Role Title: Corporate Partnerships Manager (new position)

Reports to:Head of Development

Salary: Commensurate with experience

Terms: Fixed-term 12 Month Contract.

Office: This is an on-site position based out of our office in The Rocks.

Sydney Writers' Festival encourages applications from all backgrounds, communities, and industries, and are committed to having a team that is made up of diverse skills, experiences, and abilities.

About Sydney Writers' Festival

Sydney Writers' Festival is one of the world's leading and most beloved literary institutions. It is a place for readers, writers and thinkers to share ideas, tell stories and celebrate literature.

Since our first Festival in 1997, we have brought thousands of diverse writers and thinkers from Australia and around the globe together in Sydney. In the company of the world's best novelists, poets, journalists, public intellectuals, economists, politicians, podcasters and scientists, we've discussed some of the most pressing issues of our times. We've celebrated prize-winning authors, long-awaited novels from writers at the height of their careers and introduced debut authors to eager and enthusiastic current audiences.

Readers and writers have exchanged thoughts and opinions, perspectives and philosophies, creating a powerful community based on radical dialogue and respectful debate. The drumbeat of questioning that thrums underneath the Festival is powerful and enlivens Australia's democratic tradition.

About this role

We're seeking an experienced Corporate Partnerships Manager to join the Sydney Writers' Festival Development team.

As a not-for-profit organisation, approximately 35% of Sydney Writers' Festival's income is generated through private giving,



philanthropy and corporate partnerships. Building and maintaining strong relationships with corporate supporters is therefore essential to the Festival's ongoing success and long-term sustainability.

Reporting to the Head of Development, the Corporate Partnerships Managerwill lead the cultivation, acquisition and stewardship of both new and existing partnerships. The role is responsible for identifying partnership opportunities, securing strategic sponsorship support, growing revenue, managing key stakeholder relationships and ensuring the successful delivery of partner benefits and contractual obligations.

The successful candidate will be tertiary qualified and have a minimum of five years' experience in corporate partnerships, sponsorship, business development or sales. They will be a confident relationship manager with a proven ability to identify opportunities, secure new business, grow revenue and build long-term partnerships that deliver value for both the Festival and its supporters.

As a core member of the Festival's year-round team, the Corporate Partnerships Managerwill work closely with the Head of Development and the Partnerships & Philanthropy Coordinator to grow corporate support for Sydney Writers' Festival, its annual Festival, and its expanding year-round program of events.

Responsibilities





Reporting to the Head of Development the key responsibilities for this role include:

- Build and maintain Sydney Writers' Festival's portfolio of prospective corporate partners through proactive outreach, networking, referrals and strategic relationship building.
- Identify, research and cultivate organisations with the capacity to provide financial and/or in-kind support.
- Develop tailored partnership proposals that clearly articulate partnership value, impact and alignment with corporate priorities.
- In consultation with the Head of Development, lead prospect engagement, including meetings, presentations, negotiations and senior stakeholder relationship management, to secure mutually beneficial partnership agreements.
- Develop and maintain an annual corporate partnerships pipeline, including prospect identification, cultivation strategies and conversion plans
- Cultivate prospective corporate relationships and convert opportunities into sustainable, long-term partnerships
- Manage day-to-day relationships with corporate, cultural and media partners, ensuring delivery of agreed benefits, high-quality partner experiences and effective stewardship to ensure long term retention.
- Work collaboratively with Programming, Marketing, Production, Ticketing and Finance teams to develop and deliver successful partnership outcomes.
- Responsible for the delivery of corporate partnership revenue targets, contributing to the overall objectives of the Development Strategy and long-term financial sustainability of Sydney Writers’ Festival.
- A minimum of five years' experience in corporate partnerships, sponsorship, business development or sales, ideally within the not-for-profit, arts or cultural se

📌 Corporate Partnerships Manager (Sydney)
🏢 Sydney Writers' Festival
📍 Sydney