Business Development Senior Manager, APAC

Job description

At Spotify, we’re passionate about delivering the right audio experience for every moment. We’ve connected hundreds of millions of people to the content they love and built the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service. We operate in more than 180 markets and continue to scale rapidly across APAC. We’re building a world-class business development team and are looking for a multi-talented self-starter with ambition and drive who will help grow Spotify’s Premium distribution partnerships in the APAC region. You will own, negotiate, and scale strategic agreements with partners who can accelerate subscriber and engagement growth. This role will be based in either Singapore or Seoul and you will report to the APAC Director of Business Development. Above all, your work will impact the way the world experiences audio. ### What You'll Do - Identify, structure, negotiate, amend, close, and manage strategic distribution partnerships across APAC that advance Spotify’s growth and long‑term vision. - Develop and refine partner strategies for priority markets in collaboration with the regional lead, carrying out detailed partner analysis and setting priorities and forecasts. - Serve as the primary point of contact for partners, building credibility across all levels—from C‑suite to Marketing to Commercial teams —and owning the full relationship lifecycle. - Analyze existing partnerships to unlock additional value, improve performance, and uncover opportunities for expansion. - Manage internal approvals including interacting with senior internal executives from relevant functions (e.g., Legal, Finance, Accounting, Product). - Drive internal cross‑functional workstreams toward deal objectives, ensuring clarity, alignment, and timely execution. - Manage a pipeline of prospective partnerships and assess commercial impact through disciplined analysis and business case development. - Travel as needed across APAC to strengthen partner relationships and support deal execution. ### Who You Are - You have a minimum of 5+ years of significant business development or strategic partnerships experience within APAC—ideally across telcos, OEMs, payments, entertainment, or digital platforms. - Fluency in English and Korean is required for the role; other additional APAC languages a plus. - You have a proven track record of structuring and closing complex deals with large enterprises and scaling partnerships with measurable commercial impact. - You understand the nuances of APAC markets and bring relevant local insights; deep experience in Korea, Thailand or Indonesia is especially valuable. - You think strategically about complex business issues, yet you’re equally strong in operational execution and relationship ownership. - You excel in multicultural, fast‑moving environments and collaborate effectively across distributed teams. - You have strong experience negotiating contracts, understanding legal frameworks, and partnering effectively with attorneys. - You are comfortable working with product, engineering, and design teams and translate technical concepts to non‑technical team members with ease. - You are analytical, data‑driven, and experienced in financial modelling and constructing clear business cases. - You communicate with clarity and influence, simplifying complexity for senior audiences internally and externally. - You are diligent with strong commercial instincts and the ability to see long‑term value in every opportunity. - You demonstrate initiative, resilience, and the ability to independently drive deals from ideation to launch. - BA/BS degree with outstanding academic performance; MBA a plus. - Experience in using basic AI tools. ### Where You'll Be - This role is based in either Singapore or Seoul, South Korea. - We offer you the flexibility to work where you work best! There will be some in person meetings, but still allows for flexibility to work from home.