What is an Business Developer?
A Business Developer is responsible for driving the growth of the business by maintaining and creating relationships with customers, suppliers and other partners.
You will need to be able to identify new business opportunities and possess communication skills to be able to close deals. This will help generate revenue, improve profitability and grow the business. You can identify these opportunities through thorough research, strategic planning and positioning your company appropriately in its market. You will be the face of the business and liable for building a reputable name for the company.
You may work alone or be part of a wider team depending on the size of the company, but your role will work across multiple parts of the business. Business development will be needed across most, if not all sectors. You might want to specialise in a sector, such as:
- Telecommunications
- Technology
- Finance
- Construction
- IT
- Manufacturing
Alternatively, you may wish to work across many varying sectors, while focusing on either B2B (business to business) or B2C (business to consumer).
Responsibilities
In your role as a business development manager, you will need to:
- Research new business opportunities & identify them
- Find and contact the right people in organizations
- Generate leads and make cold calls to potential customers
- Build and maintain relationships with customers
- Understand customer needs and develop plans to meet them
- Set strategic goals to develop and improve the business
- Plan and implement operational changes
- Draw up client contracts
- Understand the company’s products or services and advise others about them
- Ensure staff throughout the organization understand and support changes
- Train team members and arrange external training when needed
- Collaborate with marketing, finance, warehousing, and logistics teams
- Find ways to improve business operations
- Attend relevant seminars, conferences, and events
- Keep up with trends and changes in the business world
- Understand the company’s products/services and advise others about them
- Ensure everyone in the company understands the need for change and what is required of them
- Train team members and arrange external training when necessary
- Work with the marketing department to plan promotions
- Coordinate with finance, warehousing, and logistics teams as needed
- Find ways to improve the company’s operations
- Attend seminars and events to stay up-to-date with trends in the business world
- Planning sales campaigns
- Creating a sales pipeline
- Negotiating prices with customers and suppliers
- Increasing business sales
- Forecasting and analyzing sales data
- Developing sales and marketing strategies
Salary
The starting salary as a graduate Business Developer will be between £22,000-and £25,000.
When you reach mid-level with several years’ experience, you should expect to earn between £30,000-£60,000 depending on the sector that you specialise in. As you progress into a business management-director role, it’s possible to earn up to £80,000.
Salaries depend on the region, those in London and the South East will usually have higher average wage – it will also depend on the sector you work in. You may also be eligible for bonuses throughout the year. In some cases, you may be offered an ‘uncapped commission’ structure where the opportunities are in your hands.
According to Glassdoor, the national average salary for a Business Developer is £30,479 per year in the United Kingdom.
Working hours and work location
As a Business Developer, you should expect to work the usual 9-5pm working hours, Monday to Friday. You may also be required to work evenings if attending an event or conference, and typically in sales positions, you will be expected to be ‘on call’ for when clients or customers want to get in touch – especially if working across different time zones. You might have the option to work from home or have flexible working hours.
What to expect
- Work in an office environment and travel frequently for face-to-face meetings with customers and partners
- Face challenges in creating new business opportunities and meeting targets
- Role requires creativity and can be satisfying
- May have responsibility of managing a team
- Expected to dress smartly for meetings, but business casual attire may be acceptable at other times
- Overnight or overseas travel may be required, depending on the type of business
Qualifications
You can easily work your way up in a Business Development role. If you have experience in sales – even if that is customer service – this will provide you with the basic skills needed for a career in Business Development. It is not essential to have a degree for this role. A common route into business development is through an apprenticeship. Apprenticeships are available at all levels, there may also be an opportunity to do a business development apprenticeship while you are studying. This is a competitive industry with good prospects and rewards, therefore having a degree may make your application stand out. Degrees in business development or business management are the most relevant. Other relevant subjects include:
- Administration
- Marketing
- Economics
- Finance
- Management
- Entrepreneurship
- International Business
- Communications
You might also move into a business development manager role from related jobs such as commercial or account manager, sales executive, business development executive and sales manager.
