Business Development Manager

PropellWorks Group; Palmerston North; On-site; NZD 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company vehicle

Job summary

PropellWorks is looking for a Business Development & Growth Manager to engage customers earlier and convert opportunities into profitable work the business can deliver well.

Based in New Zealand with locations including Palmerston North, Christchurch, Taupo or Tauranga, you will build strong ties with energy sector players, shape responses and work across the wider PropellWorks capability to secure closeable opportunities.

Qualifications

• Established relationships across New Zealand energy, infrastructure or industrial markets.
• Proven track record converting qualified pipeline into secured, profitable work.
• Strong judgement on margin, risk and contract quality.
• Able to lead remote teams while staying close to customers and opportunities.

Responsibilities

• Lead a small, geographically dispersed team (20–25%).
• Strengthen relationships with Transpower, generators and other key customers.
• Qualify opportunities, shape responses and drive momentum to close deals.
• Coordinate with GM, estimating, engineering and operations to deliver coordinated bids.
• Travel across New Zealand; performance incentive and company vehicle provided.

Skills

Energy market relationships

Pipeline conversion

Commercial acumen

Remote leadership

Job description

Competitive base salary plus performance incentive and company vehicle

Location options: Palmerston North, Christchurch, Taupo or Tauranga

This role isn't for someone who waits for the tender to land.

PropellWorks is seeking a Business Development & Growth Manager to engage customers earlier and convert more of the right opportunities into profitable work the business can deliver well.

Through businesses including Ashhurst Engineering & Construction, PropellWorks has longstanding roots in New Zealand’s electricity sector. Its wider capability spans engineering, fabrication, mechanical services, maintenance, construction and major project delivery. Despite that breadth, it remains practical and close-knit, with accessible leaders and genuine delivery capability.

The foundations are there. This role will make more of them.

The opportunity

Energy will sit at the centre of your remit. You will strengthen existing relationships with Transpower, develop opportunities across transmission and distribution, and build deeper connections with generators including Mercury, Genesis and Contact. Hydro offers further opportunity across gates, penstocks, shutdowns, refurbishment and asset renewal.

A central part of the brief is improving sales conversion. You will not simply bring opportunities into the business and move on. You will work with the General Manager, wider management team, estimating, engineering and operations to qualify them properly, shape the right response and maintain momentum through to commercial close.

You will also recognise when a customer need can open a broader opportunity across PropellWorks, then connect the right teams and capabilities to present a coordinated response.

The management team will actively open doors, share senior relationships and join key customer conversations where their involvement can move an opportunity forward. You will own the outcome, but you will not work in isolation.

Around 20 to 25% of the role involves leading a small, geographically dispersed team. You will provide direction, coaching and accountability while remaining personally active with customers. Regular travel throughout New Zealand is required, with a company vehicle provided.

What you will bring

You may come from business development, key accounts or sales, or have developed your commercial capability through engineering, operations or project delivery.

• Established relationships across New Zealand’s energy, infrastructure or industrial markets.
• A record of converting qualified pipeline into secured, profitable work.
• Technical credibility and sound judgement around margin, risk and contract quality.
• The ability to lead people remotely while remaining close to customers and opportunities.

The ambition is straightforward: become one of the first businesses customers call when an engineering problem begins to take shape, then convert that trust into long-term, profitable work.

You must have current NZ work rights to apply for this job.