Business Development Manager

Position Summary

The Business Development Manager is an individual contributor responsible for developing, strengthening, and expanding client relationships within an assigned market. This position builds awareness of Knott Laboratory's capabilities, identifies business opportunities, develops relationships with prospective and existing clients, and connects client needs with the appropriate technical expertise and services within the organization.

The Business Development Manager serves as an external ambassador for Knott Laboratory within their assigned market, developing trusted relationships with attorneys, insurance professionals, corporate clients, and other organizations that utilize forensic engineering and technical consulting services.

Success in this position requires strong relationship-building skills, consistent market activity, business acumen, disciplined pipeline management, and close collaboration with engineering and technical professionals. The Business Development Manager is accountable for business development results within their assigned market but does not have formal people-management responsibilities.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Business Development and Market Growth

Develop and execute business development activities within an assigned geographic market.

Identify prospective clients and business opportunities that align with Knott Laboratory's technical capabilities and growth objectives.

Develop new client relationships through networking, professional outreach, referrals, industry involvement, meetings, educational opportunities, and other appropriate business development activities.

Maintain regular and meaningful contact with existing and prospective clients.

Build awareness and understanding of Knott Laboratory's forensic engineering, accident reconstruction, and other technical consulting capabilities.

Identify client needs and connect clients with the appropriate engineers, experts, or technical resources.

Generate qualified opportunities and contribute to the conversion of prospective relationships into active client engagements.

Develop strategies for expanding relationships with existing clients and identifying additional opportunities to serve them.

Maintain a consistent presence within the assigned market and develop a strong understanding of its clients, competitors, industries, and business opportunities.

Represent Knott Laboratory at relevant professional associations, conferences, networking events, client meetings, presentations, and other market activities.

Support educational presentations, continuing education programs, client events, and other relationship-development activities as appropriate.

Maintain appropriate follow-up with prospective and existing clients to strengthen relationships and advance business opportunities.

Client Relationship Management

• Establish and maintain trusted professional relationships with existing and prospective clients.
• Develop an understanding of clients' businesses, needs, priorities, and service expectations.
• Serve as a relationship resource and connector between clients and Knott Laboratory's technical professionals.
• Coordinate introductions and conversations between clients and appropriate engineering or technical experts.
• Maintain visibility into significant client relationships and proactively identify opportunities, concerns, or changing needs.
• Partner with technical professionals to provide a coordinated and responsive client experience.
• Gather appropriate client feedback and communicate relevant insights internally.
• Assist in addressing client-service concerns by connecting the appropriate internal stakeholders and supporting effective follow-through.
• Maintain professional relationships even when an immediate business opportunity does not exist, recognizing the long-term nature of relationship-based business development.
• Pipeline and Opportunity Management
• The Business Development Manager is responsible for maintaining disciplined visibility into business development activities and opportunities within the assigned market.

Responsibilities include

• Maintain accurate and timely documentation of client relationships, prospects, opportunities, activities, and follow-up needs within the company's designated systems.
• Develop and maintain an active pipeline of prospective business opportunities.
• Track opportunities through appropriate stages of the business development process.
• Prioritize business development activity based on relationship potential, client needs, organizational capabilities, and business objectives.
• Maintain appropriate follow-up plans for prospective and existing client relationships.
• Monitor progress toward established business development goals and activity expectations.
• Provide visibility into market activity, opportunities, challenges, and relevant client developments.
• Evaluate business development activities and adjust individual strategies based on results and market conditions.
• Coordinate with technical professionals and organizational leaders when opportunities require specialized expertise or broader organizational involvement.
• Market Intelligence and Strategy
• Develop a strong working knowledge of the assigned market and the organizations and professionals who influence business opportunities within it.
• Maintain awareness of relevant market trends, competitive activity, client needs, and emerging opportunities.
• Gather and communicate market intelligence that may inform business development priorities or organizational decisions.
• Identify potential underserved client needs, relationship opportunities, or areas where Knott Laboratory's technical expertise may provide value.
• Maintain awareness of Knott Laboratory's technical disciplines, areas of expertise, geographic capabilities, and relevant professional credentials.
• Provide insight into how clients perceive the organization's capabilities, service, and market position.
• Collaborate with leadership and technical professionals to align market activity with broader organizational priorities.

Internal Collaboration

Successful business development at Knott Laboratory requires strong partnership between business development professionals and the technical experts who ultimately perform the work.

The Business Development Manager is expected to

• Develop strong working relationships with engineers, accident reconstructionists, technical experts, leaders, and other colleagues.
• Learn the capabilities, specialties, credentials, and areas of expertise available across the organization.
• Match client needs with the appropriate internal technical resources.
• Facilitate introductions between clients and technical professionals.
• Prepare technical professionals for client meetings by sharing relevant relationship and opportunity context.
• Coordinate appropriately with other Business Development professionals to avoid duplicated efforts and provide a consistent client experience.
• Share useful market and client information with appropriate internal stakeholders.
• Promote collaboration across disciplines, teams, offices, and functions.
• Maintain clear communication regarding client opportunities and relationship activity.
• Respect the technical independence and professional judgment of engineering and technical professionals.

