Head of ISV Partnerships

Located from Either our Milton Keynes or London Office

Join Viva.com UK as our Head of ISV Partnerships and turn high-impact technology driven merchant acquiring partnerships into measurable revenue growth. If you thrive on building senior ISV relationships, building a high-performing sales team, and shaping a strategy that scales—this is your chance to own the UK ISV ecosystem end-to-end, from deal negotiation to long-term partner success, in a fast-moving fintech environment.

Why viva.com

Viva.com is Europe’s first acquirer powering merchant payments acceptance across 24 countries and over 1,215 devices. In the UK, Viva.com operates as an E-Money Institution authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), offering an omnichannel payments platform that empowers businesses of all sizes to accept and manage payments — in-store, online, or on the go. 

Viva.com leads in Tap on Any Device technology, offers a high-conversion Smart Checkout for online payments, and provides a robust marketplace solution, enabling flexible, scalable, and future-proof payment journeys tailored to every business model. All technology is built in-house on Microsoft Azure, ensuring speed, security, and innovation at scale. 

Through its direct connections to local payment schemes and alternative payment methods, Viva.com supports 40+ payment options. Key features include Real-Time Settlement, Offline Payments, acceptance fees as low as 0% with the use of Viva.com’s business debit card, and Merchant Advance. 

With a growing ecosystem of 450+ tech partner-innovators, Viva.com is leading the shift to All-in-One business solutions, empowering merchants to adopt cutting-edge technology seamlessly and scale their business with ease. 

About the role:

The Head of ISV Partnerships leads Viva.com UK’s ISV sales function, driving growth through partnerships with Independent Software Vendors and technology partners. The role is accountable for delivering sales performance via the ISV Sales Managers and Account Manager, ensuring partnerships are structured, nurtured, and optimised to achieve long-term revenue growth.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead and manage the ISV Sales team, ensuring clear objectives and delivery of targets
• Develop and execute UK ISV partnership strategy, aligned with company objectives and Group priorities
• Build and maintain senior relationships with ISV partners to drive business growth
• Support team members in identifying, negotiating, and closing partnership opportunities
• Provide senior-level engagement in critical client discussions and escalations
• Monitor ISV sales pipelines and performance, reporting to the CEO on progress and outcomes
• Ensure effective coaching, mentoring, and professional development of ISV Sales Managers and Account Manager
• Recruit and develop ISV sales talent as the function expands
• Collaborate with internal functions (Operations, Marketing, Compliance) to ensure smooth partner onboarding and performance
• Promote innovation, continuous improvement, and best practice within ISV sales
• Actively identify, explore, and adopt opportunities to use AI tools and automation within the role, ensuring they are applied responsibly, ethically, and in line with company policy and local employment regulations
• Any other reasonable duties in line with the overall purpose of the role

Requirements

Experience & Qualifications:

• Significant experience in technology partnerships, channel sales, or ISV relationship management

• Proven success in delivering sales through ISV or partner ecosystems
• Strong leadership skills with experience managing high-performing teams
• Excellent commercial acumen and negotiation skills
• Knowledge of payments, fintech, or SaaS sector highly desirable
• Strong stakeholder engagement and relationship management skills

Personal Attributes:

• Strategic thinker with commercial drive
• Collaborative and influential leader
• Customer and partner-focused mindset
• Results-oriented and accountable
• Innovative and adaptable in a fast-changing fintech environment
• Integrity and professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Communication & Collaboration
• Leadership
• Stakeholder Management & Influence
• Agility & Adaptability
• Innovation & Continuous Improvement
• Accountability & Results Orientation
• Problem Solving
• Analytical Thinking
• Regulatory & Professional Understanding

Benefits

• Monthly paid bonus scheme

• Private medical health insurance
• Pension
• 25 days holiday
• Office gym (Milton Keynes office only)
• Free fruit bowls, Beverages,
• Free Breakfast Cereals (London office only)
• We work in an open, transparent working environment that actively promotes ingenuity and team work
• You will be fully trained and continuously supported
• Working in an international fin-tech company with a large cultural diversity
• A fast paced and high energy environment
• Collaborating with motivated and dynamic colleagues
• Work with the latest in payments acquiring technology
• Opportunity to grow progressively in your domain