Staying up to date in partnerships is hard. The industry changes quickly, AI is reshaping how teams run partner programs, and new tools are constantly entering the market. Tactics that worked a year ago may no longer be effective.
One way to stay current is to follow experienced partnership leaders who share what they’re building, testing and learning. They show how they run their programs, what tools and processes they use, and how they’re adjusting to changes in the space.
In this article, we highlight eight partner leaders to follow in 2026 and what you can learn from each one.
8 partner leaders to follow in 2026
Marc Gaudett, Head of Partnerships at Instantly
Marc Gaudett is a partnerships and growth leader currently heading partnerships at Instantly.ai, where he’s building and scaling a partner ecosystem designed to drive significant partner-sourced revenue.Â
He has over 15 years of SaaS experience and has worked in both sales and partnerships. Earlier in his career, he generated over $10 million in new business revenue at Maropost, and his first partner program brought in multiple seven figures in its first year.
Gaudett shares regular updates on LinkedIn about his work at Instantly — where he’s aiming to build a $100 million partner-sourced ARR motion — lessons and wins.
Follow Gaudett if you want clear, tactical advice on building or improving a partner program. He shares tips for partner activation, program structure and revenue strategy.
Naomi Dreifuss, Founder and CEO at Zugit
Naomi Dreifuss is the founder and CEO of Zugit, an AI platform that helps GTM and partnerships teams use data to make better decisions and predict partner outcomes — and a repeat must-follow leader who’s more relevant than ever in 2026.Â
Before starting Zugit, she worked as an account executive at Sisense, Graduway and Intelligo Group, where she saw firsthand how hard it is to manage partner programs without reliable data. That experience led her to focus on using data to improve revenue outcomes and build more predictable partnerships.
On LinkedIn, Dreifuss posts regularly about why many partner programs fail to deliver ROI, how to improve partner strategy, and how to make decisions using real data. Her content often breaks down common mistakes teams make when they rely on assumptions instead of evidence.
If you want clear advice on building partnerships that are measurable and tied to business outcomes, follow Dreifuss.
Asher Mathew, CEO at Partnership Leaders
Asher Mathew is the co-founder and CEO of Partnership Leaders, a private network focused on supporting partnership professionals and teams. The community has over 2,000 members across more than 54 countries and gives professionals a space to learn from each other, share best practices and grow in their roles.
Before building Partnership Leaders, Mathew held VP GTM and business development roles at Demandbase and LeanData, and earlier in his career, he led strategic alliances at Avalara. His experience gives him a clear view of how partnerships work across different company stages and org structures.
He co‑hosts the podcast Unlearn with Asher and Kelly, speaks at events and posts often on LinkedIn about the evolution of partnerships and trends shaping the space.
Follow Mathew if you want to stay updated on how the partnerships profession is changing, plus get a heads up on emerging opportunities.
You might also like: Why empathy and experimentation are must-haves in partnerships.
Dustin Blank, Partnerships at ElevenLabs
Dustin Blank leads partnerships at ElevenLabs, a company developing generative AI for voice, audio and conversational agents. In his role, he focuses on building strategic partner relationships and content collaborations that expand how ElevenLabs technology is used across various industries.
He brings 15 years of experience in partnerships, content and strategy from roles at companies like Creative Juice, MGM and Disney, and applies that background to shaping partnerships in the AI space.
Blank posts regularly about real partnership work at the intersection of AI and media. He shares updates about broad initiatives ElevenLabs has launched, including collaborations with well-known artists and cultural figures. He also discusses how partnerships affect product adoption and cultural impact.
Blank is a must-follow if you want to understand how partnerships work inside a fast-growing AI company, especially if you’re focused on building alliances with creators, platforms and technology partners.
Read more: AEO for partnerships: how to rank in answer engines.
Kelly Sarabyn, Director, Technology Partner Programs and Strategy at HubSpot
Kelly Sarabyn is the director of technology partner programs and strategy at HubSpot, where she oversees partner management and the programs and operations for HubSpot’s more than 1,600 technology partners. Before joining HubSpot, she held roles in marketing and partnerships, giving her experience in both building programs and aligning partner efforts with broader GTM strategy.
She frequently shares insights through podcasts, webinars and LinkedIn posts. Her content covers how to communicate partnership value to executives, why many programs fail without clear operations and what leaders should focus on as the role evolves.
Follow Sarabyn to learn how technology partner programs operate at scale and how to build strong foundations early so your program drives revenue.Â
Read more: 3 core revenue wins your partnerships team delivers (and why you should care).
Nelson Wang, Founder of Partner Principles
Nelson Wang is a seasoned partnerships leader — we’ve suggested following him before — and the founder of Partner Principles, a consulting firm that helps companies build and scale partner programs. He’s led partnerships at companies like Airtable, Miro, Box and Optimizely, and his systems have driven over $200 million in partner-sourced revenue.
On LinkedIn, Wang shares lessons from his experience — how to recruit the right partners, create customer-focused strategies and avoid common execution mistakes. He also posts open roles and advice on breaking into partnerships.
Follow Wang (or keep following in 2026) if you need practical templates and real-world advice for growing your program or landing a partnerships role.
Ben Walter, Head of Partnerships at PostPilot
Ben Walter has scaled programs from 0 to 500+ revenue-driving partners and influenced 40%+ of total acquisition for B2B SaaS & DTC companies. He currently leads partnerships at PostPilot, where he builds and manages the company’s partner ecosystem.Â
On LinkedIn, Walter shares how PostPilot approaches partnerships, some of its collaborations and how his team works to drive results.
If you want insight into running partner programs in a tech company, Walter is a great follow.
Lee-Ann Johnstone, CEO and Founder of KonverJ
Lee‑Ann Johnstone is a global affiliate marketing strategist with 20 years of experience and the founder of KonverJ, an agency that helps affiliate and partner marketing for brands.Â
She writes the Affiliate Marketing Newsletter and hosts The Affiliate Marketing Podcast, where she shares insights on building and scaling affiliate programs. On LinkedIn and in her newsletter, Johnstone shares frequent posts about affiliate strategy, onboarding best practices, partner engagement and how to improve affiliate performance.
Follow Johnstone if you manage or influence affiliate or partner programs and want guidance into how to structure, measure and improve those programs over time.Â
Staying ahead in 2026
The partnerships space is evolving quickly. Whether you’re building your first partner program or scaling an existing one, it helps to learn from people doing the work and sharing what they’ve learned. These leaders bring real-world experience and tested strategies that show partnerships can drive growth in 2026 and beyond.
Follow them to stay informed, avoid common mistakes and make better decisions about where to focus your time and effort.
