Business Development Manager

SF Partners; Tamworth; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

SF Partners is recruiting an experienced Business Development Manager to drive new opportunities across the UK and European markets. The role focuses on identifying and winning new accounts in specialist vehicle, engineering and technical markets, engaging senior stakeholders and leading the full sales cycle.

The successful candidate will have a HVAC or strong technical engineering background, a proven originations track record, and willingness to travel across the UK and Europe.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years in business development or new-business sales.
• Proven track record of originated and winning significant new accounts.
• Experience selling engineered products/services to OEMs/Tier 1 suppliers.
• Experience managing long and complex sales cycles.
• Strong experience with RFQs, tenders, and commercial negotiations.
• Ability to engage and negotiate with senior stakeholders.
• Good understanding of costs, margins and development expenditure.
• CRM, pipeline management and forecasting skills.
• Consultative approach to understand complex customer requirements.
• Full UK driving licence.
• Experience in automotive, specialist vehicles, defence, engineering, manufacturing advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Identify, develop and win new customers across the UK and Europe.
• Build relationships with key decision-makers within OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers and complex industrial organisations.
• Create and maintain a strong, evidence-based sales pipeline.
• Lead opportunities through the full sales cycle from discovery to contract award.
• Develop target-account plans and identify future programmes and opportunities.
• Collaborate with Engineering, Operations, Quality and Finance on viable proposals.
• Attend customer meetings, exhibitions and industry events.
• Provide clear pipeline reporting and forecasting.
• Support development of new products, partnerships and routes to market.
• Ensure won opportunities are transitioned into the wider business.

Skills

Business development

New account origination

RFQ/tender management

Stakeholder negotiation

CRM & forecasting

Consultative selling

Strategic relationship building

UK driving licence

Tools

CRM software

Job description

SF Partners are working exclusively with an established UK manufacturing and engineering business to recruit an experienced Business Development Manager as part of its continued growth across the UK and European markets.

UK, Ireland & Europe

4-Day Working Week – Monday to Thursday 7am - 5pm

The candidate must have a HVAC background (Vehicles) or a strong technical engineering background

This is a genuine new business development role. We are looking for someone who can identify opportunities, open doors and personally win new accounts — rather than simply manage an existing customer portfolio.

Reporting directly into senior leadership, this is a highly visible and commercially important role focused on developing new opportunities across a range of specialist vehicle, engineering and technical markets.

The Role

You will be responsible for building a strong and sustainable pipeline of new business, taking opportunities from initial engagement through to commercial agreement.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Identifying, developing and winning new customers across the UK and Europe
• Building relationships with key decision-makers within OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers and complex industrial organisations
• Creating and maintaining a strong, evidence-based sales pipeline
• Leading opportunities through the full sales cycle, from initial customer discovery and technical scoping through to RFQs, tenders, pricing, negotiation and contract award
• Developing target-account plans and identifying future programmes and opportunities
• Working closely with Engineering, Operations, Quality and Finance to develop commercially and technically viable proposals
• Attending customer meetings, exhibitions and relevant industry events
• Providing clear pipeline reporting and forecasting
• Supporting the development of new products, partnerships and routes to market
• Ensuring successfully won opportunities are effectively transitioned into the wider business

About You

We are particularly interested in speaking with commercially driven business developers who can clearly demonstrate where they have personally created, developed and converted new business.

You will ideally have:

• At least 5 years' experience in business development or new-business sales
• A proven track record of personally originating and winning significant new accounts
• Experience selling engineered products, technical solutions or services into OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers or similarly complex industrial customers
• Experience managing long and complex sales cycles
• Strong experience of RFQs, tenders, technical proposals and commercial negotiations
• Confidence engaging and negotiating with senior-level stakeholders
• Good commercial understanding of costs, margins and development expenditure
• Strong CRM, pipeline management and forecasting skills
• A consultative approach with the ability to understand complex customer requirements
• A full UK driving licence
• Experience within automotive, specialist vehicles, defence, engineering, manufacturing or other technically led environments would be particularly advantageous.

The role will involve regular travel across the UK and Europe, including customer meetings, exhibitions and occasional overnight stays.

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced business developer who enjoys the challenge of creating opportunities from scratch, developing strategic relationships and converting them into significant long-term business.