National Business Development Manager – Utilities & Arboriculture

National Business Development Manager – Utilities & Arboriculture

Location: UK Wide / Hybrid Salary: £60,000–£80,000 + £17,000 OTE commission + £5,000 car allowance or company EV + pension and benefits Contract: Full-Time, Permanent Coverage: National

Example Recruitment Group is delighted to be working with an established and ambitious service provider that is looking to appoint an experienced Business Development Manager to support its continued growth across the Utilities, Arboriculture and Vegetation Management sectors.

This is a strategic national position focused on winning new service-based contracts with utility companies, infrastructure organisations, local authorities and other major clients.

IMPORTANT – What We're Looking For

Grounds maintenance or arboriculture experience is NOT essential for this position.

What is essential is a proven track record of selling services into utility companies, infrastructure organisations or similar large-scale clients.

You may come from grounds maintenance, arboriculture, facilities management, infrastructure, environmental services, highways, engineering or another service-led industry. The key requirement is that you understand B2B service sales into the utilities/infrastructure market, have established relationships within the sector and can demonstrate a history of winning new business and significant contracts.

If you have strong utilities-sector contacts and a proven ability to identify, develop and win service contracts, we want to hear from you.

The Role

As Business Development Manager, you will be responsible for:

Developing and implementing a national business development strategy across the Utilities and Arboriculture sectors.

Identifying and securing new contract opportunities aligned with the company's growth plans.

Building and maintaining a strong qualified pipeline of opportunities, with a target pipeline exceeding £20m.

Generating new business through direct engagement, strategic relationships, frameworks and formal tender opportunities.

Targeting significant service contracts, typically valued from £500k to £1m+ per annum.

Developing routes to market through procurement frameworks, partnerships and direct client engagement.

Building relationships with senior stakeholders across utility companies, Tier 1 contractors, local authorities and public-sector organisations.

Bids & Tender Management

A key part of the position will be supporting and leading major tender opportunities. Responsibilities will include:

Leading opportunities from initial qualification through to contract award.

Working alongside bid managers, estimators and operational teams to develop commercially competitive proposals.

Supporting bid strategy, win planning and commercial discussions.

Ensuring appropriate governance is maintained throughout the tender process.

Identifying contract extensions, retention opportunities and rebids with existing clients.

Supporting commercial negotiations through to successful contract award.

Pipeline & Market Development

You will take ownership of developing a sustainable pipeline of future opportunities, including:

Maintaining accurate opportunity information, forecasts and sales activity within the CRM.

Monitoring upcoming frameworks, procurement exercises and major contract opportunities.

Understanding competitor activity and wider market developments.

Providing market intelligence and pipeline reporting to senior leadership.

Attending relevant industry events, conferences and networking opportunities.

Helping strengthen the company's profile across the utilities and arboriculture markets.

What We're Looking For

We are particularly interested in commercially driven Business Development professionals who can demonstrate:

Proven experience selling services into utility companies, infrastructure organisations or related major clients – ESSENTIAL.

A demonstrable track record of winning new business and significant service-based contracts.

Established relationships and contacts within the utilities/infrastructure sector.

Experience managing the full business development cycle, from initial engagement through to tender and contract award.

Experience of selling contracts typically worth £500k+ per annum would be highly advantageous.

Strong understanding of procurement, frameworks, competitive tendering and commercial negotiations.

Excellent relationship-building skills with senior decision-makers.

The ability to operate autonomously across a national territory.

Industry Background

Grounds maintenance or arboriculture experience is desirable but NOT essential.

We would consider candidates from a range of service-led backgrounds, including:

Utilities

Infrastructure Maintenance

Facilities Management

Arboriculture

Utility Vegetation Management

Grounds Maintenance

Highways

Environmental Services

Engineering or technical services

Other B2B service-based industries

The critical factor is your experience of selling services into utilities/infrastructure clients and your ability to demonstrate genuine relationships, commercial credibility and a history of winning business.

Desirable Client Experience

Previous relationships or experience working with any of the following would be particularly advantageous:

Electricity Distribution Network Operators (DNOs)

Utility providers

Tier 1 infrastructure contractors

Local authorities

Public-sector procurement organisations

Highways and infrastructure maintenance providers

The Opportunity

This is a fantastic opportunity to join an established business with ambitious growth plans and play a significant role in developing its national presence.

You'll have a high level of autonomy and ownership, working on major contract opportunities and building relationships with some of the UK's largest utilities, infrastructure and public-sector organisations.

Grounds maintenance experience is not a prerequisite. Utilities-sector sales experience is.

If you're an experienced Business Development Manager with a proven track record of selling services into utility companies or infrastructure organisations, strong industry relationships and a history of winning significant contracts, we'd be very interested in speaking with you.

For a confidential conversation and further information, please contact Example Recruitment Group