Senior Business Development Manager in Bradford

• Senior Business Development Manager
• (Permanent, full-time)

Location: Field-based / home-based, UK-wide, with quarterly meetings at our Bradford office

• Department: Commercial
• Reports to: Head of Commercial Sales
• Main purpose of job

To grow Sovereign Health Care’s corporate paid health cash plan business, mainly through intermediaries (employee benefits consultants, brokers and other advisers), alongside direct opportunities with employers.

As a senior member of the commercial team, you will play a key role in developing our intermediary channel.

The initial focus is to identify, onboard and develop intermediary partners, building the relationships that will generate new business as our intermediary proposition grows.

You will then manage those broker relationships on an ongoing basis, working with them to convert introductions into new corporate schemes.

Alongside your work with Intermediaries we are also looking to build a strong corporate direct pipeline and you will support this as required and in-line with objectives.

Company Overview

Sovereign Health Care (SHC) is a 150-year-old, Bradford-based organisation committed to promoting better health for everyone.

SHC’s core mission is to help people achieve this goal, underpinned by the following core values:

Above all, we are customer-focused.
We do the right thing.
We work hard for each other.
We are always improving.
We believe in Sovereign Health Care.

Today, SHC’s primary business offers affordable health cash plan products to individual consumers and corporate clients.

For a modest monthly premium, these products reimburse customers for everyday healthcare expenses, such as dental, optical and physiotherapy.

Main duties

• Identify and approach target intermediaries, building a pipeline of partners in line with the company’s distribution strategy.
• Lead the onboarding of new intermediaries through to being ready to trade, including agreeing the Terms of Business Agreement (TOBA).
• Manage and develop ongoing relationships with intermediary partners as their main point of contact, through regular, planned contact, product and market updates, and account plans for key partners.
• Work with intermediaries to convert introductions into new corporate paid schemes, providing quotes, proposals and product information, and presenting alongside them to their clients.
• Lead on larger and more complex opportunities, including tenders and broker-led market reviews, coordinating input from across the business to deliver high-quality, compliant and timely submissions.
• Pursue direct opportunities with employers as they arise, leading discovery conversations with senior decision-makers and presenting tailored solutions through to a signed scheme.
• Manage negotiations with clients and intermediaries through to agreed terms and successful contract completion.
• Support new schemes through implementation, handing over to Account Management in line with the agreed onboarding process, and to the worksite team for voluntary cash plan opportunities.
• Act as one of Sovereign Health Care’s most senior representatives in the intermediary market, at events, exhibitions, roundtables and industry bodies, and build a professional presence on Linked In.
• Share market intelligence, competitor insight and partner feedback to help shape the company’s intermediary proposition.
• Accurately record all activity, pipeline and sales forecasts in the CRM system.
• Work closely with the Head of Commercial Sales on sales and distribution strategy, helping to influence our proposition, pricing and terms of business.
• Coach and support the Business Development & Account Support Executive, support sales colleagues and share best practice, helping to shape our sales processes.
• Take ownership of your new business and intermediary objectives, making a meaningful contribution to the growth of our corporate business.
• Follow standard company and departmental processes and procedures, sharing ideas for improvement with your line manager.

Person specification

Relevant experience

Essential

• A substantial track record of sales success in a B2B business development role, ideally within health cash plans or private medical insurance, or the wider employee benefits market.
• Evidence of developing and managing relationships with intermediaries at a senior level, such as employee benefits consultants, brokers or IFAs.
• Understanding of how the intermediary market operates, including TOBAs, intermediary due diligence, remuneration and the respective regulatory responsibilities of provider and intermediary.
• Experience of presenting to and negotiating with senior decision-makers.
• Full UK driving licence and willingness to travel throughout the UK, including occasional overnight stays.
• A substantial, established network of employee benefits consultants, brokers and HR/reward decision-makers.
• Knowledge of the health cash plan market and Sovereign Health Care’s competitors.

Desirable

• Experience of onboarding intermediaries or building an intermediary channel.
• Experience of leading tender responses or broker-led market reviews.
• Involvement with relevant industry bodies, such as AMII or REBA.
• CII IF7 (Healthcare insurance products and practice) qualification.
• Aptitude, skills and abilities
• Commercially astute, with a strong understanding of market dynamics across a range of industries.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, presentation and negotiation skills, including clear, well-structured emails, proposals and tender responses that tell a compelling story and position the product with clarity and impact.
• Able to build trusted, long-term relationships with intermediaries and senior decision-makers, and to influence at all levels.
• Exemplary planning, organisation and time management skills, with the ability to manage multiple opportunities and prioritise effectively.
• Problem solving – an inquisitive mind that anticipates obstacles and presents appropriate solutions.
• Competent in Microsoft Office applications, including Word, Excel and Outlook, and experienced in using CRM systems.
• Good awareness of FCA, PRA, Consumer Duty and data protection requirements.
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Personal attributes
• Commitment to customer service excellence, internally and externally.
• Self-starter who is resilient, tenacious and highly motivated, and comfortable working remotely on your own initiative.
• Team player, willing to share experience and knowledge to support colleagues.
• Commitment to continuous improvement, with the confidence to contribute to proposition and sales process development.
• Adaptable to change and willing to help drive it.
• A professional ambassador for Sovereign Health Care at all times.
• Disposition
• Accountability – committed to taking ownership and responsibility for agreed actions and delivery.
• Takes ownership of tasks with a proactive, can-do attitude.
• Patient, relationship-led approach, investing in intermediary partnerships that deliver over the longer term.

This is a fantastic time to join our growing business.

You’ll work directly alongside, and be mentored by, our Head of Commercial Sales, giving you the opportunity to develop your commercial skills, learn from an experienced sales leader and make a real impact from day one.

If you’re ambitious, commercially minded and ready to accelerate your career in business development, we’d love to hear from you.