Business Development Lead

Business Development Lead

Full-Time 60000 - 80000 £ / year (est.) No working from home possible
Planhat

At a Glance

  • Tasks: Lead and scale a high-performing sales team to drive pipeline and revenue growth.
  • Company: Dynamic customer platform focused on lifelong customer relationships.
  • Benefits: Competitive salary, career development opportunities, and a vibrant work culture.
  • Other info: Fast-paced environment with opportunities for personal and professional growth.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact by building a successful sales organisation from the ground up.
  • Qualifications: 5+ years in sales development with leadership experience and a strong sales background.

The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 £ per year.

The customer platform built to acquire, service and grow lifelong customers. We seek a sales-focused Vertical Business Development Lead with a proven track record in building and scaling high-performing BDR/SDR/Sales organizations. This role sits at the intersection of sales execution, process optimization, and team leadership, ensuring our outbound engine consistently produces predictable and high-quality pipeline. It is not a high-level management role; you will also do the work. The candidate is deeply comfortable with CRM, engagement platforms, and sales operations infrastructure to optimize efficiency.

Key Responsibilities

  • Sales Leadership & Team Scaling: Build, lead, and scale a high-volume BDR team capable of consistently hitting aggressive pipeline targets. Recruit, train, and retain top sales talent while establishing a structured performance framework (KPIs, quotas, comp models, promotion paths). Foster a competitive, metrics-driven, and coaching-oriented sales culture. Establish repeatable playbooks and frameworks to enable fast onboarding and predictable performance across geographies, markets, and verticals.
  • Revenue Generation & Alignment: Own responsibility for pipeline creation, ensuring that outbound efforts consistently translate into high-quality pipeline and ultimately revenue. Partner closely with Account Executives, Sales Leadership, and Marketing to optimize territory coverage, lead handoff, and campaign execution. Set clear productivity and conversion benchmarks (calls, sequences, meetings, SQLs, closed-won impact) and manage the team rigorously against them.
  • Process, Systems & Operations: Design and implement scalable prospecting processes across multiple segments and markets in close collaboration with the Revenue Operations team. Leverage CRM (e.g., Planhat, HubSpot) and sales engagement tools (e.g., Outreach, Orum) to maximize workflow efficiency and output quality. Partner with RevOps to ensure accurate reporting and performance metrics to monitor leading/lagging indicators. Continuously evaluate and improve existing and new workflows to drive volume, personalization, and conversion at scale.
  • Execution & Hands-On Involvement: Lead from the front, personally supporting high-value prospecting campaigns and modeling best practices in outreach. Coach BDRs on objection handling, messaging, and qualification to improve sales acumen and confidence. Drive continuous experimentation in outbound sequences, multichannel engagement, and sales messaging to maximize ROI.

Qualifications

  • 5+ years of experience in high-volume BDR/SDR, AE, or Business Development, with 2+ years in leadership roles.
  • Proven track record of scaling sales development teams (e.g., from single digits to 20–50+ reps) while achieving ambitious pipeline/revenue contribution targets.
  • Strong sales pedigree: deep understanding of sales qualification methodologies (BANT, MEDDIC, SPICED, etc.) and outbound prospecting best practices.
  • Systems-savvy: expert in CRM, engagement tools, and sales automation; ability to architect efficient workflows, reporting, and dashboards.
  • Data-driven operator with a demonstrated ability to optimize for conversion, productivity, and ROI at scale.
  • Excellent communicator, motivator, and coach, capable of building trust with both executives and front-line reps.
  • Growth-oriented, entrepreneurial mindset with the resilience to thrive in a fast-paced, high-expectation sales environment.

Success in This Role

  • Scaling a high-volume BDR organization that consistently outperforms pipeline and revenue contribution targets.
  • Implementing systems, processes, and playbooks that enable predictable, repeatable performance.
  • Building a culture of sales excellence, career development, and accountability across the team.
  • Driving significant top-of-funnel growth while aligning tightly with Sales, Marketing, and RevOps.

Business Development Lead employer: Planhat

As a Manager in Deployment Strategy and Growth, you will thrive in a dynamic environment that champions innovation and accountability. Our company fosters a culture of ambition and collaboration, offering exceptional growth opportunities and the chance to make a tangible impact on customer success and revenue outcomes. Located in a vibrant area, we provide a supportive atmosphere where your tech-savvy curiosity and drive for excellence can flourish, making us an outstanding employer for top talent seeking meaningful and rewarding careers.

Planhat

Contact Details:

Planhat Recruitment Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫

We think this is how you could land Business Development Lead

Tip Number 1

Get your networking game on! Reach out to people in the industry, attend events, and connect with potential colleagues on LinkedIn. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or can put in a good word for you.

Tip Number 2

Show off your skills in real-time! If you get the chance, ask for a meeting or a casual chat with hiring managers. This is your moment to demonstrate your knowledge about sales processes and how you can lead a team to success.

Tip Number 3

Be proactive! Don’t just wait for job postings to appear. Reach out directly to companies you admire, like us at StudySmarter, and express your interest in potential roles. A little initiative can go a long way!

Tip Number 4

Prepare for interviews by practising common questions related to sales leadership and team scaling. Use specific examples from your past experiences to showcase how you've built high-performing teams and driven revenue growth.

We think you need these skills to ace Business Development Lead

Sales Leadership
Team Scaling
Pipeline Creation
CRM Proficiency
Sales Engagement Tools
Performance Metrics
Process Optimization

Some tips for your application 🫡

Tailor Your Application:Make sure to customise your CV and cover letter for the Business Development Lead role. Highlight your experience in building and scaling sales teams, and don’t forget to mention any specific metrics or achievements that showcase your success in previous roles.

Showcase Your Sales Savvy:We want to see your understanding of sales methodologies and tools. Mention your experience with CRM systems and engagement platforms, and how you've used them to optimise sales processes. This will show us you're not just a leader but also hands-on and tech-savvy.

Demonstrate Leadership Skills:In your application, emphasise your leadership style and how you’ve fostered a competitive, coaching-oriented culture in past roles. Share examples of how you've recruited, trained, and retained top talent, as this is key for the role.

Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you’re considered for the role. Plus, it gives you a chance to explore more about our company culture and values!

How to prepare for a job interview at Planhat

Know Your Numbers

Before the interview, brush up on your sales metrics and achievements. Be ready to discuss specific KPIs you've hit in previous roles, like pipeline growth or conversion rates. This shows you understand the importance of data-driven results.

Demonstrate Leadership Skills

Prepare examples of how you've built and scaled teams in the past. Talk about your approach to recruiting, training, and retaining top talent. Highlight any structured performance frameworks you've implemented to drive success.

Familiarise Yourself with Tools

Since this role requires a strong grasp of CRM and sales engagement tools, make sure you're comfortable discussing your experience with platforms like HubSpot or Outreach. Be ready to explain how you've used these tools to optimise sales processes.

Showcase Your Coaching Ability

Think of instances where you've coached team members to improve their sales skills. Discuss your methods for objection handling and messaging. This will demonstrate your hands-on involvement and commitment to developing others in a sales environment.