Senior Business Development Manager at CrossBoundary

Who You Are

• Self-starter who is passionate about clean energy and its potential to transform fragile states and frontier markets in Africa
• A textbook extrovert; the opportunity to meet and speak with people all day every day is what gets you energized and out of bed in the morning
• An articulate, assertive negotiator who enjoys challenging people’s preconceived notions and welcomes debate and disagreement as learning opportunities
• Doesn’t take “no” for an answer; persistent, confident, and creative in finding ways to advance business opportunities and reframe your value proposition
• Active within networks of and strong relationships with leaders of Africa’s energy-intensive industries – manufacturing, agriculture, fast-moving consumer goods, cement – and robust inroads into multinational corporations in Africa and their relevant decision-makers
• Persuasive storyteller equally compelling in person, in writing, or on the phone
• Experienced at identifying champions and building coalitions within corporate bureaucracies to get things done; recognizes the unique challenges of business-to-business sales
• Empathetic and thoughtful listener who strives to learn from clients’ perspectives
• Sound commercial judgment; independently assesses and prioritizes valuable leads
• Fast learner who can effectively distill complex issues down to simple, clear, targeted messaging
• Ability to identify and connect with a broad range of audiences
• Comfort with ambiguity; thrives in a changing, challenging context

Qualifications

The ideal candidate will possess the following skills and qualifications:

• 5+ years of business development experience across multiple African countries, especially East Africa
• 5+ years of business-to-business technical sales experience at a top-tier firm
• Work experience in the commercial energy sector
• Bachelor's degree
• Fluency in a relevant local or regional language

Required skills and qualifications:

• 2+ years of business-to-business technical sales experience at a top-tier firm
• Work experience in emerging markets
• Experience selling products or services to large industrial clients
• Experience or interest in project financing mechanisms
• Proficient in Microsoft Suite, especially Excel and PowerPoint

Primary Responsibilities

• Design and implement quarterly regional plans for sourcing, pursuing, and closing deals
• Identify new high-potential clients and introduce them to CBE’s product through meetings, calls, and email communication
• Tailor the value proposition and sales approach to each client’s business activities, priorities, and most especially their internal decision-making processes
• Present custom proposals to clients and answer questions about the commercial, financial, legal, and technical aspects of a solar PPA contract
• Continuously interact with and manage stakeholders within client organizations to drive toward a decision. This will include regular calls and meetings with managers at multiple levels (local, regional, global) and across functional teams (procurement, legal, finance, engineering)
• Manage your sales pipeline to continuously source fresh leads while advancing existing opportunities toward key milestones
• Lead negotiation of a variety of solar financing contracts including power purchase agreements, leases, and loans, with support from CBE legal and business development teams
• Cultivate and manage relationships with a wide range of developers and technical partners to originate, develop, and close projects
• Translate customer feedback on CBE’s products into proposals for new products or features