Head of Partnership Management — Fairtrade Belgium

Welcome

Thank you for your interest in the Head of Partnership Management position at Fairtrade Belgium.

For this recruitment, Fairtrade Belgium has chosen to partner with Generations Recruitment to create a selection process that is transparent, fair and, above all, gives every candidate the opportunity to show more than what can be captured in a CV.

Generations Recruitment is a Belgian recruitment company with more than 15 years of experience, specialising in Sales & Marketing talent. Our approach is simple: we want to understand not only what you have done, but also how you think, what drives you and the impact you can bring to an organisation.

This application will take approximately 15 minutes to complete. It is intentionally a little more detailed than a traditional application, as it helps us build a more complete picture of your experience and ensures that every candidate starts the process on the same basis.

Rather than asking you to write a traditional motivation letter, we invite you to answer three targeted questions connected to the key challenges of the role. There are no "perfect" answers. We are interested in concrete examples from your own experience, the choices you made and the results you achieved.

Take the time you need to tell us your story. We look forward to discovering what you could bring to Fairtrade Belgium.

Good luck and thank you for the time you are investing in your application.

— The Generations Recruitment team

About the role

Head of Partnership Management

Every year, Belgian consumers buy over €350 million worth of Fairtrade-labelled products. Bananas and cocoa alone each represent roughly one-fifth of their respective categories. Behind every purchase are farmers and workers in Africa, Asia and Latin America receiving a fairer deal. Fairtrade Belgium is looking for a Head of Partnership Management to help grow this impact.

Your role

As Head of Partnership Management, you will be responsible for Fairtrade Belgium's full PUSH strategy: encouraging retailers, brands, food-service companies and other value-chain partners to offer, sell and use more Fairtrade products. It is your ambition to position Fairtrade Belgium as a 360° supply-chain partner. Our partnerships range from Fairtrade licensing and on-pack labelling to strategic guidance on living income, traceability and supply-chain risks. We also connect companies with farmer organisations and develop supply chain projects in origin countries.

You will lead a team of professionals and combine strategic leadership with hands-on business development. As a member of the Management Team, you will contribute to the overall strategy and organisational development of Fairtrade Belgium.

Your key responsibilities

1. Strategy and market development
You define and implement Fairtrade Belgium's partnership and market development strategy, taking ownership of the organisation's full PUSH agenda. You translate our strategic ambitions into clear priorities, account management plans, objectives and KPIs, with a strong focus on strategic companies, priority commodities and long-term market growth.

2. Team integration and leadership
You help the integration of the current Sales and Offer to Business teams to one coherent and high-performing Business Partnerships team. You lead, inspire and coach your team, create a shared culture and way of working, and ensure clarity around roles, priorities and responsibilities. You help team members strengthen their commercial and partnership expertise.

3. Business development and strategic partnerships
You drive the acquisition, retention and growth of strategic partners across retail, brands, food service and other relevant sectors. While the team manages the day-to-day partner relationships, you personally lead selected high-potential opportunities and build trusted relationships with senior decision-makers. You introduce a focused key-account approach and strengthen the quality and consistency of business development.

4. Partner journey and value proposition
You position Fairtrade Belgium as a 360° supply-chain partner, offering companies a coherent journey from Fairtrade licensing and on-pack labelling to more advanced collaboration. This includes support on topics such as living income, living wages, due diligence, traceability and supply-chain risks, as well as selected projects that connect companies with producer organisations.

5. Programme and project leadership
You oversee the business-related components of our donor programmes (such as the EU LIFE-programme and EC DEAR) and ensure that they contribute directly to our partnership and market objectives. You connect subsidised projects with the needs of companies, our broader Fairtrade expertise and opportunities to create measurable impact for farmers and workers.

6. Performance and cross-organisational collaboration
You monitor commercial and impact performance and contribute to budgeting, forecasting and data-driven decision-making. You work closely with Communication, Advocacy, Licensing and Finance to provide partners with a consistent, high-quality experience. As a member of the Management Team, you also contribute to the strategic development and effective functioning of Fairtrade Belgium.

What you bring

• Significant experience in strategic partnerships, business development and/or commercial leadership.
• Proven experience in leading, coaching and developing a team.
• The ability to build trusted relationships with senior decision-makers.
• A strong commercial mindset combined with a genuine commitment to social and environmental impact.
• The ability to translate complex sustainability challenges into clear value propositions and practical solutions.
• Experience in FMCG, retail, food service, responsible sourcing or sustainability is a strong advantage.
• Confidence working with targets, forecasts, data and CRM systems.
• Professional fluency in Dutch, French and English.
• An entrepreneurial, collaborative and resilient mindset.

What success should look like after 6 months

Building on the strategic direction already in place, you have contributed your own insights and translated the strategy into a clear, actionable plan for the next two years, with defined priorities, ownership and measurable commercial objectives.

You have also created renewed momentum in sales by identifying and actively pursuing concrete growth opportunities. In our small organisation, you have shown that you can move quickly, delegate effectively and step in hands-on where needed.

