Business Development Specialist

ACI Controls, Inc; Buffalo (NY); On-site; USD 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

ACI Controls in Buffalo, NY seeks a motivated Business Development Specialist to drive new opportunities, expand relationships, and support revenue growth across industrial markets.

You will use ZoomInfo, HubSpot, and LinkedIn to identify decision-makers, qualify leads, and nurture accounts, collaborating with marketing and sales to align campaigns with growth objectives. This role emphasizes CRM discipline and data-driven prospecting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree preferred in business, marketing, sales, communications, engineering or related field.
• 2–5 years of experience in business development, inside/outside sales, or B2B lead generation.
• Experience in industrial distribution, manufacturing, or technical product sales preferred.
• Proven track record of generating qualified leads and nurturing client relationships.

Responsibilities

• Identify and engage prospective customers across target industries and geographic markets.
• Develop targeted prospect lists using BI tools, ZoomInfo, LinkedIn, and CRM data.
• Schedule qualified discovery meetings and transition leads into active opportunities.
• Collaborate with digital marketing, inside/outside sales, and product teams to align campaigns.
• Maintain accurate CRM records, monitor pipeline, and analyze lead activity.

Skills

Prospecting

Relationship-building

Lead qualification

Communication

Discovery ability

Multitasking

Tech-savvy

Education

Bachelor's degree in related field

Tools

HubSpot CRM

Salesforce

ZoomInfo

LinkedIn Sales Navigator

Job description

Department: Business Development & Marketing

Reports To: Vice President of Business Development & Marketing

Position Type: Full-Time

Position Summary

ACI Controls, an established industrial process control, instrumentation, and automation distributor headquartered in Buffalo, New York, is seeking a motivated, results-driven Business Development Specialist to support the company's continued growth across existing and emerging industrial markets.

This position will play a critical role in identifying new business opportunities, developing qualified sales leads, expanding relationships with existing customers, and executing targeted business development initiatives designed to increase revenue, market penetration, and customer engagement.

Reporting directly to the Vice President of Business Development & Marketing, the Business Development Specialist will work collaboratively as a peer with the Digital Marketing and Social Media Manager to align prospecting, lead generation, digital marketing campaigns, and customer engagement activities with ACI Controls' overall business growth objectives.

The successful candidate will leverage business intelligence and CRM platforms, including ZoomInfo and HubSpot, to research target accounts, identify key decision-makers, qualify sales and marketing leads, and implement structured prospect nurturing strategies that generate measurable sales opportunities.

The position will also support strategic industry development initiatives in high-growth markets such as Power Generation, Data Centers, and other industrial sectors, working closely with ACI Controls' outside sales, inside sales, product specialists, and supplier partners.

This is an ideal opportunity for a self-motivated professional who enjoys developing relationships, uncovering business opportunities, utilizing technology, and contributing directly to a company's long-term sales growth.

Key Job Responsibilities

1. New Business Development & Lead Generation

• Proactively identify, research, and engage prospective customers across ACI Controls' target industries and geographic markets.
• Utilize ZoomInfo, HubSpot CRM, LinkedIn, industry databases, and other business intelligence platforms to identify companies, key contacts, decision-makers, and potential purchasing opportunities.
• Develop targeted prospect lists based on industry, application, geography, company size, purchasing potential, and strategic product opportunities.
• Conduct outbound prospecting through telephone calls, personalized emails, LinkedIn outreach, and coordinated marketing campaigns.
• Identify and engage key buying personas, including plant managers, maintenance managers, engineering managers, process engineers, automation specialists, procurement professionals, and operations leaders.
• Establish initial relationships with prospective customers and uncover potential requirements for instrumentation, process controls, filtration, automation, and related industrial products.
• Schedule qualified discovery meetings and facilitate introductions to appropriate ACI Controls sales representatives and product specialists.
• Serve as a primary resource for reviewing, contacting, and qualifying inbound and outbound sales and marketing leads.
• Evaluate leads generated through website inquiries, digital campaigns, trade shows, webinars, supplier referrals, and direct prospecting.
• Develop and follow consistent lead qualification procedures to assess customer needs, application requirements, purchasing authority, project timing, and potential revenue opportunities.
• Prioritize prospects based on business potential, strategic fit, and likelihood of conversion.
• Maintain timely follow-up procedures to ensure leads receive appropriate engagement and are not lost due to inactivity.
• Collaborate with inside and outside sales teams to transition qualified leads into active sales opportunities.
• Track lead progression, conversion rates, and sales pipeline contribution using HubSpot CRM.

