About ASSIST Vietnam
ASSIST Vietnam is an international non-governmental organization that has implemented social and environmental initiatives in Vietnam since 2007. We work with companies, development partners, industry sorganizations, communities, and technical experts to design and deliver solutions that create measurable social and environmental value. Learn more at www.assistasia.org.
Position Summary
The Senior Business Development Associate will identify, develop, and convert business opportunities for ASSIST Vietnam’s corporate, CSR, ESG, and development services. The role owns key stages of the business development cycle, from market and account planning through client engagement, solution development, proposal preparation, negotiation, contracting, and handover to the project team.
This is a senior individual-contributor role requiring commercial judgment, disciplined pipeline management, and the ability to coordinate cross-functional teams. The position also contributes to business development strategy and action plan of the BD unit.
Key Responsibilities
Business Development and Commercial Results
- Develop market and account plans, identify priority sectors and organizations, and build a qualified pipeline of corporate clients, donors, and strategic partners.
- Lead prospecting, opportunity qualification, discovery meetings, solution positioning, proposal presentations, commercial follow-up, negotiation, and contracting activities.
- Translate client needs into clearly defined opportunities and coordinate with internal team to shape relevant, feasible, and commercially sound solutions.
- Deliver agreed pipeline, proposal, conversion, revenue, and account-development targets while protecting scope quality and contribution margin.
- Prepare reliable pipeline updates and forecasts, identify risks or bottlenecks early, and recommend actions to improve conversion and sales-cycle performance.
Proposal and Solution Development
- Lead the development of concept notes, proposals, presentations, workplans, and commercial offers in collaboration with project, technical, finance, and management teams.
- Ensure that proposals clearly define the client need, approach, deliverables, timeline, responsibilities, assumptions, budget, and commercial terms.
- Coordinate internal reviews and approvals and maintain accurate proposal and opportunity documentation.
- Provide a structured handover to the project team after contract signing and remain engaged on client satisfaction, renewal, and follow-on opportunities.
Strategic Partnerships and Client Relationships
- Build trusted relationships with client decision makers and manage selected key accounts with a focus on repeat business and long-term value.
- Develop partnerships and referral channels with companies, industry associations, professional networks, development organizations, technical partners, and community stakeholders.
- Represent ASSIST professionally at meetings, workshops, conferences, and networking events and strengthen the organization’s visibility in priority markets.
- Gather market intelligence and client feedback to improve service packages, pricing, positioning, and go-to-market plans.
Team and Process Contribution
- Contribute to the development and execution of ASSIST Vietnam’s business development strategy, annual targets, campaigns, and account priorities.
- Maintain accurate and timely records of accounts, contacts, activities, opportunities, proposals, next actions, probability, and expected value in the agreed pipeline-management system.
- Promote collaboration, professional integrity, confidentiality, and accurate representation of ASSIST’s capabilities and commitments.
Performance Areas
Specific targets will be agreed with the BD Lead and reviewed regularly. Core areas include:
|
Area |
Expected Contribution |
|
Commercial results |
Signed revenue, contribution margin, conversion, and quality of scope |
|
Pipeline |
Sufficient qualified pipeline coverage and timely opportunity progression |
|
Key accounts |
Client retention, repeat business, referrals, and account growth |
|
Proposal quality |
Relevant, competitive, complete, and accurately costed proposals |
|
Forecast discipline |
Accurate records, next actions, probability, timing, and revenue forecasts |
Candidate Profile
Essential Qualifications and Experience
- Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, international business, economics, development studies, sustainability, social sciences, or another relevant discipline.
- At least 5 years of relevant experience in business development, consultative sales, partnerships, fundraising, account management, or professional services.
- Demonstrated track record of building pipelines, developing proposals, managing client relationships, and converting opportunities into contracts or funded projects.
- Ability to independently manage a multi-stage business development process and coordinate colleagues from different technical and operational functions.
- Strong written and spoken Vietnamese and English, including the ability to prepare and present persuasive proposals and communicate with senior stakeholders.
- Strong commercial judgment, negotiation, problem-solving, planning, and relationship-management skills.
- High level of ownership, integrity, attention to detail, and resilience in managing multiple priorities and deadlines.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office or Google Workspace and confidence using CRM or pipeline-management tools.
Preferred Experience
- Experience in CSR, ESG, sustainability, social impact, development consulting, training, or other knowledge-based services.
- Experience working with corporate clients, international organizations, development partners, foundations, or industry associations.
- An established professional network in Vietnam and experience developing strategic partnerships or referral channels.
Core Competencies
Consultative selling; commercial and strategic thinking; client orientation; persuasive communication; negotiation; ownership and follow-through; collaboration; adaptability; and professional integrity.
How to Apply
Please send your CV and a short cover note with the subject Senior BD Associate Application to [email protected] and [email protected]