Business Development Performance Responsibilities

The Business Development Manager is accountable for measurable contribution to growth within the assigned market.

Performance may be evaluated based on factors such as

• Development of new client relationships.
• Growth and retention of existing client relationships.
• Generation and progression of qualified business opportunities.
• Contribution to new and expanded business.
• Quality and health of the business development pipeline.
• Consistency and effectiveness of client engagement and follow-up.
• Market presence and professional relationship development.
• Effective use of the organization's client relationship and business development systems.
• Collaboration with technical teams and other business development professionals.
• Progress toward established individual and market business objectives.
• Business development expectations should balance activity, relationship quality, pipeline development, and business outcomes, recognizing that sophisticated professional-services relationships often develop over time.

Education and Experience

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Communications, Engineering, or another relevant field, or a combination of education and professional experience that provides the knowledge and capabilities necessary for the position.
• Professional experience involving business development, sales, account management, client relations, professional services, or another relationship-focused business function.
• Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain professional relationships.
• Strong verbal, written, interpersonal, and presentation skills.
• Demonstrated organizational, planning, and follow-through capabilities.
• Ability to independently manage business development priorities and activities within an assigned market.
• Ability to travel throughout the assigned market and to other locations based on client and business needs.
• Valid driver's license.

Preferred

• Business development or client relationship experience within forensic engineering, engineering consulting, insurance, legal services, construction, professional services, or another related industry.
• Existing professional relationships relevant to Knott Laboratory's client base.
• Experience developing business within a defined geographic territory or market.
• Experience using a customer relationship management (CRM) system to manage relationships, opportunities, and business development activity.
• Experience participating in industry associations, professional networking organizations, conferences, or client-education programs.
• Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
• Strong relationship-building and interpersonal skills.
• Business development and consultative selling capability.
• Ability to identify client needs and connect those needs with appropriate solutions or technical resources.
• Ability to establish credibility with sophisticated professional clients.
• Strong listening, questioning, and communication skills.
• Ability to build relationships over extended periods and maintain consistent follow-through.
• Self-motivation and ability to operate effectively as an individual contributor.
• Strong planning, organization, and time-management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple relationships, opportunities, and priorities concurrently.
• Professional networking and presentation skills.
• Ability to learn and communicate the organization's technical capabilities without representing oneself as a technical expert.
• Ability to interpret market information and identify meaningful business opportunities.
• Ability to use CRM and other business systems consistently and accurately.
• Strong internal partnership and collaboration skills.
• High degree of professionalism, initiative, accountability, judgment, and discretion.
• Commitment to integrity, client service, collaboration, continuous learning, and organizational success.

Leadership Expectations

Leadership as a Business Development Manager is demonstrated through ownership, influence, collaboration, professionalism, and results rather than formal authority.

Business Development Managers are expected to

• Take ownership of business development activity and results within their assigned market.
• Represent Knott Laboratory professionally and positively in the marketplace.
• Build trust with clients, prospects, technical professionals, and colleagues.
• Follow through consistently on commitments.
• Bring the right internal experts into client conversations at the appropriate time.
• Share relevant information and opportunities rather than operating in silos.
• Collaborate effectively with other business development professionals and technical teams.
• Exercise sound judgment regarding client relationships and organizational priorities.
• Model Knott Laboratory's values in interactions with clients, colleagues, and the broader professional community.
• Contribute positively to a culture of collaboration, growth, integrity, and shared success.
• Physical and Work Requirements
• Ability to travel regularly throughout the assigned geographic market for client meetings, networking events, conferences, presentations, and other business development activities.
• Ability to travel outside the assigned market when business needs require.
• Ability to attend professional events or client activities that may occasionally occur outside standard business hours.
• Ability to work effectively in office, remote, client, conference, and professional-event environments.
• Ability to operate a motor vehicle for business-related travel as required.

Professional Development Expectations

Business Development Managers are expected to continually strengthen their knowledge of Knott Laboratory's technical capabilities, client industries, relationship-development practices, market dynamics, and professional-services business development.

Professional development may include sales and relationship-management training, industry education, professional association involvement, presentation skills, business acumen development, and deeper exposure to the technical services offered by Knott Laboratory.

As capability develops, Business Development Managers should demonstrate increasing effectiveness in building strategic relationships, identifying meaningful opportunities, expanding existing accounts, and producing sustainable business growth within their market.

Success in the Role

Success as a Business Development Manager is demonstrated through the ability to build trusted relationships, create meaningful business opportunities, strengthen Knott Laboratory's presence within the assigned market, and convert market activity into sustainable organizational growth.

Successful Business Development Managers are known for following through, understanding client needs, connecting clients with the right technical expertise, maintaining a healthy opportunity pipeline, and working collaboratively with technical teams and colleagues.

They balance the drive for business results with the patience and credibility necessary to develop long-term professional relationships.