Partnerships Operations Lead

About this position

This is a rare opportunity to play a foundational role in building a platform that transforms how SMEs engage with customers through rewards and loyalty. You’ll be part of a passionate, forward-thinking team, working at the intersection of technology, business, and innovation within a leading financial services ecosystem.

What will you do?

Sanlam Rewards & Loyalty is seeking a highly driven and operationally astute Partnerships Operations Manager to help build the backbone of a pioneering Loyalty Partnership Eco-system and SME Rewards Platform. Reporting directly to the Head of Partnerships, this role is critical in establishing the foundational processes, systems, and governance needed to ensure financial, legal, compliance, and risk management across all partnerships with different sizes of organisations, including SME’s. This is an exciting opportunity for a self-starter who thrives in building operational structures from the ground up and is adept at navigating and activating processes within a multi-layered corporate environment.

What will make you successful in this role?

Develop and implement partner operational infrastructure & processes

Design and implement end-to-end operational processes for finance, compliance, legal, and risk functions related to partner onboarding and lifecycle management.
Establish governance frameworks to ensure full alignment with regulatory and internal policy standards.
Develop and maintain SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) and internal control documentation.

Cross-Functional Execution & Stakeholder Management

Collaborate with legal, finance, compliance, and risk teams to design scalable solutions that support platform growth.
Serve as the operational lead for key partner onboarding initiatives, ensuring seamless integration with internal systems and teams.
Translate strategic direction from the Head of Partnerships and Head of SME Rewards into actionable operational plans.

Risk, Compliance & Legal Oversight

Proactively identify and mitigate operational risks associated with partner interactions, financial transactions, and legal obligations.
Maintain compliance documentation and ensure continuous audit readiness.
Support the negotiation and execution of contracts in coordination with the legal team.

Reporting & Performance Management

Establish operational KPIs and dashboards to monitor partner health, compliance adherence, and process efficiency.
Provide regular updates and insights to leadership on operational performance and risk exposure.

Operational Enablement & Scaling

Design processes that are scalable and suitable for a dynamic and growing partnership ecosystem.
Identify and implement tools or systems to automate and enhance operational workflows.
Drive continuous improvement initiatives to optimize the platform’s backend efficiency.

Qualification & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in business, operations, finance, legal Studies, or related fields.
• 5–8 years of experience in operations, compliance, or legal process development, preferably in a B2B, fintech, or partnership-driven environment. Direct rewards or loyalty experience a bonus.
• Proven experience creating and implementing operational frameworks in fast-paced, cross-functional settings.
• Strong understanding of regulatory compliance, financial controls, and legal processes.

Personal Attributes

• Self-Starter & Problem Solver: Able to operate autonomously and solve complex problems with minimal direction.
• Cross-Functional Communicator: Able to navigate and influence across various departments, levels, and external stakeholders.
• Structured planning: Have a clear, concise and straightforward manner to put plan in place and gain momentum in execution 

Knowledge & Skills

• Process-Driven: Excellent process design and documentation skills; comfortable with ambiguity and building from scratch.
• Execution-Focused: Strong organizational skills with an ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects.
• Analytical Mindset: Data-driven with a strong attention to detail and ability to interpret risk and performance metrics.
• Tech-Savvy: Comfortable with tools for project management, risk tracking, and operational analytics.

Build a successful career with us

We’re all about building strong, lasting relationships with our employees. We know that you have hopes for your future – your career, your personal development and of achieving great things. We pride ourselves in helping  our employees to realise their worth. Through its five business clusters – Sanlam Fintech, Sanlam Life and Savings, Sanlam Investment Group, Sanlam Allianz, Santam, as well as MiWay and the Group Office – the group provides many opportunities for growth and development.

Core Competencies

Turnaround time

The shortlisting process will only start once the application due date has been reached. The time taken to complete this process will depend on how far you progress and the availability of managers. 

Our commitment to transformation