Job Summary
Brief Description
About the Role
Polus is looking for a Business Development Associate to drive market development and sales opportunities for the Fibi e-Research Administration Suite (Fibi eRA), a software platform supporting research administration, including grants management, research compliance, agreements and conflict of interest management. This role identifies institutional customers, researches target accounts, generates qualified leads, and manages opportunities through a structured sales pipeline. You’ll also coordinate with Marketing, Functional and Technical teams to move customer engagements, product demonstrations, trials and proposals forward.
Key Responsibilities
- Identify and research prospective customers (universities, research institutions and other research-intensive organizations), build targeted prospect lists, and map relevant decision-makers and stakeholders.
- Generate leads through account-based research, email outreach, LinkedIn prospecting, referrals and other channels, and qualify them on institutional fit, requirements, buying signals and opportunity potential.
- ·Understand prospects’ research administration processes, existing systems and likely business needs.
- ·Maintain the Fibi sales pipeline with accurate opportunity stages, customer information and follow-up records, and track engagement, progression, next steps and risks.
- Coordinate introductory meetings, requirement discussions, product demonstrations and guided trials with the Functional and Technical teams.
- Capture customer requirements, feedback and concerns, map them to relevant Fibi modules and use cases, and communicate them to the right teams.
- Identify and track RFP, RFI and RFQ opportunities; review eligibility, timelines and documentation requirements; and coordinate inputs, compilation and submission, while maintaining records of outcomes and customer feedback.
- ·Identify industry consultants, referral partners and other stakeholders who can support market intelligence, customer introductions and opportunity identification.
- Research target markets and developments in research administration technology, and share market insights to support product growth priorities.
- Report on lead generation, qualification, pipeline movement, customer engagements and proposal activity, and present progress, challenges, priorities and support needed in monthly Product Growth & Pre-Sales reviews.
- Work with the Manager – Product Growth to prioritize opportunities and improve pipeline conversion, and coordinate with Marketing on campaigns, target accounts and lead-generation initiatives.
Preferred Skills
- Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Commerce or a related field.
- 2+ years in B2B software business development, SaaS sales, enterprise sales or technology solutions.
- Hands-on experience in prospect research, outbound lead generation, lead qualification and pipeline management.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to research organizations, identify decision-makers and run targeted outreach.
- Strong follow-up, coordination and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple opportunities at once.
- Familiarity with CRM systems, spreadsheets and sales pipeline management.
- Ability to work with cross-functional teams (Marketing, Functional, Technical).
Preferred
- Experience selling software to universities, research institutions or other large organizations.
- Exposure to higher education technology, research administration, grants management or compliance software.
- Experience engaging international customers and managing longer B2B sales cycles.
- Familiarity with RFP/RFI processes and proposal coordination.
- Experience with LinkedIn prospecting, email outreach and sales intelligence tools.
Ideal Candidate
Research-oriented and proactive, comfortable developing business in a specialized software market. You can identify relevant institutions, understand customer needs, start meaningful conversations, and keep up disciplined follow-ups through a long sales cycle.
Key Performance Indicators
- Qualified leads generated and accuracy of lead qualification.
- Pipeline development and opportunity progression.
- Customer meetings and demonstrations coordinated.
- Timely coordination and submission of proposals.
- Partnerships and consultant relationships developed.
- Consistency of follow-ups, reporting and cross-functional coordination.
Send your resume to careers@polussolutions.com
Please include “Business Development Associate - [Your Name]” in the subject line.