Business Development Manager APAC (IT Outsourcing & AI Solutions)

Smartdev1; Malaysia; Hybrid; MYR 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

SmartDev is seeking a Business Development Manager to spearhead enterprise AI sales in APAC. You will translate AI capabilities into business outcomes and close complex deals for custom AI solutions, engaging CTOs, CDOs, and CMOs with ROI-focused value stories.

As a hybrid contributor, you will map client pain points to AI blueprints, build a robust pipeline, and collaborate with solution architects to scope feasibility, with a focus on long-term growth and governance considerations.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in B2B solution sales or business development, with at least 2 years selling AI, ML, or data science services.
• Proven track record closing five-figure to six-figure solution deals (not just SaaS licenses).
• Able to articulate AI concepts (supervised vs. unsupervised learning, token pricing, fine-tuning).
• Experience selling to CTO/CDO and business personas (COO, GM).
• Hunter mentality with comfort in cold outreach, relationship mapping, and negotiation.

Responsibilities

• Identify and target high-potential enterprise accounts across Media, Fintech, and Logistics.
• Build a 12-month pipeline in AI solution opportunities and lead consultative discovery.
• Structure and negotiate complex contracts (POCs, pilot-to-production, managed services).
• Develop strategic partnerships with SI partners, cloud providers, and tech vendors.
• Collaborate with Solution Architects to scope feasibility and translate differentiators into business value.

Skills

Enterprise sales

AI/ML solutions

Solution selling

Hunter mindset

Tools

Azure AI

SageMaker

Vertex AI

Job description

SmartDev is looking for a Business Development Manager - an individual contributor with excellent solution selling skills who can create solid and AI competence sales funnels and drive sustainable, predictable growth in the APAC region.

We need a BDM as a hybrid player who can translate complex AI capabilities into tangible business outcomes. You will identify, prospect, and close enterprise deals for custom AI solutions. Unlike a standard SaaS BDM, you must be comfortable discussing data pipelines, model accuracy, and ethical AI with CTOs while building a value-based ROI case for CMOs and CDOs.

Strategic Business Development (70%)

• Identify and target high-potential enterprise accounts across Media, Fintech, and Logistics.
• Build a 12-month pipeline in AI solution opportunities.
• Lead consultative discovery: Map client pain points (e.g., manual data entry, churn prediction, document processing) to AI solution blueprints.
• Structure and negotiate complex contracts (POCs, pilot-to-production, managed services).
• Develop strategic partnerships with SI partners, cloud providers (AWS, Azure, GCP), and tech vendors.

Solution & Technical Acumen (20%)

• Collaborate with Solution Architects to scope technical feasibility and effort estimates.
• Translate technical differentiators (e.g., fine-tuned vs. RAG-based LLM) into competitive business advantages.
• Educate prospects on AI risks (hallucinations, data privacy, bias) and our mitigation strategies.

Internal Collaboration (10%)

• Act as the voice of the customer to influence product roadmaps.
• Work with Marketing to create AI-specific sales collateral (case studies, ROI calculators).
• Provide feedback on pricing models (consumption-based, outcome-based, subscription).

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Pipeline generation; Won deals; Pilot-to-production conversion rate; Average deal cycle.

Must-Have:

• 5+ years in B2B solution sales or business development, with at least 2 years selling AI, ML, or data science services.
• Proven track record closing five-figure to six-figure solution deals (not just SaaS licenses).
• Ability to articulate AI concepts (supervised vs. unsupervised learning, token pricing, fine-tuning).
• Experience selling to a mix of technical (CTO, CDO) and business (COO, GM) personas.
• Hunter mentality - comfortable with cold outreach, relationship mapping, and negotiation.

Nice-to-Have:

• Experience with cloud AI services (Azure AI, SageMaker, Vertex AI).
• Familiarity with data privacy regulations (GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA) in AI context.
• Existing networks in Media, Fintech, and Logistics.

The Person:

• Straight-talking with a genuine focus on delivery and building great relationships.
• A natural problem solver with full accountability and responsibility for business.
• Understands the value of transparency and ensures key stakeholders have full visibility of the sales pipelines and expected performance, creating contingency plans to mitigate risks and shortfalls.
• Able to work autonomously and as part of a collaborative team.