Business Developer

Bakken & Bæck is a technology-driven design studio working out of Oslo, Amsterdam, Bonn, and London. Building digital products, brands, and businesses, we help ambitious companies identify, explore and respond to new opportunities.

From defining the future home with IKEA to building decentralized platforms with Coinbase; we are in the business of breaking new grounds. As one international team across offices, we have all the skill-sets needed to help businesses adapt to an increasingly complex world.

We’re committed to cultivating a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone feels comfortable, regardless of their identity, experiences, and beliefs. We want BB to be a place where you can try out new things with the risk of failing, where you can take ownership over your own work without being micromanaged, and where there’s a low barrier for coming up with ideas — no matter your job title or discipline.

Work-life balance shouldn’t be a perk, but a given. We strongly believe in flexibility, knowing that creativity doesn’t always happen between 9 and 5. At BB you’ll be given a lot of freedom, which means managing your own priorities, trying out new things, and working a flexible hours scheme.

About the role:

We’re looking for an experienced and driven business developer to join our growing business development team which works internationally across all our offices. You will qualify, engage, and define new opportunities for BB. Balancing fit with commercial health and growth is vital to being aligned with values like accessibility, sustainability, and inclusion.

This pivotal role in the company will involve exploring opportunities with new and existing clients, nurturing relationships across industries, and playing a key role in shaping our business development focus and strategy. You will work with our Head of Business Development, and closely with designers, developers, product managers, and strategists to produce proposals and presentations, taking ownership of client contact at all points.

A typical workday will see you involved in the following:

MANAGEMENT OF INBOUND LEADS FROM END-TO-END

• Independently manage inbound leads
• Qualify the fit and viability of new projects using our Scorebox criteria
• Help undertake secondary research and client/industry analysis to support our understanding of client briefs to enable more effective and compelling project proposals.
• Coordinate internally and respond as per agreed approach and track progress of leads, from first conversation to project sign-off.
• Initiate, lead, and navigate conversations around project fit and pricing
• Write and coordinate proposals
• Suggest suitable compensation models and negotiate project fees and contract terms
• Refine process around new business and internal decision making

PROACTIVE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

• Contribute to positioning and elevating the profile of BB, for our international audience
• Take an active role in seeking out and growing new business. The role comes with a lot of autonomy to map out new offerings in different sectors and connect with potential new clients.
• Identify and acquire new innovative(fast growing/disruptive) business partners across a variety of industries; build and leverage existing strategic partnerships
• Identify new leads and sectors of focus that align with overall BB strategy and qualify them. Turn leads into clients by presenting the BB process and determining fit.

RELATIONSHIP BUILDING

• Nurture new relationships
• Be the common thread from initial new business conversations to the point of contact throughout the early stages of engagement
• Support project teams in exploratory phase to:
• Lead research, discovery, and planning
• Plan and facilitate workshops with key stakeholders to understand project aims and success criteria
• Collaboratively, along with the client and BB teams, shape a scope of work
• With help from the team, wrap-up findings into a deck, including a plan for the next phase(s) of work
• Provide estimates based on an agreed scope

Qualifications:

• Strong business acumen
• Business development, client facing or key account management experience; preferably from a creative agency or similar
• Experience with scoping, pitching and selling digital and design solutions
• Experience planning teams, capacity, and schedules for creative and digital projects
• Experience with negotiations and setting budgets
• An interest in or previous experience with emerging technologies such as ML, AI, Spatial Computing, Blockchain, and Crypto
• Excellent English communication and presentation skills.

What we offer:

• Doing things together - When not in the midst of a global pandemic we like to get together as often as we can across offices. Yearly trips, meetups, parties and dinners, or work on interesting projects together.
• Power your own ideas - Do you have a project you've always dreamed of? A company you admire, or a problem you are dying to solve? At BB you'll have a say in what projects we take on.
• Remote when you need - We try our best to keep location from obstructing our cross office collaboration. As long as you have the possibility to come in to the office a few times a week (for workshops, social gatherings, etc.), you're welcome to design a hybrid setup that works for you.
• Parental leave and baby bonus - We got the moms and dads in the company to design our very own “baby kit”, that includes a £2000 bonus, so you can get a head start on your new parental adventures.
• Keep it healthy - We provide an extensive support package that includes a solid health insurance, sponsored therapy sessions, access to physiological treatment and a lot more.
• Learning budget - You'll get an annual allowance of £1500 to go wherever you need to stay inspired and learn new things.

Other information:

• To get a better feel for what we care about as a company, our perks, and our work philosophy, check out our Company Handbook
• Deadline: Please apply by 30th of April 2022
• Get in touch with Barrie Bloor (barrie@bakkenbaeck.com) in case of any questions