Business Development Manager

A newly established UAE holding company is building national-scale platforms across a diversified portfolio of strategic, high-growth sectors. It is now creating a world-class group marketing function, and this role sits at its commercial front line. Your job: find, shape and land strategic opportunities across the group s marketing, partnership and portfolio ecosystem, from first market signal through to a clean handover. WHY THIS ROLE Multi-sector exposure work across a portfolio of businesses and audiences, not a single brand. Build, don t inherit shape the BD pipeline, processes and tools of a function that is still taking form. Senior visibility work alongside executives, portfolio leaders, government stakeholders and strategic partners. Real impact pursue opportunities that build long-term economic capability for the UAE. WHAT YOU LL DO Spot the opportunities. Research sectors, markets and partners, set clear qualification criteria, and recommend whether to pursue, partner, monitor or decline. Build the case. Turn opportunities into sharp propositions, market assessments and business cases, pulling in Finance, Legal, portfolio companies and subject-matter experts. Win the pitch. Lead pitch decks, proposals and RFP responses, working with in-house storytelling and studio teams to make complex ideas persuasive. Run a tight pipeline. Own CRM discipline, run regular pipeline reviews, and track conversion, cycle time, value and win/loss reasons. Read the market. Track competitors, new market entrants, government priorities and sector shifts, using AI research tools responsibly and validating against credible sources. Connect the portfolio. Find opportunities that combine capabilities across portfolio companies, broker introductions, and hand over with clear ownership. HOW SUCCESS IS MEASURED Qualified pipeline value and quality Conversion and win rates Speed to decision Business-case quality Pipeline accuracy Cross-portfolio opportunities created

Desired Candidate Profile

WHAT YOU LL BRING 7-10 years in business development, strategy, partnerships, consulting, corporate development or B2B marketing. A proven track record of building propositions and business cases, and winning pitches. Sharp research skills and commercial judgement; confident with CRM, Excel and PowerPoint, and curious about AI tools. A clear communicator who can simplify complexity for senior audiences. Bachelor s degree; a postgraduate or professional qualification is a plus. Fluent English; Arabic is desirable. UAE/GCC market and senior-stakeholder experience is a strong advantage.