Channel Partner Manager

Who is Shift?

At Shift, we’re business specialists dedicated to helping Australian SMEs take control of their cashflow, streamline trade terms and choose the right financial products.

We believe Australian businesses are the driving force behind our economy and are core to our communities. That’s why our business expertise, focus on relationships, and market-leading technology is at the core of everything we do. We’ve helped solve the credit and payment pain points for more than 30,000 businesses, providing over $6 billion in aggregate funding.

Our unique approach to product innovation combined with our collaborative culture means you can build your career in a supportive environment. You’ll be joining a diverse team of over 300 people who are always looking to deliver better outcomes for Australian businesses.

Job Overview

The Channel Partner Manager is responsible for executing the channel diversification strategy defined by the Small Business Division to deliver channel growth, activation, and performance outcomes in line with defined targets.

This involves identifying, onboarding, and nurturing relationships that drive meaningful lending volume and developing repeatable, operationally efficient models to support scale. This is a high-ownership role that sits at the intersection of business development, relationship management, and product collaboration.

Main Duties & Responsibilities

Channel strategy execution

Identify target channel segments and priority channels

Translate strategy into:

partner acquisition plans

activation roadmaps

performance targets

Monitor delivery vs plan and escalate gaps

Partner Acquisition & Development

Identify, onboard, and activate new channel partners including lead gen, referral partners and strategic embedded partnership opportunities

Build and manage a pipeline of prospective partners using a disciplined, targeted approach, driven by solving the underlying customer need and alignment to strategic direction

Build clear partner value propositions that demonstrate how Shift solves for the customer need

Develop a repeatable onboarding and activation (GTM) framework

Ensure partners scale through systemised models, not bespoke agreements

Channel Performance & Growth

Drive and report on channel-level performance: volume, conversion, cost of acquisition

Drive continuous improvement in:

partner engagement and productivity

conversion rates

speed to funding

Gather market data and partner feedback to inform solution development and positioning

Broker Channel Optimisation

Partner with Head of Broker and Broker BDM team to convert existing broker aggregator relationships into scalable, digitally-enabled distribution channels

Activate lead gen networks to drive qualified lead volume via digital channels

Skills & Experience required

Proven experience in channel, partnerships, or indirect distribution roles

Good understanding of legal, regulatory and risk requirements which impact commercial constructs

Demonstrated experience exploring the customer problem statement and identifying viable solutions

Experience scaling

Broker or aggregator channels

Partnership or embedded distribution models

Demonstrated experience with embedded finance or API-based product integrations

Experience in financial services, lending, or fintech environments

Self-starter who can manage a pipeline with minimal oversight

Strong commercial structuring and negotiation capability

Ability to design and scale repeatable partner acquisition models

Experience building GTM, onboarding, and activation frameworks

Data-driven decision making and performance optimisation

Strong stakeholder management across commercial and product teams and with external partners

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Key benefits

Collaborative teams – a flat structure means everyone can learn from colleagues and senior leaders around the business.

Be involved – come together with all of your colleagues every 100 days to share the product and technology roadmap and business strategy.

Flexible working environment – we’re headquartered in North Sydney with state-based workplaces and offer a flexible work policy.

Family support – industry leading 26 weeks paid parental leave.

Purpose built spaces within our office – designed for collaboration, brainstorming, socialising, and focused work.

Range of benefits supporting your physical, psychological and financial wellbeing. From a day off on your birthday to excellent end of trip facilities.

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