If you’re someone who’s driven by the thrill of driving growth and building strong relationships, a business development manager (BDM) is the perfect career choice.
BDMs are like the architects of growth, constantly seeking new ways to boost a company’s reach and expand revenue. It’s a role that’s all about thinking strategically, communicating effectively and solving problems on the fly. If you’ve ever asked yourself, ‘what is a business development manager?’, continue reading for a complete breakdown on what the role involves, and key career insights.
A Business Development Manager (BDM) plays a pivotal role in a company’s growth. They act as the bridge between the organisation and potential clients, responsible for identifying opportunities, negotiating deals and forming lasting partnerships.
Unlike sales professionals, who focus on closing immediate deals, BDMs take a broader approach, looking for long-term growth strategies that align with the company’s objectives. This usually involves researching new markets, understanding customer needs, and developing tailored solutions.
BDMs typically work closely with other departments, such as marketing and product development teams, to ensure that their strategies align with the company's goals.
If a career as a business development manager interests you, here’s a full breakdown of their major responsibilities:
BDMs are constantly on the lookout for new opportunities, which they identify through a combination of researching market trends, engaging with customers and keeping a close eye on competitors’ strengths and weaknesses.
For example, a BMD might analyse data from market surveys and competitor activities to spot gaps and untapped markets. Gaining a better understanding of the market landscape in this way can help the company expand its presence.
Long-term relationships are key to sustained business growth. BDMs leverage their strategic communication skills to build strong client relationships, deeply understand their needs, and deliver tailored solutions that add significant value.
For instance, a BDM might schedule a quarterly business review with a client to evaluate the effectiveness of a provided solution and explore future opportunities. Additionally, BDMs build trust by being transparent about their capabilities, timelines, and potential challenges.
BDMs negotiate contracts by thoroughly understanding client needs and market conditions. This involves presenting a proposal clearly and concisely, highlighting how it meets the client’s needs and adds value to their business.
During negotiations, BDMs aim for a win-win outcome, where both parties feel satisfied with the agreement. When finalising the deal, they work closely with legal teams to ensure the contract accurately reflects the negotiated terms.
BDMs create detailed growth strategies, such as brand positioning or market expansion strategies, that drive business expansion and help achieve long-term success. This process involves:
Conducting market research and competitive analysis is crucially important to a BDMs role, as it helps companies to deeply understand their customers’ needs and gain clear insights into competitors’ performance.
This typically involves collecting data from surveys, interviews and focus groups to better understand customer behaviour, preferences and pain points. From here, a BDM usually analyses market trends, assesses potential risks, develops strategic recommendations and then presents their findings to senior management.
Business development is a collaborative effort. BDMs work closely with marketing and product teams to ensure that their strategies are aligned with the company’s offerings and marketing initiatives. This collaboration can involve sharing market insights with product teams and developing customer-centric solutions.
BDMs track performance and assess the effectiveness of strategies using a variety of tools, data analysis and reports. For example, they can use CRM software to track sales activities and manage leads. They also often generate regular reports to summarise key metrics and insights.
Choosing a career as a Development Manager offers a range of benefits, from career growth opportunities to immense job satisfaction. Here are a few reasons why this career path is worth considering:
To succeed as a business development manager, you’ll need a blend of technical and soft skills. Here are some core skills to thrive in the role:
If you’re interested in becoming a BDM, here are some steps you can take to succeed in your chosen career:
As an aspiring BDM, your journey starts by pursuing relevant qualifications. A Diploma of Business (Business Development) is an excellent choice. This nationally recognised qualification will equip you with essential skills and knowledge - from an ability to create growth strategies and nurture customer relationships, to strong business writing and communication skills - helping you thrive as a BDM.
You may also choose to pursue a bachelor’s degree in business, management or a related field. These courses offer a broad range of business skills and practical experiences. For example, you’ll gain essential skills in leadership, critical thinking and teamwork. You’ll also have opportunities to apply practical business skills in real-world settings.
Consider developing relevant skills and experience through entry-level roles. For example, entry-level sales roles can help you develop essential skills like customer communication, negotiation and relationships management. Entry-level marketing roles are another great choice. These can offer you valuable experiences honing your understanding of market research and customer segmentation.
Hands-on experiences you’ll gain in entry-level roles like these can help you build a strong foundation of skills and knowledge. This exposure will greatly favour you when applying for BDM roles.
If you have foundational qualifications in business development, you can further your career growth by pursuing additional certifications. For example, MCI Institute offers a variety of online leadership courses tailored to equip you with essential knowledge and skills for professional success.
By mastering influential communication and receiving practical leadership training, the skills and experiences gained through these courses can significantly enhance your job prospects in business development.
Engaging in networking through events, conferences and platforms like LinkedIn can open doors to job opportunities and provide you with excellent career advice. Building connections within the industry not only helps you stay attuned to the evolving demands of the role, but also connects you with mentors and peers who can offer support and guidance on your path to becoming a successful BDM.
As a BDM, your salary will vary depending on your experience, industry, skills and geographic location. In Australia, you can typically expect to earn between 80k to 110k annually.
If you’re reviewing BDM job descriptions and applying for vacant roles, here are some things to keep in mind when tailoring your resume:
Start by closely looking over your interested job description and highlighting key experiences the employer is looking for. Tailoring your resume to exactly what the employer is looking for can help you stand out above other applicants.
Detail occasions where you allocated resources, met timelines or achieved objectives for a project. Project management is essential to a BDM’s role, so emphasising your experience in this area can look favourably on you.
Hiring managers usually look for what technical skills an applicant can bring to the role. Throughout your resume, it’s a good idea to highlight any relevant advanced skills you have, such as strategic thinking, financial acumen, market analysis and business writing skills.
Quantifying your achievements on your resume helps demonstrate your value and showcase your prior accomplishments. For example, when writing your previous experiences, you could add numbers, such as: ‘Developed and managed over 15 effective marketing campaigns, which increased company sales by 40%.’
As a BDM, there are many occasions where you’ll use various soft skills. For example, you might use your empathy and active listening skills when communicating with a client, or you could display strong adaptability skills when adjusting to new projects. Soft skills are crucially important, so include them on your resume at any chance you get. Here are some you could use:
Although it’s hard to predict exactly what an interviewer will ask, you can put your best foot forward by preparing for a range of potential questions. Here are some common questions you might encounter in a BMD job interview:
Ready to kickstart your career as a business development manager or looking to sharpen your skills for new growth opportunities? Our online business administration courses are the perfect first step to achieving your goals. Explore our certificates and diplomas and enrol today!
You are in the right place! Please book a free career consultation with one of our course advisors. They will help you define your goals and match you with the skills and training that will guide you towards success.