Market Development Associate – MEA

Opus 2 International; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

22 days annual holidays

Health Insurance

Loyalty Share Scheme

Mindfulness sessions

Volunteer leave

Job summary

Opus 2 International is seeking a Market Development Associate to manage and expand key client relationships and strategic partnerships across the MEA region, driving growth in the Hearings business and supporting the full client lifecycle from business development through client success.

Qualifications

• Proven client-facing BD or account management experience in professional services.
• Understanding of arbitration, litigation or dispute resolution landscape.
• Strong communication skills with client-facing confidence.
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders and build credibility.
• Willingness to travel across MEA and to London/Amsterdam offices.

Responsibilities

• Manage and develop key client relationships and strategic partnerships across MEA.
• Lead strategic account planning, quarterly MEA Account List, and pipeline development.
• Identify opportunities for subscriptions and growth, gather market intelligence.
• Oversee client success from post-quotation to hearing, coordinate with operations.
• Plan regional marketing campaigns and events with the Marketing team.

Skills

Client relationship management

Business development

Arbitration knowledge

Strong communication

Relationship building

Commercial acumen

Travel willingness

CRM (Salesforce)

Power BI

PowerPoint

Tools

Salesforce

Power BI

PowerPoint

Job description

In the role of Market Development Associate, you will be responsible for managing and developing key client relationships and strategic partnerships across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, driving growth in our Hearings business and supporting the full client lifecycle from business development through to client success.

This role combines strategic account management, business development and marketing collaboration to grow our regional footprint, deepen client relationships and support operational excellence across the MEA region.

What you'll be doing

Client Relationship Management & Business Development

• Managing and developing key client relationships and strategic partnerships across the MEA region.
• Leading strategic account planning and outreach activities, including the creation and ongoing management of the quarterly MEA Account List.
• Identifying and pursuing upcoming hearings and opportunities to grow pipeline activity, while developing market intelligence on firm activity, trends and regional developments.
• Serve as a visible and trusted face for the company across events, conferences, webinars, panels, roundtables and industry associations.
• Identify leads and adoption or expansion opportunities for our subscription (Cases) business.

Client Success & Team Management

• Overseeing client success activities from the post-quotation stage through to the hearing, working closely with other operational teams to ensure a high level of client satisfaction throughout the post-business development client lifecycle.
• Work closely alongside the Commercial Operations Associate.
• Support the Head of Client Success in relation to regional activities including feedback meetings.

Marketing & Events

• Working with the Marketing team to plan and execute quarterly marketing campaigns and regional initiatives, including projects relating to inconsistencies, DIAC partnerships, venue consultancy and hybrid hearing capabilities.
• 'Owning' and advising on the MEA BD Budget expenditure (monthly).
• Working with the Marketing team to organise and deliver regional events, including Dubai Arbitration Week, Riyadh Disputes Week and other ad hoc client events.
• Collaborating with the Marketing team to strategically plan regional content delivery, such as the MEA quarterly newsletter and contributions to global and regional campaigns and initiatives.

Projects & Reporting

• Leading and coordinating regional ad hoc projects on a cross-functional basis, including initiatives such as the move to the ADGM office.
• Owning and maintaining Salesforce and Power BI reporting, including ensuring robust and consistent Salesforce data management and hygiene practices.
• Monitor KPIs and support the Director of AI and Market Development with reporting.

What we're looking for in you

• Proven experience in a client-facing business development, account management or client success role, ideally within legal, dispute resolution or a related professional services environment.
• Understanding of arbitration, litigation and dispute resolution processes, and familiarity with the MEA legal and arbitration landscape.
• Strong communication skills and confidence leading meetings, presenting to clients and delivering demos.
• Ability to build relationships with senior stakeholders, with credibility and gravitas to influence.
• Outgoing and proactive, taking advantage of opportunities to network with prospects and clients.
• Commercial acumen and the ability to think strategically.
• Agile and self-motivated, capable of working under pressure in a fast-paced environment and prioritising effectively.
• A team player and a self-starter, willing to roll up your sleeves to drive the execution of tasks.
• Knowledge of and experience using CRM solutions (e.g. Salesforce), business intelligence tools (e.g. Power BI) and PowerPoint.
• Based in the MEA region (e.g. Dubai/Abu Dhabi), with a willingness to travel across the region and to our London and Amsterdam offices.
• Arabic language skills and other regional languages are a bonus!

Working for Opus 2

Opus 2 is a global leader in legal software and services, trusted partner of the world’s leading legal teams. All our achievements are underpinned by our unique culture where our people are our most valuable asset. Working at Opus 2, you’ll receive:

• 22 days annual holidays, flexible working, and length of service entitlement.
• Health Insurance.
• Loyalty Share Scheme.
• Calm and Mindfulness sessions.
• A day of leave to volunteer for charity or dependent cover.