Overview

Term: 3 years.

Co-operative Education at the University of Waterloo is a global leader in employer partnerships, managing over 19,100 work-terms a year with over 6,900 employers in more than 60 countires. Within Co-operative Education (Co-op), the Business Developer plays a vital role in achieving the 97% overall student employment rate. The Business Developer generates, develops and converts employer prospects into paid, creditable co-op jobs for all programs, but will place priority on growing job opportunities for strategically prioritized segments.The Business Developer must demonstrate excellent sales skills and relationship management with a proven track record of generating leads and successfully converting them to meet strategic targets. Strong organizational skills are imperative to document, track and report on interactions and the status of each lead within the official system of record. The Business Developer is required to have excellent communication and interpersonal skills to provide high quality, professional interactions and customer service to prospective and new employers. The Business Developer is focused on actively bringing in new business and will contribute to all business development initiatives, including targeted business development campaigns in a particular region or industry as well as supporting the creation of business development presentations, resources and tools. Success measures include the numbers of presentations, calls and meetings with prospective employers, leads generated for all programs and for programs of strategic priority, conversion rates from leads to job postings, number of jobs posted/filled for each new employer, number of new employers successfully retained/transferred for another hiring cycle, and resolution of recruiting/work term issues to ensure a successful co-op experience.

Responsibilities

Actively seek student employment opportunities with new employers to attain a first-work term student employment rate of greater than 95% and to achieve an overall employment rate of greater than 97%

• Use a keen understanding of effective sales and conversion tools and techniques to assess the prospective employer’s needs and discuss how hiring a student could bring value to the employer
• Generate, qualify, steward and convert relevant prospective employer leads to job postings and to achieve the target number of jobs filled as defined in annual goals
• Build their individual lead funnel to develop employment opportunities within their designated region/strategic area of job development focus through their own lead-generation initiatives including: research, active lead follow-up calling, networking, acting on referrals, developing and leveraging a strong personal network within industry and industry associations, social media campaigns, etc.
• Manage their leads actively to move inactive/unproductive leads from their roster on a monthly basis and ensure high value leads are prioritized and actively followed up within accepted time-frames and then moved toward becoming a new employer
• Regularly explore, participate in and leverage industry events and networks (face-to-face and digital), job portals and boards, and memberships to target highest job development outcomes
• Become an expert in our co-operative education model, understanding our programs, students, and process to effectively guide and steward new employers and prospects

Retain, support and transition new employers from the point of employer registration to the successful completion of at least one full employment cycle

• Convert prospective employer leads to new employers by providing exceptional client service – from guiding new employers through the hiring process inclusive of consultation on how to write a compelling, creditable job description to finalizing the hiring of a student including salary advice
• Actively advance benefits and opportunities (i.e. new funding available) for specific leads and new employers to increase hiring levels and retention through excellent customer service
• Facilitate an informed and professional introduction of the new employer to the hiring process support team and explain the various roles and their new direct points of contact
• Transfer successful new employers to their ongoing service team at or above the transfer rate specified in annual individual goals
• Ensure a retention rate of new employers as set by strategic department goals

Record and report interactions and outcomes accurately and completely

• Record all relevant data about each lead into the lead management system accurately and completely
• Record all communications, presentations, meetings and the outcomes of the interaction within the lead management system
• Meet established new employer targets as indicated in Co-op’s overall business goals
• Report on progress and communicate with transparency, clarity and openness to broaden understanding of prospecting outcomes, quality of lead funnel management, lead conversion to job postings and to jobs filled and number of students hired
• Address challenges within the business development process with solutions for optimal outcomes
• Coordinate and transport materials to and from events and manage set-up and tear-down of Co-op’s booth at an event or activity as required

Represent Co-op and UWaterloo at key external events

• Present a professional manner and appearance to represent Co-op and the University at conferences, networking events, outreach activities and other special events
• Demonstrate excellent communication, public presentation and speaking skills, having prepared for every event with research and understanding of audience, targets, and potential for job development
• Utilize social media to promote Co-op professionally and effectively
• Network effectively to establish potential relationships and to increase prospects and leads in funnel
• Comply with brand guidelines and presentation guidelines for consistent representation and quality of the overall brand (e.g. trade show booth set-up consistently every time)
• Effectively capture all actionable leads using lead qualification best practices and digital lead capture system, ensuring all event leads are received for processing within a maximum two days after an an event
• Collaborate with campus partners and others at events when requested by manager
• On occasion, the Business Developer may be required to speak at an event or participate in an expert panel on behalf of Co-op and the University

Continuously improve business development approaches, processes and technology for greater efficiency, effectiveness, productivity and results

• Positive participation in business development virtual team meetings, team meetings and department meetings through attendance, sharing of ideas and active listening
• Adopt and suggest technologies that can enable more efficiency and productivity for business development
• Demonstrate initiative in trying alternative methods to achieve results (e.g. phone call follow-up instead of standardized follow-up email, digital approaches)
• Seek improvement and coaching to continuously evolve and improve approach and effectiveness
• Seek opportunities to gain relevant knowledge and share resources so that others may also benefit

Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree or the equivalent
• 5-7 years of sales experience with demonstrated success – preferably in a business-to-business context
• Excellent oral, written and interpersonal communication skills required to build lasting relationships
• Proven, in-depth understanding of the sales process and the steps necessary to close a sale
• Demonstrated ability to grow a successful sales funnel through self-generated leads and initiatives
• Excellent sales conversion track record
• Excellent customer service, relationship management skills and understanding of the customer experience
• Respectful and contributing team player and influencer to achieve objectives through support from others
• Skill in prioritizing and triaging obligations
• Excellent time management, organization and attention to detail
• Strong IT fluency
• In-depth knowledge of co-operative education and its challenges and opportunities
• Creative thinker with and the ability to find helpful solutions to tough problems
• The ability to handle pressure and meet targets
• The role involves travel to events, meetings, presentations and other activities in support of the department’s job development and employer relationship management activities. Due to the responsive nature of this role and the travel and events involved, unusual hours including evening and weekend work will be required

Equity Statement

The University of Waterloo acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is co-ordinated within our Office of Indigenous Relations.

The University values the diverse and intersectional identities of its students, faculty, and staff. The University regards equity and diversity as an integral part of academic excellence and is committed to accessibility for all employees. The University of Waterloo seeks applicants who embrace our values of equity, anti-racism and inclusion. As such, we encourage applications from candidates who have been historically disadvantaged and marginalized, including applicants who identify as First Nations, Métis and/or Inuk (Inuit), Black, racialized, a person with a disability, women and/or 2SLGBTQ+.

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

The University of Waterloo is committed to accessibility for persons with disabilities. If you have any application, interview, or workplace accommodation requests, please contact Human Resources at hrhelp@uwaterloo.ca or 519-888-4567, ext. 45935.