Director - ISV Partnerships

Organizations everywhere struggle under the crushing costs and complexities of “solutions” that promise to simplify their lives. To create a better experience for their customers and employees. To help them grow. Software is a choice that can make or break a business. Create better or worse experiences. Propel or throttle growth. Business software has become a blocker instead of ways to get work done. 

There’s another option. Freshworks. With a fresh vision for how the world works.

At Freshworks, we build uncomplicated service software that delivers exceptional customer and employee experiences. Our enterprise-grade solutions are powerful, yet easy to use, and quick to deliver results. Our people-first approach to AI eliminates friction, making employees more effective and organizations more productive. Over 72,000 companies, including Bridgestone, New Balance, Nucor, S&P Global, and Sony Music, trust Freshworks’ customer experience (CX) and employee experience (EX) software to fuel customer loyalty and service efficiency. And, over 4,500 Freshworks employees make this possible, all around the world. 

Fresh vision. Real impact. Come build it with us.

About the Role:

We’re seeking a strategic, entrepreneurial Director of Strategic Business Development to join our ISV Partnerships team. In this high-impact role, you will lead the development and execution of our technology partner strategy, with a focus on identifying, shaping, and closing transformative ISV partnerships that accelerate product innovation, GTM expansion, and long-term revenue growth.

You will drive strategic planning and business development efforts across our partner ecosystem, own the end-to-end partnership lifecycle, and work cross-functionally to launch scalable, high-impact partner initiatives. This is a unique opportunity to combine corporate strategy, business development, and deal execution within a fast-paced SaaS environment.

What You’ll Do:

• Lead strategic business development initiatives across the ISV partner ecosystem, targeting key categories (AI, automation, cloud, collaboration, etc.)
   
• Define and execute a multi-year ISV partner strategy aligned with product and go-to-market priorities
   
• Source and manage a pipeline of high-value ISV partnership opportunities
   
• Own the full deal lifecycle: identification, qualification, proposal development, executive alignment, negotiation, and close
   
• Lead strategic deal structuring and commercial negotiations, including integration, co-sell, OEM, and joint solutions
   
• Develop strategic business cases to support new partner investments and quantify impact on revenue, product differentiation, and customer value
   
• Conduct market analysis, competitive benchmarking, and whitespace mapping to inform partner prioritization and ecosystem design
   
• Drive partner planning cycles and influence internal stakeholders through strategic frameworks and ROI-driven proposals
   
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Product, Sales, Marketing, and Customer Success to launch and operationalize joint solutions
   
• Build scalable onboarding, enablement, and performance tracking frameworks for ISV partners
   
• Define success metrics and report regularly to executive leadership on ecosystem health and partnership impact

• 10+ years of experience in Strategic Business Development, Partnerships, Corporate Strategy, or Corporate Development within high-growth B2B SaaS
   
• Proven success sourcing and closing complex strategic partnerships with ISVs, OEMs, or enterprise tech providers
   
• Deep understanding of joint GTM planning, co-sell motions, and ecosystem-driven growth strategies
   
• Strong financial modeling and strategic planning capabilities; comfortable building business cases and framing ROI
   
• Experience in navigating executive-level stakeholder alignment and influencing cross-functional teams
   
• Strategic thinker with strong business acumen, analytical rigor, and disciplined execution
   
• Excellent communication and relationship management skills
   
• Bachelor’s degree required; MBA or experience in management consulting, investment banking, or corporate strategy preferred
   
• Must be able to work in-office at least 3 days per week
   
• Willingness to travel up to 25%, including international travel as needed

Bonus Points for: 

• Experience with Microsoft, AWS, Salesforce, Atlassian, or ServiceNow partner ecosystems
   
• Familiarity with cloud marketplaces and transactable partner models (e.g., Azure, AWS, AppExchange)
   
• Domain expertise in ITSM, Customer Support, or Workflow Automation software

The annual base salary range for this position is $207,000 — $297,000 USD.

Compensation is based on a variety of factors including but not limited to location, experience, job-related skills, and level. Bonus/equity may be available.

Freshworks offers multiple options for dental, medical, vision, disability and life insurances. Equity + ESPP, flexible PTO, flexible spending, commuter benefits and wellness benefits are also offered. Freshworks also offers adoption and parental leave benefits.

At Freshworks, we are creating a global workplace that enables everyone to find their true potential, purpose, and passion irrespective of their background, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion and ethnicity. We are committed to providing equal opportunity for all and believe that diversity in the workplace creates a more vibrant, richer work environment that advances the goals of our employees, communities and the business.