Cognition is seeking a Head of Partnerships in Tokyo to build and scale the strategic ecosystem for Devin across the Japanese market. This full-time role suits an experienced commercial leader with deep expertise in navigating complex enterprise environments and driving AI technology adoption in Japan.
Role Overview
As the Head of Partnerships for Japan at Cognition, the professional will report directly to the General Manager and President. The position focuses on establishing a strong market presence in Japan by identifying, structuring, and activating key partnerships with enterprises, system integrators, cloud providers, and government-aligned organizations. The role bridges technical fluency and commercial execution, requiring close collaboration with product, engineering, and global go-to-market teams to drive revenue and ecosystem expansion.
Key Responsibilities
Build and own the partnerships strategy in Japan to identify high-leverage partners across enterprise, system integrator, cloud, and public sector ecosystems.
Source, structure, and close strategic partnership agreements that drive revenue, distribution, and product adoption at scale.
Develop joint go-to-market motions with partners, including co-selling, co-building, and embedded deployment of Devin.
Act as the senior relationship owner for key partners, engaging C-suite executives, innovation leaders, and technical stakeholders.
Navigate complex, multi-layered organizations across Japanese enterprises and government-aligned institutions.
Translate partner and market feedback into actionable product insights for engineering and product teams.
Unlock new market opportunities, industry-specific use cases, and strategic expansion pathways.
Shape Cognition's broader APAC strategy alongside international leadership to ensure alignment with global priorities.
Drive measurable outcomes such as partner-sourced pipeline, revenue contribution, and ecosystem expansion.
Requirements
Proven track record of building and scaling strategic partnerships in Japan within enterprise software, AI, or deep tech environments.
Strong experience working with large enterprises, system integrators, and/or cloud ecosystems in Japan.
Ability to navigate Japanese business culture and decision-making structures with executive-level credibility.
High level of technical fluency to understand and position complex AI and software engineering solutions.
Demonstrated ability to structure and close complex, multi-party commercial agreements.
Ability to thrive in ambiguous, high-growth environments, operating autonomously and moving quickly.
Exceptional stakeholder management skills across local and global teams.
Fluency in both Japanese and English.
Nice to Have
Experience building or scaling a partnerships or alliances function from zero to one in Japan.
Background working with or within top-tier Japanese enterprises, consultancies, or technology providers.
Background in technical roles such as engineering, solutions, or forward-deployed positions before moving into commercial or partnership leadership.
Experience driving co-sell or ecosystem-led growth motions in high-growth SaaS or AI companies.
High ambition, competitiveness, and readiness to thrive in high-intensity, build-mode environments.
Skills and Tools
Strategic partnership management
Enterprise software and AI solution positioning
Cross-functional leadership
Commercial agreement structuring and negotiation
Go-to-market execution
Stakeholder management
Bilingual communication in Japanese and English
About the Company
Cognition is an applied AI lab building end-to-end software agents and is the creator of Devin, the first AI software engineer. The talent-dense team features world-class competitive programmers, former founders, and leaders from cutting-edge AI organizations. Cognition operates as an equal opportunity employer committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities throughout the hiring process.
How to Apply
Interested candidates should visit the official Cognition careers page to submit an application for this opportunity.