3. Customer Nurturing & Account Expansion

• Develop and execute structured customer engagement programs designed to strengthen relationships with existing customers and increase purchasing activity.
• Identify underpenetrated accounts, inactive customers, and customers purchasing only a limited portion of ACI Controls' available product portfolio.
• Analyze customer purchasing history to identify opportunities for cross-selling, upselling, and expanding the customer's existing bill of materials.
• Engage customer contacts to better understand upcoming projects, maintenance requirements, operational challenges, and future product needs.
• Introduce additional ACI Controls product lines, supplier capabilities, and value-added services that align with customer applications.

4. Strategic Industry Development & Special Projects

Support the development and execution of targeted business growth initiatives in strategically important industrial markets.

5. Collaboration with Digital Marketing & Social Media

Work closely with the Digital Marketing and Social Media Manager to coordinate marketing initiatives with direct business development activities.

• Maintain accurate, current, and complete company, contact, lead, and opportunity records within HubSpot CRM.
• Utilize ZoomInfo and other intelligence tools to identify new contacts, validate customer information, and enhance account records.
• Document customer interactions, discovery conversations, follow-up activities, and opportunity status.
• Develop and manage prospecting lists, lead nurturing workflows, and sales engagement sequences.
• Monitor prospecting performance, lead conversion, customer engagement, and pipeline development.

Required Skills & Qualifications

Business Development & Sales Skills

• Strong prospecting, relationship-building, and customer engagement capabilities.
• Ability to initiate professional conversations with prospective customers through phone, email, and digital channels.
• Strong questioning, active listening, and discovery skills to uncover customer challenges and potential sales opportunities.
• Ability to qualify leads and recognize opportunities for account growth and cross-selling.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including professional business correspondence.
• Comfortable working with technical sales teams and learning industrial products and applications.
• Ability to manage multiple prospecting initiatives, industry projects, and follow-up activities simultaneously.

Technology & Analytical Skills

• Experience using CRM platforms, preferably HubSpot, Salesforce, or a comparable system.
• Familiarity with ZoomInfo, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, or other prospect research and business intelligence platforms.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel, Outlook, Word, and PowerPoint.
• Ability to research companies, industries, applications, and potential customer contacts.
• Comfortable analyzing customer purchasing information, lead activity, and sales performance data.
• Ability to develop structured prospect lists, track engagement, and measure results.
• Familiarity with email automation, CRM workflows, AI-assisted research, and digital prospecting tools is desirable.

Professional Attributes

• Self-motivated, organized, and results-oriented.
• Strong sense of ownership, accountability, and follow-through.
• Curious, resourceful, and comfortable learning technical concepts.
• Confident engaging with professionals across engineering, maintenance, operations, purchasing, and executive management.
• Collaborative team player who can work effectively with marketing, inside sales, outside sales, and management.
• Comfortable working independently while managing multiple priorities.
• Persistent and resilient in developing new customer relationships.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to maintaining accurate CRM information.

Preferred Education & Professional Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Sales, Communications, Engineering Technology, or a related field preferred.
• 2–5 years of experience in business development, inside sales, sales development, account management, or B2B lead generation preferred.
• Previous experience in industrial distribution, manufacturing, process control, instrumentation, automation, or technical product sales is strongly preferred.
• Experience working with industrial customers, engineering organizations, OEMs, contractors, or maintenance and operations personnel is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated success generating qualified leads, nurturing customer relationships, and supporting revenue growth.
• Experience using HubSpot CRM, ZoomInfo, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator preferred.
• Familiarity with industrial purchasing processes, technical specifications, bills of materials, and maintenance-related purchasing is an advantage.
• Experience supporting targeted industry development programs or account-based marketing initiatives is a plus.

Candidates with strong business development capabilities and a willingness to learn industrial products and applications will also be considered.

Why Join ACI Controls?

ACI Controls offers the opportunity to join an established industrial distribution organization serving customers across a broad range of manufacturing and process industries.

This position provides meaningful exposure to technical products, industrial markets, strategic sales initiatives, and modern business development technologies.

The Business Development Specialist will have the opportunity to:

Equal Opportunity Employer

ACI Controls is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing an inclusive and professional work environment. Employment decisions are based on qualifications, experience, business needs, and applicable employment laws.