Senior Business Development Manager (#535)

The Senior Business Development Manager (Japan) is a customer-facing leadership role responsible for driving new business acquisition (~80%) and managing strategic customer relationships (~20%).

The role focuses on building long-term partnerships with product and technology companies in Japan, generating qualified business opportunities, managing the complete sales lifecycle, and ensuring alignment between customer expectations and offshore delivery capabilities.

The ideal candidate should have strong experience in Japan’s technology ecosystem, IT services/software development sales, offshore delivery models, and managing relationships with Japanese customers.

Key Responsibilities

1. Sales & New Business Development

• Identify, qualify, and develop new business opportunities across target industries and strategic customer segments.
• Own the complete sales lifecycle including prospecting, customer discovery, solution positioning, proposal management, negotiation, and deal closure.
• Manage RFIs, RFQs, and RFP processes in collaboration with presales, technical, and delivery teams.
• Partner with engineering teams to create customer-focused proposals and solution approaches.
• Engage with key stakeholders including CXOs, engineering leaders, product teams, and procurement departments to position the company as a long-term technology partner.
• Lead commercial discussions including pricing, contract negotiations, MSAs, and SOW agreements.

2. Customer Relationship Management & Account Growth

• Act as the primary point of contact between Japanese customers and offshore delivery leadership.
• Build trusted relationships with customers and ensure high satisfaction through effective communication and governance.
• Identify delivery risks, communication gaps, and customer concerns; drive timely resolution with internal teams.
• Identify account expansion opportunities including additional projects, new business units, and long-term partnerships.
• Support account-related activities including invoicing coordination and payment follow-ups.
• Maintain sales reports, forecasts, pipeline updates, and business performance tracking.
• Monitor market trends, customer expectations, and competitive landscape within Japan’s technology sector.

3. Onsite Operations & Customer Support

• Support recruitment activities for onsite engineering resources in Japan based on project requirements.
• Coordinate customer visits, onsite meetings, and engagement activities across Japan.
• Provide local support to offshore team members visiting Japan when required.

Required Experience & Skills

Experience

• 10+ years of overall experience with 5+ years in Business Development / Sales roles within Software Development Services, IT Consulting, or IT Outsourcing.
• Proven experience selling technology services to Japanese customers.
• Strong understanding of offshore delivery models, preferably with experience working with Indian/global technology companies.
• Experience managing enterprise customer relationships and complex sales cycles.

Business Skills

• Strong experience in solution selling, customer engagement, and consultative sales.
• Ability to understand customer technology challenges and position suitable engineering solutions.
• Strong negotiation skills with experience handling pricing, contracts, and stakeholder decision-making processes.

Preferred Skills / Soft Skills

• Strong understanding of Japanese business culture and customer expectations.
• Ability to bridge communication between Japanese customers and global delivery teams.
• Customer-focused mindset with ability to build long-term trusted relationships.
• Self-driven and capable of working independently while aligning with global business teams.
• Strong ownership, accountability, and problem-solving ability.
• Willingness to travel within Japan for customer meetings and business development activities.