Business Development Manager, Middle East Practice

We are a fast-growing management consulting and data science company dedicated to innovation in healthcare. We work across the entire healthcare industry including Health Systems and Life Sciences companies, as well as working with health investors and their portfolio companies. We inspire clients to make change happen and improve health outcomes. We support our people to be courageous in doing the right thing.

The Business Development Manager for the Middle East is a pivotal leadership role in our Middle East practice. The focus of the practice is to provide consulting excellence to all aspects of the global Middle East healthcare space. CF has extensive experience of collaborating with providers, commissioners, regulators and local and national government, as well as health system partners such as care providers and the voluntary and community sector. CF’s multi-disciplinary consulting team provides end-to-end services, spanning strategy, finance, performance, organisational improvement, data and digital – adding value from inception through to the implementation of recommendations.

Our proactive approach combines a deep knowledge of health systems, and life sciences with award-winning data science and expert analysis to empower and deliver enduring change in the health and care sector.

The Business Development Manager is accountable to the Partners for the Middle East practice, Dr Zahra Safarfashandi and Dr Joud Abduljawad and is responsible for supporting them to lead the practice in collaboration with the wider Middle East leadership team. The focus of the role is leading the business development efforts of the practice and driving its performance, future strategy and growth. The role is responsible for developing the Middle East practice strategy as an input to the overall corporate strategy and for converting the strategy into annual business goals and quarterly OKRs to be delivered by the practice team.

The Business Development Manager coordinates delivery of the business plan in-year, organising and managing the activities required for its delivery. In collaboration with the Marketing Team for CF, the Business Development Manager will orchestrate the marketing and thought leadership activities of the Middle East practice. This includes identifying and organising leadership team presence at networking events and conferences, ensuring the market is aware of our services and the positive impacts they have through case studies and impact statements, and organising thought leadership articles.

Evaluation and assessing return on investment of our activities is part of the role’s responsibilities, with the aim of continuous learning to improve the use of company resources. The Business Development Manager is responsible for end-to-end procurement processes. This includes forging relationships with key procurement contacts across the public sector, keeping abreast of portals and frameworks for contracts and forging partnerships with other suppliers which might aid our access to the market. Coordinating decisions to bid, engaging with client procurement teams, organising bid teams and quality assuring bid processes, vetting all fee tables to ensure compliance with company policies, managing the discount decisions in conjunction with the Partners, ensuring contracts and POs are in place.

The continuous improvement of business development capabilities in health systems (and across the business, in collaboration with the Business Development Managers for Health Systems, Life Sciences and the Middle East) is a core aspect of the role. The Business Development Manager will have full ownership of our bid management process ensuring bids and proposals are developed to the highest quality level. Maintaining a high win rate, celebrating and learning from our successes to build strength and gaining feedback when we lose to enhance our approaches for the next time are key expectations to ensure the ongoing growth and development of the company.

The Business Development Manager will set and maintain high standards in the production and use of management information as it pertains to the role, utilising company systems and ensuring efficient practice. This requires a collaborative approach with the corporate team and the other Business Development Managers to ensure standardised approaches allowing data to be aggregated and reported to the Executive Operating Committee and the Board.

Within the Middle East practice the Business Development Manager will be responsible for the effective running of team meetings and the steering committee, using data to make informed decisions and acting on foresight to adapt plans in response to shifting market demands and practice performance.

Responsibilities

• Work closely with the Partners and the Business Development Consultant in the development of our priorities and plan on an annual, quarterly and monthly basis.
• Identify emerging Middle East healthcare trends and opportunities that align with our business goals.
• Support the end-to-end business development pipeline from discussion through to proposal development and contracting.
• Ensure the capture and use of management information to track and measure the performance of business development activities.
• Coordinate Middle East team members to ensure effort is focussed on brand building and development of high priority clients.

Proposal Development and Bid Management

• Lead on the development and writing of proposals using post holder’s in-depth knowledge of the Middle East healthcare sector.
• Contribute to proposition, proposal and pitch development to ensure documents are tailored to client needs and of the highest quality.
• Ensure compliance with both client and internal requirements during the bid process, including around pricing, resourcing and procurement rules.
• Engage in problem-solving meetings and engage with relevant stakeholders to gather necessary information and insights for proposals.
• Handle the necessary preparations to facilitate effective business development meetings.
• Develop data and insights to inform our business development practices and processes in the region.
• Take overall responsibility for the quality of the proposals submitted, demonstrating a drive for winning work.
• Coach junior members of the team to contribute to proposal development and winning work.

Marketing and Thought Leadership

• Collaborate with the Marketing Team to create compelling content that highlights the company’s expertise in the Middle East region and healthcare innovation.
• Monitor industry trends and insights to ensure the company remains at the forefront of innovation and thought leadership.
• Partner with external stakeholders to develop co-branded marketing initiatives and joint thought leadership campaigns.
• Facilitate participation in industry awards and recognition programs to bolster the company’s reputation.

Team Leadership and Development

• Delegate tasks effectively to the Consultant and Coordinator supporting the Middle East practice to ensure alignment with team capabilities and manage workloads.
• Organise and assure a leader is briefed for the management of key internal meetings, such as steering groups, the MEOC and pipeline reviews, by setting agendas and coordinating inputs from other team members.

Networking

• Network with potential partners to explore and develop collaborative projects.
• Horizon scan, build strong relationships with client procurement teams, and network with potential partners.
• Build and maintain relationships with client procurement teams to enhance business opportunities.
• Identify and attend relevant conferences to build network and identify opportunities.

Requirements

• In-depth knowledge of the Middle East healthcare industry.
• Experience as a Consultant or Manager within strategy/management consulting.
• Fluency in written and spoken Arabic.
• Strong business development acumen, including identifying new opportunities and contributing to organisational growth.
• Excellent written communication skills and experience developing proposals.
• Ability to think strategically and develop comprehensive plans to address complex challenges for the Middle East healthcare industry.
• Strong project management skills, including multitasking, resource management, and delivering successful outcomes within tight timeframes.
• Proficiency in data analysis, with the ability to interpret analysis for informed decision-making.
• Exceptional leadership abilities, with the capacity to inspire and mentor team members for high-performance results.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills to establish and nurture client relationships.
• Commitment to continuous learning and staying updated with industry trends and best practices.
• Educated to a degree level (or equivalent experience).