About the Role
Trip.com Group is one of the world's leading online travel platforms, connecting hundreds of millions of travellers with partners across accommodation, transport, and experiences. Japan represents one of our most strategically important markets - a mature, high-value travel ecosystem with deeply rooted commercial relationships and significant growth potential in both inbound and outbound travel.
We are seeking a Japan Partnership Lead to own and elevate our partnerships and affiliate strategy across the Japanese market. This is a high-impact strategic leadership role — not a country manager or sales executor position. You will shape the commercial growth agenda for Japan, build and deepen relationships with key local partners, and drive the strategic direction of our partnerships channel in one of the most competitive and nuanced travel markets in the world.
You will work closely with the Senior Marketing Partnerships & Affiliate Director and serve as a key leadership voice for Japan.
Key Responsibilities
Japan Market Commercial Strategy
- Define and execute the Japan partnerships commercial strategy, aligned to Trip.com Group's broader growth priorities and the unique dynamics of the Japanese market.
- Identify, prioritise, and capture high-value commercial opportunities — including strategic partnerships with leading Japanese travel platforms, affiliate networks, media companies, and emerging digital channels.
- Translate global partnerships strategy into locally compelling, culturally attuned market plans that resonate with Japanese business partners and stakeholders.
- Drive revenue growth across Japan's partnerships channel, contributing materially to Trip.com Group's regional financial performance.
Partner Ecosystem Development
- Build and maintain C-suite and senior-level relationships with key Japanese partners — including major travel platforms (e.g. Rakuten Travel, Yahoo! Travel / LINE Yahoo), affiliate networks (e.g. A8.net, ValueCommerce), media houses, airlines, and tourism boards.
- Navigate Japan's relationship-driven business culture to establish trust, credibility, and long-term commercial alignment with strategic partners.
- Identify and develop new partnership models suited to the Japanese market — exploring opportunities in content partnerships, loyalty programmes, co-marketing, and emerging distribution channels.
- Monitor the competitive landscape and evolving partner ecosystem in Japan, ensuring Trip.com Group maintains a differentiated and commercially compelling value proposition.
Leadership & Team Elevation
- Support, coach, and develop the Japan partnership team, elevating their strategic thinking, commercial execution, and partnership management capabilities.
- Challenge and refine market plans, hold the team accountable to performance standards, and raise the quality of commercial decisions.
- Act as a leadership multiplier — scaling the effectiveness of the partnerships organisation through mentorship, knowledge sharing, and capability building.
- Foster a high-performance culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Operational Governance & Execution Quality
- Drive commercial governance, forecasting discipline, and planning rigour within the Japan market.
- Ensure ROI frameworks, commercial governance standards, and performance reporting are applied consistently and transparently.
- Strengthen the planning cadence, ensuring reliable, accurate commercial pipelines and partner performance visibility.
- Coordinate cross-functional initiatives that enhance execution quality and operational efficiency.
Stakeholder & Cross-Functional Alignment
- Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders - including marketing, product, finance, legal, and regional leadership - to ensure Japan partnership priorities are well-represented and resourced.
- Serve as a senior external-facing presence with key strategic partners, representing Trip.com Group at industry events, partner summits, and executive meetings.
- Contribute to cross-functional strategic initiatives that extend the commercial reach and influence of the Partnerships channel across APAC.
Profile Requirements
We are looking for a leader who combines strategic commercial acumen with deep expertise in the Japanese market and a proven ability to navigate its unique business culture. The right candidate will be a hybrid of commercial strategist, partnerships leader, and relationship builder — not a traditional BD or sales profile.
Experience & Background
- 8~10+ years of experience in partnerships, affiliate marketing, commercial strategy, or business development — ideally within travel, e-commerce, or consumer internet.
- Demonstrated track record of driving commercial growth within the Japanese market, with measurable P&L or revenue impact.
- Deep familiarity with Japan's travel and digital ecosystem — including major OTA players, affiliate networks, media partners, and the competitive dynamics shaping the market.
- Experience leading or coaching high-performing teams, with strong capability in developing others and raising commercial standards.
- Exposure to cross-functional, matrixed organisations and the ability to influence at senior levels across markets and functions.
- Prior experience at a global or regional travel platform, Japanese travel company (e.g. JTB, KNT-CT Holdings, Rakuten Travel), or leading digital/affiliate company in Japan is highly desirable.
Language
- Native Japanese - essential for building partner relationships, leading local teams, and operating effectively within the Japanese market.
- Fluent English — required for collaboration with global leadership and cross-market teams.
Skills & Capabilities
- Strategic thinking — ability to see the bigger picture, identify high-leverage opportunities in a complex market, and translate strategy into executable plans.
- Commercial understanding — strong grasp of partnership economics, affiliate models, revenue drivers, and ROI frameworks within the Japanese digital landscape.
- Relationship mastery — exceptional ability to build trust and credibility with senior Japanese business leaders, navigating the nuances of Japanese business culture (consensus-building, long-term relationship orientation, attention to detail).
- Organisational leadership — ability to lead through influence, elevate teams, and drive accountability in a matrixed environment.
- Operational discipline — structured approach to planning, forecasting, and performance governance.
- Stakeholder management — confident communicator at senior and C-suite level, both internally and externally.
- Coaching capability — genuine interest in developing others and raising the commercial capability of the team.
What We Offer
- A strategic leadership role with direct impact on one of Trip.com Group's most important markets.
- Exposure to a global, fast-growing travel platform with opportunities to shape the future of travel partnerships in Japan.
- Competitive compensation package including performance-based incentives.
- A collaborative, high-performance culture that values strategic thinking, initiative, and continuous learning.
- Tokyo-based position with opportunities for regional and global collaboration.
🌏 Asia-Pacific | Ref ID: ST-15279
