Business Development, Admissions & Partnerships Executive in London

• BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, ADMISSIONS & PARTNERSHIPS EXECUTIVE
• London Software Training & London Fields Design School

ABOUT US

London Software Training (LST) and London Fields Design School (LFDS) are established creative education and professional training businesses based in Hackney.

We work with individuals, creative professionals and organisations, providing specialist software training, professional development and longer-term design education.

Our clients include the V&A, National Theatre, Universal Music, Brompton Bicycle, Burberry and Soho House.

We're looking for a commercially driven, personable and proactive individual to play a central role in our next stage of growth.

THE ROLE

We're looking for a Business Development, Admissions & Partnerships Executive to drive sales, develop new business, build partnerships and convert prospective students and clients across LST and LFDS.

The role is approximately 70% direct sales and business development and 30% partnerships, account development, events, course coordination and wider growth activity.

You'll work with everyone from individual students and designers to corporate clients, design studios, universities, charities and other organisations.

You'll convert existing opportunities, but importantly, we're looking for someone who can create opportunities themselves.

We want someone who enjoys speaking to people, building relationships, picking up the phone and finding creative ways to generate new business.

You'll also use AI and modern sales technology to amplify what you can achieve, from prospect research and personalised outreach to CRM, organisation and efficiency.

• SALES & ADMISSIONS
• Respond to and convert inbound course and training enquiries.
• Speak with prospective students and clients by phone, email, video and face-to-face.
• Understand customer needs and recommend appropriate training or programmes.
• Manage prospective students through the admissions process.
• Follow up enquiries consistently.
• Cross-sell relevant courses and services.
• BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

A significant part of the role involves proactively creating opportunities rather than relying solely on inbound enquiries.

• Identify and approach potential corporate clients.
• Prospect organisations that could benefit from software, design and professional training.
• Develop targeted outbound campaigns.
• Re-engage dormant clients and previous enquiries.
• Develop existing accounts and identify new opportunities.
• Build relationships with decision-makers and training managers.
• Generate repeat business from previous customers.
• Build and maintain a healthy pipeline.

You'll be expected to be comfortable picking up the phone, writing personalised outreach and developing relationships over time.

PARTNERSHIPS & REFERRAL DEVELOPMENT

Develop relationships that create sustainable sources of students, referrals and commercial opportunities.

Potential partners and organisations include

• Schools, colleges and universities.
• Charities, councils and employability organisations.
• Employers and corporate organisations.
• Design studios and creative agencies.
• Businesses looking to build, strengthen or bring design capabilities in-house.
• Organisations looking to upskill creative, marketing or design teams.
• Recruitment and talent organisations.
• Creative, cultural and community organisations.
• Alumni and previous students.

You'll look for practical ways these relationships can generate referrals, events, training opportunities, new students and longer-term commercial partnerships.

• EXISTING ACCOUNTS
• Maintain relationships with previous corporate clients.
• Identify additional departments or teams we could support.
• Follow up after training and encourage repeat bookings.
• COURSE COORDINATION & COMMERCIAL SUPPORT

You'll help ensure training sold by the team is successfully organised and delivered.

This may include

• Arranging course dates with clients and learners.
• Coordinating trainer availability and matching trainers to requirements.
• Updating timetables and schedules.
• Arranging one-to-one and corporate training.
• Communicating scheduling information to clients, students and trainers.
• Rescheduling courses and solving practical scheduling issues.

This provides continuity between selling training and successfully delivering it, rather than being a general administrative role.

EVENTS, COMMUNITY & ALUMNI

Support commercially useful activities including

• Open days and portfolio reviews.
• Talks, workshops and industry events.
• Alumni and partnership activity.

You’ll help ensure these activities generate and follow up genuine leads, partnerships and referrals.

AI & SMART WORKING

We want AI to be a practical part of how we work.

You’ll use AI and modern digital tools to increase productivity and commercial effectiveness, including:

• Prospect and company research.
• Identifying clients, partners and decision-makers.
• Personalised outreach and sales campaigns.
• Improving follow-up and sales materials.
• Segmenting leads and clients.
• Streamlining repetitive administrative and course coordination tasks.

You don’t need to be an AI specialist, but you should be curious, resourceful and interested in finding smarter ways of working.

• CRM, PIPELINE & REPORTING
• Keep CRM records accurate and current.
• Maintain and report on a clear sales pipeline and next actions.
• Follow up opportunities consistently.
• Track lead sources and conversion.
• Identify patterns and commercial opportunities.

We want the CRM to be a useful commercial tool, not simply somewhere information is stored.

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

• Commercially driven and motivated by results.
• Proactive rather than purely reactive.
• Confident on the phone and face-to-face.
• Personable and good at building relationships.
• Persistent without being pushy.
• Highly organised with strong follow-up habits.
• Comfortable taking ownership and generating your own opportunities.
• Able to balance sales with practical course coordination.
• Confident using CRM, AI and digital tools.
• Curious about businesses and what makes organisations buy.
• Comfortable working in a small, entrepreneurial team.
• Interested in design, technology, education or the creative industries.

EXPERIENCE

Relevant backgrounds could include business development, sales, recruitment, admissions, professional training, education, Saa S, memberships, events, account management or partnerships.

More important than having worked in exactly the same industry is demonstrating that you can build relationships, create opportunities, follow them through and generate revenue.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

Success will ultimately be measured by commercial impact, including

• Increased conversion of inbound enquiries.
• A growing outbound pipeline.
• Increased repeat business.
• Reactivation of dormant clients and leads.
• Partnerships generating measurable opportunities.
• Strong CRM and follow-up discipline.
• Smooth coordination of confirmed training.
• Effective use of AI to increase productivity and reach.

While the role includes partnerships, events and course coordination, sales and revenue growth remain its primary objectives.

SALARY & BENEFITS

£35,000–£40,000 base salary depending on experience.

£50,000–£70,000 OTE in the first year through performance-related commission.

• Performance-related commission rewarding measurable commercial performance across new business, sales conversion and revenue growth.

THE OPPORTUNITY

Join two established independent training and education businesses and have a meaningful influence on their next stage of growth.

You’ll have freedom to develop new approaches, test ideas, build relationships and improve how we sell, working from our Hackney studio alongside our students, trainers and team.

We’re not looking for someone who simply waits for enquiries to arrive.

• We’re looking for someone who sees an opportunity, picks up the phone, starts a conversation and follows it through.
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