Director of Sales and Business Development - MSC

Company: BDO UK

Location: London, England, United Kingdom

Employment Type: Full-time

Seniority Level: Director

Job Function: Sales and Business Development

We’re BDO. An accountancy and business advisory firm, providing the advice and solutions entrepreneurial organisations need to navigate today’s changing world. The Markets, Sales & Clients (MSC) function is the driving force behind the creativity and growth at BDO. The role is a new senior position responsible for developing people, processes and technology for a community of sales professionals across the sales cycle, to drive revenue for the firm through various practice areas and markets.

Responsibilities

• Strategy & Vision
  • Define and implement a comprehensive strategy for the sales and business development community, supporting MSC’s overall strategy, to develop professional sales skills focused on a comprehensive understanding of the sales cycle.
  • Design and execute a skills development programme to provide the BDO business with capabilities that can be deployed in the right place, with the right skills, at the right time.
  • Create a culture of client centricity, speed to market and commercialism whilst fostering an environment which is collaborative, high‑energy and high impact.
  • Identify future sales requirements in the function, and across the wider practice to meet the needs and expectations of our customers and retain a competitive advantage in the market.
• Firmwide Business Development Capabilities
  • Own the firm’s sales methodology, to ensure it is updated to reflect the latest selling trends and skills that showcase "best practice".
  • Engage with the business to identify and address skills gaps and ensure consistency of implementation of the sales processes and the right behaviours adopted to apply them.
  • Assess key behaviours across key business development activities associated with finding work, winning work and growing relationships to build tools and guides which drive more consistency and improve mindset, skillset and toolset of practice staff across the sales cycle.
• Data Analysis & Sales Performance
  • Collaborate with other parts of MSC and the wider business to understand pipeline metrics and trends to identify sales/business development opportunities for the business and the MSC function.
  • Establish key performance indicators and metrics to measure performance of teams and individuals across the sales cycle. Where appropriate, establish principles through which resources can be deployed into various practice areas and programmes across BDO.
  • Report to senior stakeholders on KPIs to demonstrate value and impact across the sales cycle of the people working in MSC.
• Team Leadership & Development
  • Lead, build, and develop a high‑performing sales team by providing coaching (skills development), filling gaps where needed and nurturing talent.
  • Ensure that policies, procedures, and processes are clearly defined, documented, and adhered to, promoting operational efficiency and data accuracy across the capability.
  • Work with the HR function and MSC leadership to ensure performance management issues are appropriately addressed across MSC in a consistent and timely manner.
  • As a member of the MSC leadership team, collaborate with colleagues and/or lead on a wide range of MSC‑specific and firm‑wide activities.
  • Engage with colleagues in the global BDO network in similar roles to drive consistency and collaboration across the wider business.
• Technology Management
  • Utilise the MSC technology stack supporting sales and business development, ensuring it is maintained, optimised, and customised as necessary.
  • Ensure that the firm’s CRM system is used appropriately across the capability.
  • Identify opportunities to simplify and improve systems and processes, avoiding unnecessary complexity and customisation.
  • Working with the Operations Director, horizon‑scan opportunities for new potential technology platforms for future consideration by the function and/or the wider firm.
• Collaboration
  • Work closely with the other capability Directors to align MSC activities across the firm’s Gold Programmes and to ensure a seamless transition between sales and marketing activities.
  • Collaborate with other Central Operations teams and workstreams to connect processes for winning work to provide a frictionless experience for the business.
• Risk, People & Compliance
  • Ensure compliance with relevant regulatory requirements and industry standards, proactively identifying and mitigating operational risks.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in director sales, and/or sales enablement roles, with demonstrable experience in a senior management role leading large teams covering the end‑to‑end sales cycle within the professional services sector.
• Experience in evaluating, enhancing and delivering sales methodologies and training within a professional services environment.
• A strategic sales background, with a proven track record of leading and transforming sales/BD teams across Account Management, Lead Generation, Bids & Proposals.
• Strong analytical, organisational and project management skills with attention to detail.
• A focus on client‑centricity, commercial decision making and a "can‑do" attitude.
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, with the ability to influence cross‑functional teams and senior leadership.
• Experience of using CRM platforms, including Microsoft Dynamics and other technology sales‑enablement tools to drive data‑driven sales decisions.
• Ability to build senior internal relationships and manage external partners and vendors.
• Strong leadership skills, with the energy, motivation and leadership to build and transform a "best‑in‑class" sales function which contributes directly to the top‑line revenue.

We’re committed to agile working, offering everyone the opportunity to work in ways that suit them, their teams and the task at hand. BDO provides programmes, resources and frameworks that give clarity and structure around career development.

Our agile working framework helps us stay connected, bringing teams together where and when it counts so they can share ideas and help one another. At BDO, you’ll always have access to the people and resources you need to do your best work.

We believe in empowering people to think creatively about how we can do things better, and we are constantly finding new ways to invest in you.