Business Development Associate

Pula is looking for a Business Development Associate to join their team :  

Responsibilities 

• Lead Generation and Outreach: 

  • Identify and qualify potential clients through research, industry events, inbound leads, referrals, and market activity. 

  • Conduct outreach via email, phone, and meetings to introduce Pula’s solutions.

  • Maintain consistent weekly activity targets to support pipeline growth.

  • Track tender websites and identifying potential opportunities for the relevant teams

• Client-Facing Document Preparation: 

  • Proposal writing - 

    • Co-develop proposal concepts through understanding and researching company experience, ecosystem trends, and innovative solutions.

    • Write and provide quality control for concept notes,  proposals, and tender responses.

    • Prepare templated pitch decks, concept notes, and proposals with guidance from the team

  • Marketing Material Development: Coordinate the creation and improvement  of sales and marketing materials, such as brochures and presentations to  support business development efforts

• Client Relations Support

  • Attend introductory meetings alongside senior commercial managers. 

  • Manage follow-up actions, client requests, and general communication.

  • Build rapport with operational and technical teams supporting the client. 

  • Attend relevant workshops, conferences, and networking events to build relationships.

• Market Intelligence

  • Gather insights on competitors, partners, and emerging opportunities. 

  • Track key industry developments and report trends to the commercial team.

• Knowledge Management: 

  • Manage database of P&C knowledge to improve communication efficiency across the team and institutional knowledge. 

  • Keep CRM entries updated with accurate contact details, meeting notes, and pipeline stages. 

• Internal Coordination:

  • Work closely with marketing, operations, and product teams to align on commercial priorities. 

  • Support weekly team check-ins with updated activity reports. 

What you need to be successful:

• You are an effective communicator with strong writing skills, capable of synthesizing information, drafting compelling proposals, and communicating ideas across diverse platforms. 

• You are energized by networking events and thrive at building rapport and trust with partners. 

• Experience working with diverse actors from development, private sector, and the government. You listen and understand different perspectives and can connect the dots to build consensus.  

• Comfort working in fast-paced and ambiguous environments. 

• You are meticulous and highly organized in planning, executing, and monitoring multiple proposals under tight deadlines.

• You are a team player, you are able to get buy-in, input, and approval across internal teams as needed for proposals. 

• You are driven by impact. You are motivated by Pula’s goal of empowering smallholder farmers.

Qualifications: 

• University degree with First Class or Upper Second honors 

• 3-5 years of experience in business development, partner management, consulting, or related fields. 

• Experience in writing proposals, concept notes, and creating budgets in response to tenders.

• Understanding of agriculture and/or fintech sectors.

• Strong interpersonal skills, high motivation, ownership, and willingness to learn.

• Experience with Google suites, Excel, and CRM tools.