In addition to a relevant degree, employers often look for candidates with experience in sales, marketing, or business development, as well as strong communication and networking skills.
Skills
must have skills:
- Be driven to find new business and meet targets
- Have good communication skills, both written and verbal, for building relationships with clients and making presentations
- Possess basic IT skills, including spreadsheet usage
- Be a team player and able to work collaboratively
- Have strong decision-making, multitasking, and prioritization skills
- Possess project management and organizational skills
- Be self-motivated and goal-oriented
- Possess negotiation skills and the ability to think strategically
- Be able to analyze sales figures and write reports
- Be flexible and able to adapt to a fast-paced environment
- Possess initiative and confidence to start projects from scratch.
- Project management skills
Work experience
Looking for work experience can not only provide you with the basic skills to start your career in Business Development, but in some cases, it can lead to permanent employment.
You can call local businesses or search online for relevant work experience opportunities. Any experience that you have or can gain within marketing, sales or business administration will enhance your CV and skill set. Business development is a diverse and broad role, so there is a large variety in ways in which you can shape and develop your career according to your interests and ambition.
Have a look at The ILM (Institute of Leadership and Management) for a range of business, management and leadership qualifications and apprenticeships that are relavant.
You can also become a member professional bodies, such as:
Which can help you achieve other qualifications, build your network and advise you on many other opportunities.
Career prospects
As a Business Developer, you will be travelling across many towns and cities, across different companies and sectors.
Therefore, your journey and career progression are determined by you. If you choose to specialise in a particular sector where you can hone your skills, this may provide you with better career prospects.
You may be expected to manage a team once you become more experienced where you are responsible for delegating tasks and working across different cities and regions. These are usually KPI-driven roles, so you will need to be motivated and a good motivator for your team.
As you grow to a more senior level, there might be opportunities to work overseas. You may also want to provide consultancy services to a range of other companies offering strategic direction and advice – and work on your own terms.
Employers
There are lots of opportunities for Business Developers across the public, private and charity in a wide variety of businesses, organisations and sectors. Common types of employers include:
- Department for International Trade (DIT): responsible for promoting British trade across the world and attracting foreign investment to the UK.
- Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs): partnerships between local authorities and businesses, responsible for driving economic growth in their region.
- Innovate UK: government-funded agency supporting innovation in business by providing funding, expertise and connections.
- NHS England: responsible for the commissioning and delivery of healthcare services across England.
- Ministry of Defence: responsible for providing the UK’s defence policy and military capability.
- Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS): responsible for developing and delivering the UK’s industrial strategy, supporting business growth, and promoting economic prosperity.
- The Crown Commercial Service (CCS): provides commercial services to the public sector and works with suppliers to save money for the taxpayer and improve the quality of commercial services.
- Banks and other financial services & institutions
- Education
- IT companies
- Manufacturing
- Pharmaceutical industry
- Telecommunications and technology companies
You could end up working for the likes of:
- NSPCC
- Apple
- Heineken
- Globaldata
- Hays Specialist Recruitment
Related Courses
Business Development roles are open to graduates of all subjects. Some higher national diploma or degree subjects may be particularly relevant. Below are some of the courses on offer at that will help you get your foot in the door to the world of Business Development.
This one-year, full-time course is aimed at those with a relevant academic background or professional experience who want to pursue a career in finance.
The course further develops students’ critical thinking, problem-solving, analytical and research skills.
Other related courses
- MSc International Marketing
- MSc International Management
- MSc Digital Marketing
FAQ Summary
A Business Developer is responsible for driving the growth of the business by maintaining and creating relationships with customers, suppliers and other partners.
The starting salary as a graduate Business Developer will be between £22,000-and £25,000. When you reach mid-level with several years’ experience, you should expect to earn between £30,000-£60,000 depending on the sector that you specialise in. As you progress into a business management-director role, it’s possible to earn up to £80,000.
You can easily work your way up in a Business Development role. If you have experience in sales – even if that is customer service – this will provide you with the basic skills needed for a career in Business Development.
