Sales & Partnerships Executive

She Means Business is Africa’s first women’s business intelligence ecosystem, connecting ambitious women to the ideas, networks, opportunities, and visibility required to scale. Through editorial platforms, strategic convenings, ecosystem partnerships, and business-focused experiences, SMB is building a trusted platform for women shaping the future of business across Africa.

SMB operates under Fernhill Digital Group, a Nigerian strategic communications and digital transformation company focused on sustainable growth, ecosystem development, and media innovation.

Location: Lagos
Employment Type: Contract

Position Summary

• You will identify revenue opportunities, pitch and close partnership deals, manage sponsor relationships, and help position SMB as a valuable commercial platform for brands seeking access to Africa’s women-in-business ecosystem.
• This role is best suited for a commercially driven professional who understands relationship-led sales, thrives in strategic environments, and is confident engaging senior decision-makers across corporate, institutional, and entrepreneurial sectors.
• The Sales & Partnerships Executive will lead SMB’s commercial growth efforts through sponsorship acquisition, strategic partnerships, advertising sales, and revenue development initiatives.
• This role is focused on monetization and commercial relationship management across SMB’s platforms including events, editorial products, private experiences, newsletters, and ecosystem initiatives.

Key Responsibilities
Sponsorship & Partnership Development:

• Develop partnership proposals, sponsorship decks, and commercial pitch materials tailored to prospective partners
• Maintain active pipelines and consistently drive new business opportunities
• Lead outreach to brands, financial institutions, development organizations, and ecosystem stakeholders
• Identify and secure sponsorship opportunities for SMB events, experiences, editorial products, and ecosystem initiatives
• Negotiate partnership terms, pricing, deliverables, and contract agreements

Commercial Growth & Revenue Generation:

• Drive revenue growth across SMB’s commercial offerings and advertising inventory
• Identify monetization opportunities across newsletters, digital campaigns, publications, and branded experiences
• Track sales performance, partnership renewals, and revenue targets
• Maintain accurate reporting on deal flow, conversions, and commercial outcomes
• Support the development of commercial packages aligned with SMB’s positioning and audience

Event Sponsorship & Brand Integration:

• Coordinate sponsor communication before, during, and after events
• Work closely with internal teams to ensure sponsor visibility and fulfillment across event touchpoints
• Lead sponsor acquisition for SMB roundtables, summits, networking events, and private business experiences
• Develop commercially attractive partnership benefits and activation opportunities

Relationship Management:

• Serve as the primary point of contact for commercial partners and stakeholders
• Ensure high-quality client experience, communication, and post-partnership reporting
• Build and maintain long-term relationships with sponsors, advertisers, and strategic partners
• Identify opportunities for repeat business and long-term collaboration

Strategic Business Development:

• Contribute ideas that strengthen SMB’s positioning within Africa’s business ecosystem
• Support cross-border partnership conversations and ecosystem expansion initiatives
• Identify new commercial opportunities aligned with SMB’s growth strategy
• Represent SMB in meetings, networking engagements, and strategic industry conversations

Required Qualifications
Experience:

• Experience pitching to corporate organizations, brands, or institutional stakeholders
• Experience in media, events, publishing, ecosystem platforms, or business communities is preferred.
• Proven track record of meeting or exceeding revenue targets
• 3–5 years of experience in sales, partnerships, business development, sponsorship acquisition, or advertising sales

Skills:

• Strong negotiation and closing skills
• Strong relationship management and stakeholder engagement skills
• Familiarity with CRM systems and sales tracking tools preferred.
• Strong organizational and reporting skills
• Excellent verbal and written communication abilities
• Ability to manage multiple commercial conversations simultaneously
• Confidence preparing and delivering commercial presentations and proposals

Personal Attributes:

• Commercially driven with strong revenue instincts
• Highly organized with strong follow-through
• Professional, persuasive, and relationship-oriented
• Self-starter who takes initiative and ownership
• Passionate about women-focused ecosystem building and business growth.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, evolving environment
• Confident engaging senior executives and decision-makers

What Makes You Successful Here:

• You Understand Strategic Selling: You know how to position value, not just sell products. You understand how partnerships are built around alignment, visibility, access, and long-term mutual benefit.
• You Execute Reliably: You follow through on commitments, manage timelines effectively, and ensure sponsor expectations are met without constant supervision.
• You are revenue-focused: You are motivated by targets, growth, and measurable outcomes. You actively pursue opportunities and consistently move conversations toward conversion.
• You Thrive in Growth Environments: You are energized by building, experimenting, and helping shape a growing ecosystem from the ground up.
• You Build Trust Quickly: You communicate with confidence and professionalism while making partners feel understood, valued, and respected.
• You Think Beyond Transactions: You understand that strong partnerships extend beyond one-off deals. You nurture relationships that create long-term commercial value for SMB and its partners.

What We Offer

• Opportunity to contribute directly to the growth of a purpose-driven ecosystem.
• Exposure to Africa’s growing women-in-business ecosystem
• Hybrid work arrangement based in Lagos
• Opportunity to work closely with leading brands, founders, institutions, and ecosystem leaders
• Professional growth within a fast-evolving media and business platform
• Competitive salary with performance-based incentives

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should send their applications to: [email protected] using "Application – Sales & Partnerships Executive" as the subject of the email.

Instructions
Interested candidates should submit the following:

• Cover letter highlighting relevant sales, sponsorship, or partnership experience
• Updated CV/resume
• Examples of brands, partnerships, sponsorships, or commercial deals previously managed or secured
• LinkedIn profile or portfolio, if available

Note: Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.