The Business Development Specialist is responsible for researching and prospecting new partnerships that align with the university’s strategic growth plan. The goal of this position is to help grow inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, and revenue through newly established strategic relationships.

The Business Development Specialist will research strategic prospective partners and verticals to identify viable opportunities that support the goals of the university as well as conduct outreach to connect with organizational points of contact for the purpose of creating discovery calls and scheduling meetings for the Director of Business Development. In addition, this role will support and implement the strategic outreach efforts for newly signed partnerships as developed by the Director and Associate Director of Business Development. This position requires working with prospective students with the goal of delivering qualified inquiries and assisting students through the admissions pipeline.

The successful candidate will work fully remote or hybrid and report to the Director of Business Development. This position is based out of the university’s home office in Albany, NY with the option of considering remote candidates. Remote employees will have mandatory occasional travel for meetings, conferences, and professional development opportunities. Remote employees are expected to be available during work hours 8:30am – 5:00pm Eastern time. The University will supply necessary equipment to perform the essential functions of this job (e.g., laptop, docking station). Employees are responsible for having a workspace where they can participate in virtual meetings without multiple interruptions and noise.

Duties and Responsibilities

Assist in executing on the growth sales strategy, developed by the Director of Business Development which enables new business growth, proposal development, cultivates client relationships, and strengthens existing strategic clients.

Research and prospect specific clients that support the needs of the university as directed by the Director of Business Development.

Prospecting includes and is not limited to cold calls, phone conversations, emails, email exchanges, the leverage of social media, and face-to-face conversations at conferences with prospective partners at the B2B and B2C levels.

Represent Excelsior University at appropriate conferences, participating in seminars/forums, etc. The primary focus of the Business Development Specialist is assisting in the development of B2B relationships and B2C engagements with the goal of identifying potential strategic partnerships to grow inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, and revenue.

Ensure consistency with Excelsior’s brand with partners, students, and team members to ensure delivery of a consistent, branded, and accurate message.

Identify points of contact for potential contacts and coordinate prospective partner meetings for the Director of Business Development.

Organize potential partner lists and information and store in an organized system in SharePoint.

Coordinate and track all partner and student activities (calls, emails, events) via Salesforce.

Possess a strong understanding of Excelsior University degree programs and services and convey this information to potential partners to align workforce and needs and organization needs with Excelsior solutions.

Generate and provide reports along with updates.

Qualifications

Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution.

At least one year of work experience in a related role, such as sales, business development and account management, marketing, admissions, or recruiting required.

Experience working in Higher Education or other learning-related field with adult learners a plus, as is additional professional work experience.

A drive for success in researching and identifying new prospective partners that will help grow inquiries, enrollments, credit taking, and revenue generation.

Willingness to establish and build relationships with key decision makers and develop a high level of understanding for professional development and workforce needs within key organizations and verticals.

Willingness to work with multiple, diverse stakeholders across complex organizations and different populations and recognize opportunities for growth.

Ability to prioritize and produce qualified potential partner leads and meetings.

Project management skills and the ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities effectively.

Demonstrate creativity, enthusiasm, and openness to innovation.

Ability to master a wide body of knowledge and information.

Ability to excel working fully remote or hybrid in a professional, private, and quiet workspace managing multiple priorities and meeting deadlines and goals.

Ability to review/prepare accurate detailed documents.

Proficient computer literacy and willingness to learn new applications, Knowledge of Microsoft Office products required. Knowledge of Salesforce and SharePoint a plus.

Self-disciplined with proven ability to work independently and with initiative to successfully achieve goals and objectives.

Depending on location, this position may require the ability to work from a home office. Albany based staff are expected to work onsite a minimum of two days per week. This position requires regional and national travel (including weekend and overnight travel).

The hiring salary range for this position is $56,000.00 - $60,000.00. The hiring salary range above represents the University's good faith estimate at the time of posting.