Partnerships Manager - Startup and VC Ecosystem, DACH

Build and scale Airwallex's venture capital and startup ecosystem motion across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Based in Berlin, you will lead the local VC and startup ecosystem strategy across partnership development, portfolio activation, founder community engagement, and market-facing programmes, acting as the in-market owner who connects ecosystem relationships with pipeline generation and commercial execution.

What you'll do

• Build and execute the DACH VC and startup ecosystem strategy, with a particular focus on accelerating pipeline and revenue growth in Germany.
• Own the planning and execution of regional ecosystem programmes across venture capital partnerships, accelerators, founder communities, portfolio activation, and local market development initiatives.
• Lead the end-to-end development of VC and startup partnerships in DACH, including sourcing, relationship-building, onboarding, joint planning, and activation, ensuring clear commercial goals and measurable pipeline impact.
• Develop and strengthen relationships with key local ecosystems, including investors, platform teams, accelerators, incubators, founder communities, and strategic networks that matter in the DACH market.
• Drive joint go-to-market initiatives with VC partners and ecosystem stakeholders, creating co-branded programmes, events, and referral plays that generate awareness, credibility, and opportunities.
• Partner with regional sales and business leaders to translate commercial priorities into focused ecosystem plans, account support, and market-level growth plays for startup and scale-up audiences.
• Own the regional ecosystem lead journey from referral or engagement through handoff, ensuring tight coordination with sales and strong follow-up processes that maximise conversion from partnership activity.
• Track, analyse, and communicate performance across partner and ecosystem channels, turning insights into clear recommendations and continuous optimisation.

What you'll need

• Significant experience in partnerships, ecosystem development, business development, startup programmes, or related commercial roles in high-growth technology, fintech, SaaS, or adjacent sectors.
• Direct experience working in or closely with the startup ecosystem, for example at a startup, scale-up, venture capital firm, accelerator, incubator, founder platform, or another ecosystem-led organisation.
• Demonstrated success building and executing partnership or ecosystem plans that drive pipeline and commercial outcomes, particularly across venture capital, startup, or community-led motions.
• Strong experience developing relationships and programmes that create measurable commercial outcomes, not just brand visibility.
• Proven ability to work closely with sales and commercial teams to develop joint plans, align on targets, and deliver shared outcomes.
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to interpret channel and funnel performance, build clear narratives from data, and make data-driven decisions.
• Excellent project ownership and execution skills, with the ability to operate as a self-starter in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English; German language capability is a strong advantage for market-facing work in DACH.

Nice to have

• Experience building or scaling a regional ecosystem, partnerships, or startup motion, or serving as an early in-market hire in a new or rapidly growing market.