Job Description

Our Why

In New Zealand’s SMB payroll and HR technology market, accountants and accounting firms are the single most influential channel for customer acquisition and retention. They act as trusted advisors to small businesses, directly influencing software decisions. The Partner Marketing Lead exists to drive the engagement with Smartly’s partners by building co-marketing programmes with key accounting firms, producing partner-specific content and enablement materials, running partner events, and designing referral programme marketing that re-activates and grows the partner pipeline. This role operates within Marketing but works in close coordination with the GM Sales & Customer Success to ensure marketing campaigns and sales efforts are aligned.

About the Role (your why)

The Partner Marketing Lead is responsible for designing and executing Smartly’s partner marketing program — building the marketing campaigns, content, events, and referral programme activation that drive partner engagement, enablement, and referral pipeline. This role works specifically with Smartly’s accountant and channel partner network, producing the marketing assets and campaigns that make partners aware of Smartly’s value proposition, confident in recommending Smartly to their clients, and actively engaged in referring new business. The Partner Marketing Lead owns co-marketing campaign execution with key accounting firms, ABM content and collateral for the partner channel, partner enablement materials, partner event support, and referral programme marketing. A critical priority is driving referral volume — designing and executing marketing initiatives that re-engage partners and activate new referral sources. This role sits within the GTM area to ensure partner campaigns are aligned to Smartly’s broader positioning and brand standards, while coordinating closely with the Sales & Customer Success team on campaign timing, target selection, and commercial alignment.

While accountants and accounting firms represent Smartly's primary and most established partner channel, this role is also responsible for identifying, evaluating, and developing new partner channel opportunities that could extend Smartly's market reach beyond the accountant ecosystem. This includes exploring partnerships with resellers, franchise networks, industry associations, HR consultancies, and other intermediaries who serve SMB employers and could introduce Smartly to customer segments that direct and accountant-sourced channels do not efficiently reach.

What you’ll do

At the moment, as Partner Marketing Lead you will be focused on:
• Designing and executing co-marketing campaigns with key accounting firms, including co-branded materials, joint events, and shared promotional campaigns.
• Producing partner-specific ABM content and collateral that builds awareness and drives referrals through Smartly’s partner network.
• Creating enablement materials such as product guides, FAQs, and referral toolkits that give partners the confidence to recommend Datacom’s solutions.
• Planning and delivering partner webinars, roundtables, and certification sessions that educate and engage the partner community.
• Leading referral programme marketing to re-engage dormant partners, activate new channels, and grow referral volume.
• Coordinating closely with Sales and Customer Success to align partner marketing initiatives and support joint go-to-market strategies.
• Exploring and testing new partner channels beyond accounting, including franchise networks, industry associations, HR consultancies, and other SMB intermediaries.

We are a pretty agile company, and are keen to respond to customer, technology and internal stakeholders’ changing requirements — and this can mean we evolve in our roles to meet those needs.

What you’ll bring

Required experience:
• 3–6 years’ experience in partner marketing, channel marketing, or B2B co-marketing within a SaaS or technology environment.
• Demonstrated experience executing co-marketing campaigns and producing partner-specific content and enablement materials.
• Strong written communication skills and experience creating collateral, presentations, and event materials.
• Experience using marketing automation platforms (e.g. HubSpot) for partner communications and campaign tracking.

Nice to have:
• Experience working with professional services partners (accounting firms, advisors, or consultancies).
• Understanding of ABM campaign design and execution.
• Background in event planning and referral programme marketing.
• Tertiary qualification in Marketing, Communications, Business, or a related discipline.