Business Development Manager

Sydney, Surry Hills

Fulltime

Salary + 20% Bonus

About the Business

Urban Rest is a high-growth flexible living operator and technology platform disrupting the serviced apartment and corporate housing space across APAC and Europe. The business focus is on owning the distribution layer for the contracted travel market into living assets, while delivering a consistent brand and guest journey through technology. Urban Rest also offers physical asset operation services that enable branded accommodation assets such as hotels to be managed with greater efficiency and distributed to contracted clients such as enterprise, government, insurance and SME clients. We provide the digital infrastructure and services that connect institutional living-sector assets and the contracted travel market at scale. Our mission is to make flexible living seamless.

Benefits and Perks

• Employee, friends and family discounts at at Urban Rest properties
• One flexible work from home day per week when business allows
• Mental Health Leave days and Volunteer days available
• Regular team socials and events
• As the company grows, this role will provide plenty of room for career growth and progression
• We’re a social bunch and we strive to have a fun, friendly, and collaborative work environment
• Pet friendly (for house-trained and well-behaved pets) office in Office Suburb, close to public transport

About the Role

The Business Development Manager is a senior individual contributor role within the APAC sales function. Your mandate is clear: find, pursue, and close new corporate accounts for Urban Rest. You are responsible for building a quality pipeline of new business – from prospecting and outreach through to RFP response, commercial negotiation, and signed agreement.

This is not a role for someone who waits for leads to arrive. You identify your own targets, build relationships from scratch, and convert them with rigour and persistence. You understand corporate travel procurement, know how to navigate complex buying cycles, and bring genuine commercial intelligence to every client conversation.

You report directly to the Director, Sales – APAC and work closely with the broader commercial team – including Revenue Management, Marketing, and the Account Management function. Once a new client is won, you are responsible for a structured, high-quality handover to the AM team, ensuring the relationship starts well and the revenue sticks.

Responsibilities

New Business Development & Pipeline Management (45%):

• Identify, qualify, and pursue new corporate accounts across target verticals including professional services, resources, government, tech, and financial services.
• Build and manage a structured, stage-gated pipeline with accurate forecasting – maintaining CRM hygiene and pipeline discipline at all times.
• Lead the full sales cycle from first contact through to signed agreement: prospecting, needs analysis, site inspections, proposal, RFP response, negotiation, and close.
• Develop and execute territory and vertical plans – with clear account targeting, outreach cadences, and conversion milestones.
• Respond to corporate RFPs and tenders with compelling, well-structured submissions that reflect Urban Rest’s value proposition and competitive positioning.
• Consistently meet or exceed new revenue targets and activity KPIs as agreed with the Director, Sales – APAC.
• Identify and flag patterns in lost deals – on pricing, product, positioning, or process – to inform continuous improvement across the team.

Client & Stakeholder Engagement (30%):

• Build and maintain relationships with corporate travel managers, procurement leads, HR business partners, and finance stakeholders at target accounts.
• Conduct compelling discovery conversations and needs analyses – understanding client requirements deeply enough to tailor Urban Rest’s proposition with precision.
• Lead site inspections, client presentations, and commercial meetings – representing Urban Rest with professionalism, product knowledge, and genuine enthusiasm.
• Manage multiple active pursuits simultaneously – maintaining momentum, responsiveness, and relationship quality across a broad prospect base.
• Represent Urban Rest at industry events, networking forums, and corporate travel association meetings to build profile and generate new opportunities.
• Ensure a structured, warm handover to the Account Management team for every new client won – including a thorough brief on client needs, key contacts, and any commercial commitments made during the sales process.

Market Intelligence & Commercial Input (15%):

• Monitor competitor activity, market pricing, and emerging corporate travel trends – and translate that intelligence into actionable insight for the Director, Sales – APAC.
• Contribute to RFP strategy and pricing discussions by sharing frontline market feedback on client expectations, competitive benchmarks, and deal-breakers.
• Identify partnership and channel opportunities – TMC relationships, travel management company introductions, and preferred supplier programmes – and flag them for leadership consideration.
• Share market feedback with Marketing and Revenue Management to inform campaign targeting, rate strategy, and product positioning.

CRM, Reporting & Collaboration (10%):

• Maintain accurate, up-to-date CRM records at all times – pipeline stage, activity notes, deal value, expected close dates, and next actions.
• Prepare and present pipeline updates, conversion analyses, and market reports for the APAC Sales Review and Director, Sales – APAC on a regular cadence.
• Collaborate with Revenue Management on pricing and rate strategy for new account proposals – balancing competitive positioning with margin integrity.
• Partner with Marketing on targeted outreach campaigns, event participation, and sales enablement content.
• Contribute actively to team sales reviews, sharing wins, losses, and market learnings with peers and leadership.

What Success Looks Like

In your first 90 days:

• A fully built and CRM-loaded territory plan – with clear account targets, verticals, and outreach underway.
• First meetings booked with at least 15 target accounts Urban Rest is not currently winning.
• Deep product and pricing knowledge – you can conduct a compelling discovery conversation and tailor the Urban Rest proposition with confidence.
• A clear view of the competitive landscape in your market and where Urban Rest has the strongest right to win.

By end of Year 1:

• New revenue target met or exceeded, with a pipeline that is stage-gated, accurately forecast, and consistently converting.
• A portfolio of new corporate logos onboarded and handed over to the AM team with structured, thorough account briefs.
• Established as a credible, visible presence in the corporate travel market – known by TMCs, procurement contacts, and industry peers.
• Zero handover failures – every new client transitions to the AM team with full context, warm relationships, and a positive first experience.

Key Attributes

• A proven business developer with a track record of winning new corporate accounts – ideally in corporate travel, hospitality, or professional services.
• Highly self-directed and target-driven. You manage your own pipeline, set your own pace, and don’t need to be chased for activity.
• Credible and engaging in front of procurement, travel, HR, and finance stakeholders. You listen well, ask great questions, and tailor your pitch accordingly.
• Commercially literate – you understand pricing logic, margin trade-offs, and what makes a deal work for both sides.
• Rigorous on pipeline discipline. Your CRM is accurate, your forecast is reliable, and your pipeline stages reflect reality.
• A strong collaborator. You work well with Revenue Management, Marketing, and Account Management – and you treat the handover to AM as part of your job, not the end of it.
• Resilient and persistent. You handle rejection without losing momentum, and you know when to push and when to walk.

Diversity & Inclusion

At Urban Rest, we extend our invitation to candidates from Indigenous, neurodiverse, disabled, international and diverse cultural backgrounds. Our commitment to fostering an inclusive workplace ensures that all applicants receive the necessary support and accommodations throughout the recruitment and onboarding process. We encourage candidates from various backgrounds to apply, as we value diversity and believe in creating an environment where everyone can succeed. Please let us know if you require any additional adjustments or support to help you through this process so you can shine as the best version of yourself.