After six months, you have developed the 360° business approach, bringing the two teams of Sales and Offer to Business together around shared priorities and a common way of working.

What we offer

A meaningful leadership position in a purpose-driven organisation, with substantial autonomy and the opportunity to shape the future of Fairtrade in Belgium. You will join a committed and caring team in Brussels, connected to a broad international network, with hybrid working possibilities and an attractive package of benefits.

How this application works

The application takes approximately 15 minutes to complete and includes your personal details, CV and three targeted questions instead of a traditional motivation letter.

Every applicant will receive a response to acknowledge your submission has been received. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

The process counts 4 rounds of interviews: 1 x Generations, 3 x Fairtrade.

Before starting your application, please note some important & non-negotiable elements:

• It is a full-time job under a long-term contract.
• Setting is in Brussels with hybrid presence: 2 days on-site (Tuesday & Thursday) per week + 2 Mondays per month.
• Salary bracket is linked to years of experience and bonded in accordance with Fairtrade Belgium's official and transparent salary grid. As examples: 10 years of experience = €4,857.06 gross/month + benefits; 20 years of experience = €5,745.24 gross/month + benefits; 30 years of experience = €6,633.41 gross/month + benefits + 20 (+12 ADV) holidays.
• Benefits include hospitalisation and group insurance, meal vouchers (€7), net allowances (€150), phone costs (€20), eco-cheques (€250/year) and an end-of-year bonus.
• You will work in a fully trilingual environment (French / Dutch / English), within a broad international Fairtrade network. Fluency in Dutch, French and English is a must.

If you cannot commit to the above — please do not apply.

Personal details

Surname *

First name *

E-mail *

Phone number *

City of residence *

LinkedIn profile URL *

Upload your CV

Your CV (PDF) *

PDF only, up to 10 MB. Your CV is stored securely and shared only with the people involved in this recruitment.

Language skills

Fairtrade Belgium works in French, Dutch and English. Common European Framework: A1/A2 Basic, B1/B2 Independent, C1/C2 Proficient.

Language	Understanding	Speaking	Writing

Eligibility — location & right to work

The role is based in Brussels (hybrid). Candidates must be based in Belgium or willing to relocate at their own expense, and must hold a valid right to work in Belgium (EU/EEA citizenship or existing work permit).

Question 1 of 3 — Strategy → actionable commercial plan

Tell us about a situation where you inherited an existing commercial or business strategy and had to turn it into a concrete action plan. How did you decide what to prioritise, translate the strategy into clear objectives and ownership, and measure progress? What did you personally add or challenge, and what were the results? (300 words max.) *

0 / 300 words

Question 2 of 3 — Creating commercial momentum & developing accounts

Describe a situation where you identified new growth opportunities within an existing market, customer base or partner ecosystem. How did you decide where to focus, and how did you move customers or partners from an initial commercial relationship towards a broader and more strategic collaboration? What did you do yourself, what did you delegate, and what measurable business results did you achieve? (300 words max.) *

0 / 300 words

Question 3 of 3 — Integrating two teams while maintaining performance

Imagine you take responsibility for two teams of experienced professionals that now need to become one commercial team. They have different roles, ways of working and priorities, while the business still needs to deliver results from day one. What would your first 90 days look like? What would you change, what would you deliberately preserve, and how would you create shared priorities, accountability and a common way of working? Please illustrate with a real team integration or transformation you have led, where possible. (300 words max.) *

0 / 300 words

Next step — psychometric aspirational assessment (GRAM)

Once you submit this application, we will email you a link to the GRAM — Generations Recruitment's Aspirational Model. It takes around 15 minutes, gives you a personal profile back, and helps us build a richer view of your aspirations at work alongside your CV and answers above.

You don't need to do anything now — the link will arrive in your inbox shortly after submission.

Recruitment process information

This application is managed by Generations Recruitment on behalf of Fairtrade Belgium. Every applicant receives a response — including candidates who are not shortlisted. Shortlisted candidates are contacted within 10 working days.

Evaluation approach
Applications are assessed using a structured competency grid co-designed with Fairtrade Belgium. Screening uses rule-based support tools; every eligibility, scoring and shortlist decision is made and validated by human recruiters. No automated decision-making is applied without human validation. The process complies with applicable EU legal frameworks, including the EU AI Act for employment-related systems.

Data protection
Personal data submitted through this form is processed for the sole purpose of this recruitment. Fairtrade Belgium acts as Data Controller; Generations Recruitment acts as Data Processor and processes data only on Fairtrade Belgium's instructions. Access is restricted to the recruitment team. You may exercise your GDPR rights (access, correction, deletion, portability) at any time by writing to [email protected].

Generations Recruitment candidate database — optional

Generations Recruitment keeps a candidate database that we use to match talented professionals with future opportunities. This is entirely optional and completely separate from the Fairtrade Belgium recruitment above.

• Tick the box below → your CV and application join our database, and we may reach out about future roles that match your profile.
• Leave it unticked → your application will be securely erased once the Fairtrade Belgium Head of Partnership Management process is closed.

You can withdraw consent at any time by writing to [email protected].