Business Development Lead

The Business Development Lead will work closely with the CEO and Business Development Trustee to build a sustainable pipeline of corporate partners.

The role will focus on developing relationships that can generate:

• CSR and corporate sponsorship;
• multi-year funding partnerships;
• employee fundraising;
• volunteer mentors;
• skills-based volunteering;
• corporate introductions and wider strategic support.

The aim is not simply to generate one-off donations, but to build long-term corporate relationships that combine funding, employee engagement and measurable social impact.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and maintain a targeted pipeline of banks, asset managers, insurers, fintech companies and other financial-services organisations.
• Identify relevant CSR, ESG, social-impact, community-investment and employee-engagement opportunities.
• Research decision-makers and identify the strongest routes into prospective partners.
• Develop tailored corporate partnership propositions.
• Secure introductory meetings and manage follow-up.
• Work with the CEO and Trustee to prepare pitches, proposals and presentations.
• Build sponsorship propositions around:
  • student mentoring;
  • school cohorts;
  • programme delivery;
  • technology;
  • employability and careers;
  • and wider organisational growth.
• Develop corporate volunteer-mentor opportunities that are attractive and practical for financial-sector employees.
• Convert existing networks and introductions into structured partnership discussions.
• Maintain a clear partnership pipeline showing:
  • prospects;
  • contacts;
  • stage;
  • potential value;
  • next action;
  • and probability.
• Support stewardship and renewal of existing corporate partners.
• Explore employee fundraising, matched giving and corporate campaigns.
• Identify opportunities for corporate employees to contribute as mentors, speakers, career volunteers or ambassadors.
• Help create a repeatable corporate-partnership process that can grow with the charity.

Key priorities in the first 6 months

• Map priority banking and financial-services organisations.
• Build a qualified corporate prospect list.
• Develop a clear One Degree corporate partnership proposition.
• Progress renewal and extension opportunities with existing corporate supporters.
• Secure new meetings with senior CSR, ESG, HR, volunteering, community-investment and foundation leads.
• Develop a stronger pipeline of prospective corporate sponsors.
• Increase the number of suitable corporate volunteer mentors.
• Establish a structured approach to partnership reporting and stewardship.
• Leading to: Secured sponsorship of 50 x One Degree students every 6 months

Person specification

We are looking for someone who ideally has:

• experience in business development, partnerships, fundraising, CSR or corporate engagement;
• strong knowledge of banking, financial services or professional services;
• existing corporate networks or confidence building relationships with senior decision-makers;
• experience developing and progressing a sales or fundraising pipeline;
• excellent written and verbal communication;
• strong presentation and relationship-management skills;
• confidence making direct approaches and asking for meetings, introductions and support;
• ability to work independently with limited monthly time;
• a commercial mindset combined with an understanding of charitable impact.

Experience working directly within banking or financial services would be particularly valuable.

Success measures

Success would be assessed through:

• quality and value of the corporate pipeline;
• number of qualified corporate meetings;
• new corporate sponsorship secured;
• existing partnerships renewed or expanded;
• number of volunteer mentors sourced through corporate partners;
• development of multi-year rather than purely one-off relationships;
• quality of corporate stewardship;
• and creation of a repeatable partnership-development process.