA is a plus • Arabic language skills (preferred, not required -broadens merchant engagement reach in Qatar/GCC) • Certifications: Certified Loyalty Marketing Professional (CLMP) or equivalent (nice to have) • Experience with A/B testing or Test & Learn methodologies for offer optimisation Mandatory Skills : • Previous experience within banking, cards & payments, or fintech -non-negotiable for understanding scheme dynamics, interchange, and cardholder value proposition design • Proven merchant acquisition and partnership management track record -must demonstrate experience sourcing, negotiating, and managing commercial partnerships • Strong analytical capability -ability to interpret performance data, identify trends, and translate into actionable partnership strategies • Professional English fluency -required for all internal and external stakeholder communication Immediately available or on short notice period. This is an 18-month contractual role based in Doha, Qatar. The ideal candidate will have 5 8 years of experience in partnership management, merchant acquisition, or loyalty programme management within banking, payments, or fintech, with a proven ability to secure and manage commercial merchant partnerships. Roles and Responsibilitites : • Merchant Acquisition & Onboarding (~35%) -Source, evaluate, and onboard new merchant partners across retail, dining, travel, e-commerce, and lifestyle sectors, ensuring alignment with the client's card portfolio strategy and customer segmentation. • Relationship Management (~25%) -Serve as the primary point of contact for existing merchant partners; conduct regular business reviews, resolve issues proactively, and identify upsell and cross-sell opportunities to deepen partnerships. • Offer Design & Commercial Negotiation (~20%) -Design, negotiate, and optimise merchant-funded offers, cashback structures, and loyalty rewards that drive cardholder engagement and measurable spend uplift. • Market Intelligence & Competitive Benchmarking (~10%) -Monitor competitor loyalty programmes, emerging merchant categories, and regional consumer trends across the Qatar and broader GCC to inform partnership strategy. • Cross-Functional Coordination (~10%) -Collaborate with product, marketing, digital, risk, and compliance teams to ensure seamless offer execution, regulatory alignment, and go-to-market delivery. • Identify, negotiate, and onboard new merchant partners across diverse sectors (retail, F&B, travel, entertainment, e-commerce), ensuring each partnership aligns with the client's strategic objectives and target cardholder segments. • Build and maintain strong, long-term relationships with existing merchant partners -acting as their trusted point of contact, driving satisfaction, retention, and incremental commercial value through regular performance reviews. • Design, implement, and optimise loyalty offers and merchant-funded promotions, leveraging data-driven insights to create compelling value propositions that increase cardholder engagement, activation, and spend. • Lead commercial negotiations with merchants to secure favourable terms (revenue-share, exclusivity, co-funding), ensuring compliance with Bank regulations, card scheme rules, and internal risk policies. • Track and analyse the performance of merchant partnerships and loyalty initiatives against defined KPIs, producing regular reporting with actionable recommendations to refine strategy and maximise ROI. • Conduct market research to identify emerging trends, new merchant categories, and competitive offerings within the Qatar and broader GCC -translating insights into a prioritised partnership pipeline. • Collaborate cross-functionally with product, marketing, digital channels, CRM, and compliance teams to ensure end-to-end execution of partnership initiatives, from offer design through campaign delivery and post-campaign analysis. KPIs : • New Merchant Partners Onboarded -Number of new partners activated per quarter • Offer Redemption Rate % of cardholder base engaging with merchant offers • Incremental Card Spend Uplift % spend increase attributable to merchant-driven offers vs. baseline • Partner Retention / Renewal Rate % of merchant partnerships renewed at contract end • % of merchant partnerships renewed at contract end • Average days from partner agreement to offer going live • Cardholder Engagement Score Composite metric: offer views, redemptions, repeat usage Knowledge & Experience : • 5 8 years in partnership management, merchant acquisition, or loyalty program management within banking, payments, or fintech • Merchant acquisition, partnership management, or business development within card issuing, acquiring, or payments • Loyalty programme design, management, and optimisation (points-based, cashback, merchant-funded offers, coalition models) • Understanding of interchange economics, scheme rules, and merchant-funded offer mechanics • Banking, payments, fintech, or card scheme environment • CRM platforms (Salesforce, HubSpot, or equivalent) for pipeline and relationship tracking • Loyalty management platforms (e.g., Comarch, Collinson, Giift, Novus Loyalty, or similar) • Campaign management and offer publishing tools • Data analytics and reporting tools (Excel advanced, Tableau, Power BI, or equivalent) • Familiarity with digital channels (mobile banking apps, e-wallets) for offer distribution • Excellent negotiation, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills • Strong analytical and data-driven decision-making capabilities • Ability to manage multiple partner relationships and competing priorities simultaneously • Stakeholder management across senior internal and external contacts • Commercially minded with an ability to balance strategic vision and tactical execution • Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Finance, or related field; MBA is a plus • Arabic language skills (preferred, not required -broadens merchant engagement reach in Qatar/GCC) • Certifications: Certified Loyalty Marketing Professional (CLMP) or equivalent (nice to have) • Experience with A/B testing or Test & Learn methodologies for offer optimisation Mandatory Skills : • Previous experience within banking, cards & payments, or fintech -non-negotiable for understanding scheme dynamics, interchange, and cardholder value proposition design • Proven merchant acquisition and partnership management track record -must demonstrate experience sourcing, negotiating, and managing commercial partnerships • Strong analytical capability -ability to interpret performance data, identify trends, and translate into actionable partnership strategies • Professional English fluency -required for all internal and external stakeholder communication Immediately available or on short notice period. This is an 18-month contractual role based in Doha, Qatar.