Vendor Partnerships Manager
About The Position
As the Vendor Partnerships Manager at Abaka AI, you will own and scale the ecosystem of vendors and data suppliers that power our products and client deliverables. This role sits at the intersection of operations, partnerships, and data strategy. You will be responsible for ensuring we have the right vendors, at the right quality, cost, and capacity, to support both current and future business needs. You’ll work cross-functionally with Data Engineering, Research, Product, GTM, Legal, and Finance to translate data requirements into reliable vendor partnerships. This is a high-impact role with direct ownership over vendor performance, risk, and long-term partner strategy as Abaka AI continues to grow globally.
Requirements
- Experience in vendor management, partnerships, supply chain, operations, or procurement—ideally in tech, data, or AI-adjacent industries
- Experience managing external partners or suppliers across multiple regions and time zones
- Strong negotiation and relationship management skills with the ability to balance cost, quality, and speed
- Ability to work cross-functionally with technical and non-technical stakeholders
- Highly organized, detail-oriented, and comfortable owning ambiguous, evolving problem spaces
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
- Experience operating in fast-paced startup or high-growth environments
- Experience working with data vendors, annotation providers, or AI/ML data pipelines
- Familiarity with contracts, SLAs, and vendor compliance considerations
- Background in operations, program management, or platform partnerships
- Exposure to global vendor ecosystems across Asia, Europe, or LATAM
- Interest in AI, machine learning, and the data infrastructure that powers modern models
Responsibilities
- Own Abaka AI’s end-to-end vendor and data supplier ecosystem, including sourcing, onboarding, relationship management, and performance tracking
- Identify, evaluate, and onboard new data vendors and partners globally to support evolving product, research, and client needs
- Serve as the primary point of contact for all active vendors, ensuring clear communication, alignment on expectations, and timely issue resolution
- Negotiate commercial terms, pricing, SLAs, and contracts in partnership with Legal, Finance, and leadership
- Ensure vendor output meets Abaka AI’s quality, security, compliance, and delivery standards
- Partner closely with Data Engineering, Research, and GTM teams to forecast data needs and align vendor capacity accordingly
- Monitor vendor performance using quantitative and qualitative metrics (quality, cost, speed, reliability) and drive continuous improvement
- Manage vendor risk, redundancy, and contingency planning to ensure resilience of data supply
- Maintain accurate vendor documentation, contracts, and internal knowledge to support scale and audit-readiness
- Contribute to long-term vendor strategy as Abaka AI expands into new modalities, regions, and industries
Benefits
- This role is eligible for equity, as well as a comprehensive benefits package (health, dental, vision, PTO, flexible work schedule).
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
No Education Listed
