Head Of Corporate & Strategic Partnerships at Virgin Active South Africa

Your Purpose...

• Is to “change people’s lives for the better through wellness”;
• We deliver social wellness experiences that enable people to meet their personal wellness goals, through holistic physical, mental nutritional and social wellbeing.
• Lead commercially valuable partnerships that create sustainable member growth, stronger brand relevance and measurable commercial return for Virgin Active.
• The purpose of this role is to own corporate sales growth, strategic partnerships and partnership-linked acquisition opportunities, ensuring Virgin Active moves beyond account signing into deeper account penetration, event activation and conversion of staff, customers and communities into members.
• The role must translate partnerships into measurable commercial outcomes by linking national opportunities to regional execution, club activation and a clear sales playbook.

Your Duties and Responsibilities...

• Develop, implement, and continuously evolve the national Corporate Sales and Strategic Partnerships strategy aligned with Virgin Active’s commercial objectives
• Own the corporate and partnerships growth strategy across acquisition, penetration, activation and commercial value creation.
• Lead and develop the corporate key account management team, ensuring each account has clear targets, pipeline discipline, activation plans and measurable outcomes.
• Convert partnerships into sales opportunities by building propositions for employees, customers, members and communities linked to each partner.
• Own strategic relationships with key partners, sponsors and large accounts, ensuring Virgin Active is positioned as a wellness growth partner rather than only a discounted membership provider.
• Translate national partnership strategies into regional execution through Regional Heads of Sales and Club Operations.
• Work with Marketing, Sponsorship and Brand to build campaigns, webinars, events, digital journeys and partner offers that support acquisition and conversion.
• Drive commercial discipline across the function, including target setting, pipeline tracking, forecast accuracy, activation ROI and partner review cycles.
• Identify and develop new strategic growth opportunities across segments such as banking, medical / wellness schemes, schools, youth, sporting communities and sponsored ecosystems.
• Ensure partner and corporate offers are commercially viable, legally compliant, operationally executable and aligned to retention, yield and member-quality principles.
• Report monthly on corporate and partnership pipeline, account performance, activation results, member movement, revenue and strategic risks / opportunities.

Our Minimum Requirements...

We can’t live without…

• Formal Matric qualification.
• Relevant tertiary qualification in Business, Sales, Marketing, Commerce or a related field.
• 7+ years’ leadership experience in corporate sales, B2B partnerships, account management, sponsorship conversion or a similar commercial role.
• Proven experience managing large accounts and converting relationship value into measurable sales outcomes.
• Strong commercial and negotiation capability, with a good understanding of value exchange, pricing, ROI and partnership economics.
• Proven ability to work cross-functionally across sales, marketing, product, operations and external partners.
• Strong presentation and stakeholder-influencing capability, including senior-level relationship management.
• Highly organised, data-driven and strong in pipeline / forecast management.
• Comfortable with travel where account, region or activation requirements demand it.

Core Interpersonal Skills:

• Emotional Intelligence- proven ability to anticipate the needs of others before they are voiced
• Active Listening- Able to genuinely hear concerns with the ability to defuse tense situations and ensuring members and staff feel heard and valued
• Cultural Awareness and Fluency- understand international norms, etiquette and diverse backgrounds to provide a welcoming environment for our international and VIP members
• Empathy – be able to understand, or and be aware of, someone else’s feelings especially during stressful situations, such as travel delays or billing disputes

Operational & leadership Skills Required:

• Attention to Detail, noticing the small things
• Resilience and Composure, be able to remain calm and optimistic under extreme pressure, during peak or periods or system failures
• Problem solving and conflict resolution – be able to turn challenges into opportunities by thinking and acting quickly to resolve issues before they impact a member’s experience
• Adaptability: be flexible to handle unpredictable shifts in processers, resource changes, last minute VIP guest arrivals, or sudden changes in event plans.
• Relatability – the capacity to connect with diverse stakeholders across all backgrounds
• Situational Awareness – constantly monitoring the environment to identify members who need support or help
• Curiosity- the ability to seek out and transform standard transactions into personalised stories and memorable experiences
• Time Management – the ability to efficiently meet stringent deadlines while maintaining a relaxed and unhurried demeanor for guests.
• Digital Fluency – must be proficient in new age technology and systems

 Closing Date 11 August 2026