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Opportunity Brief: Head of Business Development

Ford & Stanley Executive Search (Part of the Ford & Stanley Group) are specialists in Executive Interim and Permanent appointments to the UK, European & North American, Rail, General Manufacturing and Digital & Technology Industries.

We have been exclusively entrusted and retained on the search for a Head of Business Development who will be pivotal in ensuring the continued growth, strategic thinking and evolution of the business across the rail sector and other industries.

Below you will find an ‘opportunity brief’ developed from notes taken during the scoping meeting (Situational Discovery) held between the Search Director of F&S Executive Search and the Managing Director and Group HRD of our client,  the brief is designed to give candidates a deeper insight into the opportunity inherent within the role, the challenges the role presents and provide access to the detail that sits behind the job specification.

Client Opportunity Statement:

“We are looking to continue our impressive journey of being one of the leading suppliers of asset monitoring products and want to build on our previous successes to continue to develop our reputation across the rail sector and other industries.“

“Pivotal to the success of our growth trajectory is the hiring of a proven, hands-on, Head of Business Development, someone who can set and deliver strong sales in new and exciting business areas.”

3 Key deliverables within the 1st year for this role:

Implement the sales strategy with the business to open new commercial opportunities across different industries.
Build on the current sales pipeline and open up opportunities with new customers in exciting and new markets.
3 main challenges that will be encountered in the 1st year:

We are currently ‘riding’ a buoyant market, the phone rings, opportunities find their way into us and repeat business is strong. We want to become more proactive and aggressive in our sales activity to get ahead of a steady flow of work into an expansive predictable pipeline of opportunities inside and outside of rail. The new Head of Business Development will find this both exciting but also challenging.
Relationship building – able to not only build strong relationships externally but also with the internal teams within the business and be able to report upwards.
Agreed Hard Skills for candidates to secure an interview:

Strong sales background with a black book of contacts within Rail, Manufacturing or Heavy Engineering. We are open to hearing from candidates who feel they can drive growth of our products in their respective industry.
Demonstrable track record of delivering solution-based sales / growing an order book.
A true “hunter”, someone who has a history of winning and closing new business opportunities.
Technical Background *desirable*
Agreed Soft Skills for candidates to secure an interview:

An individual capable of building deep and trusted relationships with customers to develop commercial opportunities.
Energetic, and confident yet work with humility and team focus (The culture of the business is that of collaboration and teamwork).
Desire to lead by example in own activities.
Engaging and inspirational personality able to bring teams along a journey of improved performance.
Utilise the resources and experience in the business to drive growth.
Willingness to get out and client-face, on the road building relationships, winning business opportunities.
Working Arrangements & Location:

Location: Flexible working – Main Office location – Leeds. 
Expected to be in the office 2-3 days per week with 2-3 days on the road visiting clients.
As with any sales role there is flexibility on working locations but a regular presence in Leeds is important to engage and develop with the team.  
Client Interview Process:

1st Stage interview to be held ideally face to face with the MD in Leeds
2nd Stage interview will be face-to-face with the MD & Group HRD who will dial in remotely.
3rd stage ‘Rubber stamp’ meeting with Group MD
Good to know:

The business is currently tracking against its 2024 £4.5m target.
Could be described that the business is riding a market as opposed to proactively growing and developing beyond repeat / existing business and orders.
The current headcount of the business is circa 30 with an ambition to grow that but orders need to increase to do so.
Business was incorporated in 2001 as a venture capital-backed spin-out from the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering and has since developed to become a world leader in the design and manufacture of telemetry systems for extreme and inaccessible environments.
Our client's condition-based maintenance systems are being increasingly adopted by asset owners, operators and maintainers in the Rail, Automotive, Industrial and Defence sectors.
The business has developed from a small company doing ‘one-off’ projects in one market to several complex projects across several industries and now includes installing the kit onto various transport.
Benefits of being an SME tech company light on its feet yet with the backing of a £1bn ownership group. 
Ambitions in product diversification, innovation, and blue-sky thinking – the business has larger ambitions.
The role reports to the MD and is supported by a Technical Director and Ops Manager.
It is expected that the person works in collaboration with the wider technology group. 
Supporting benefits

Bonus: mix of personal and company performance
Salary reviews: Annually
Car Allowance: £5,960 per year. 
Holidays: 25 days & 8 Statutory
Pension: 5% employee contributions, 3% employer contributions into DC pension scheme
Sick Pay
Life Assurance: Death in service x4 times salary 
Private Healthcare: For you and your family
About Ford & Stanley Group

Ford & Stanley Talent Services Group are in the business of people and performance. Our mission is to create one million better workdays through facilitating great recruitment, leadership and occupational mental fitness. We support our clients in their most challenging business areas - recruiting, developing and retaining the best talent from shop floor to boardroom.

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Ford & Stanley Genius Performance - Performance is always accelerated when good people are coached, inspired, trained and focused in the right way.
Ford & Stanley Talent Services Group Ltd is a Disability Confident employer that is committed to a policy of equal opportunities for all opportunity seekers. We shall adhere to such a policy at all times and will review on an on-going basis all aspects of recruitment to avoid unlawful or undesirable discrimination. We will treat everyone equally irrespective sex, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, age, disability, colour, race, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief or political beliefs and we place an obligation upon all staff to respect and act in accordance with the policy.

Services advertised by Ford & Stanley are that of an employment consultancy business