Business Development Manager - Strategic Accounts & Incentives

Diageo’s Scotland Brand Homes are a diverse portfolio of world-class visitor experiences across Scotland. Following a £185 million investment in Scotch whisky tourism, we opened Johnnie Walker Princes Street in the heart of Edinburgh and transformed our distillery experiences, including Talisker, Lagavulin, and The Singleton. More recently, this has included the reopening of the iconic ‘ghost’ distilleries Brora and Port Ellen.

Our purpose is to celebrate life, every day, everywhere, and our Brand Homes bring this to life through unforgettable experiences rooted in craftsmanship, heritage, and innovation. Whisky tourism is Scotland’s number one visitor activity, attracting over 2 million visits annually. Our experiences play a critical role in recruiting new consumers into both our brands and the wider Scotch whisky category.

With ambitious growth plans, we are focused on increasing premium visitation and expanding our global reach. A key part of this growth will come through strengthening our presence within the travel trade and unlocking new demand via intermediary partners. Our Business Development team plays a critical role in this, driving demand through travel trade, incentive agencies, and strategic partners, and ensuring Diageo’s Brand Homes are positioned as must-sell experiences within the global tourism landscape.

As part of this next phase, we have recently launched Scotland Distilled, our dedicated trade-facing brand, bringing together the full strength of our portfolio into a single, compelling proposition for the travel trade. It will play a central role in how we engage partners, showcase our experiences, and accelerate growth across the portfolio.

ROLE PURPOSE

This role is responsible for positioning Scotland Distilled as a preferred offering for travel trade partners in leisure and business tourism, driving incremental revenue through repeat bookings, higher-volume partnerships, and expanded portfolio engagement across key accounts. The role is accountable for driving incremental sales and premium visitor growth by owning and developing the global incentive travel segment, alongside managing and growing a portfolio of key travel trade accounts. Operating as a commercial owner, the role balances specialist segment leadership (Incentives) with strategic account management, combining proactive business development with long-term account growth to deliver sustainable revenue.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Commercial Ownership & Strategy
  • Own and evolve the travel trade and incentive strategy, identifying new growth opportunities and shaping the direction of the segment.
  • Take full commercial ownership of segment and account performance, using data and insight to optimise revenue, improve conversion, and refine strategy.
  • Take ownership of key commercial decisions across accounts and segment strategy, operating with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Maintain accurate forecasting and pipeline reporting, ensuring clear visibility of future revenue and alignment with business targets.
  • Influence product development, pricing, and packaging to ensure the offer meets the needs of travel trade partners and supports commercial growth.
  • Lead reporting and present strategic updates to senior and executive stakeholders, providing clear insight on performance, pipeline health, and growth opportunities.
  • Act as a market expert, bringing insight on industry trends, competitor activity, and customer needs to shape strategy.
• Business Development & Pipeline Ownership
  • Drive new revenue growth by proactively identifying, targeting, and converting high-value partners across DMCs, incentive agencies, and corporate travel planners.
  • Build and manage a robust, forward-looking pipeline, consistently generating demand and prioritising high-value opportunities.
  • Develop compelling, insight-led propositions by packaging experiences across the portfolio, owning opportunities end-to-end from initial engagement through to conversion and follow-up to drive new and incremental business.
  • Leverage Scotland Distilled as the primary trade-facing platform to engage partners and unlock new business opportunities.
• Key Account Management & Growth
  • Own and grow a portfolio of strategic travel trade accounts, developing and executing structured account plans to drive long-term revenue growth.
  • Lead regular account reviews, ensuring clear actions, performance tracking, and measurable outcomes.
  • Drive repeat business, increased spend across the portfolio, and deeper account partnerships.
  • Lead commercial negotiations with key partners, structuring agreements that deliver long-term value while protecting premium positioning.
• Leadership, Collaboration & Market Presence
  • Lead cross-functional teams to deliver strategic priorities, setting clear direction, driving accountability, and ensuring successful execution across the business.
  • Influence and manage senior internal stakeholders through strong communication and executive-level reporting, aligning priorities and securing support to unlock opportunities and deliver key partnerships.
  • Establish and embed structured ways of working, bringing clarity to priorities, improving effectiveness, and enabling consistent, high-quality delivery.
  • Act as a leader within the function, bringing teams on the journey, building engagement, and driving a more proactive and commercially focused approach.
  • Build the visibility and credibility of Scotland Distilled within the travel trade, representing the business at trade shows, sales missions, and industry events, and using it to showcase the portfolio through FAM trips, events, and partner engagement.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

• Building a strong, conversion-focused pipeline across priority incentive markets, creating consistent demand and high-quality opportunities.
• Driving significant growth across a defined portfolio of key travel trade accounts, increasing share of wallet and repeat business.
• Successfully developing and embedding Scotland Distilled as a recognised and valued trade-facing proposition within inbound tourism to Scotland.
• Building strong, effective relationships across internal teams, aligning stakeholders to deliver against commercial priorities and ensure a seamless end-to-end experience.
• Demonstrating leadership across the business, influencing ways of working, bringing clarity to priorities, and driving a more proactive, commercially focused approach.

ESSENTIAL EXPERIENCE

• Proven experience (minimum five years) in a Business Development Management, Account Director, or Senior Sales role within travel trade, MICE (with a strong incentive focus), or tourism.
• Demonstrated success in developing and growing strategic accounts, driving measurable revenue growth and long-term partnerships.
• Strong track record of winning new business and building a high-quality pipeline, with the ability to convert opportunities into commercial outcomes.
• Proven ability to enter a role and rapidly generate pipeline through an established industry network and existing market relationships.
• Experience working across intermediary partners such as DMCs, incentive agencies, tour operators, or corporate travel planners.
• Comfortable operating in a commercially driven, target-led environment, with ownership of revenue, pipeline, and performance.

CAPABILITIES

• Strategic Thinking: Builds clear, structured plans for segment and account growth, using data and insight to inform decisions and prioritisation.
• Business Development & Drive: Proactively creates opportunities.