Job Description

Job Summary

We are looking for a proactive and commercially driven Business Development Executive to support the development of new business opportunities across the Southeast Asian market.

The role will focus on identifying new customers, developing business opportunities, conducting market research, building relationships with potential customers and business partners, and supporting the company's overall regional market expansion.

The successful candidate will work closely with the General Manager and internal technical, engineering, production and supply chain teams to convert market opportunities into potential sales projects.

This is a hands-on business development role suitable for someone who is commercially minded, independent, organized and comfortable with proactive customer and market engagement.

Roles & Responsibilities

Market Development & Market Research

• Conduct market research across key Southeast Asian countries and industries. 
• Identify potential markets, customer segments, applications and business opportunities. 
• Develop and maintain a database of potential customers, distributors, agents and strategic partners. 
• Monitor market trends, customer requirements, competitor activities and pricing. 
• Identify emerging opportunities and provide regular market intelligence to management. 
• Support the development and implementation of regional market development strategies. 

Business Development & Lead Generation

• Identify and approach potential customers through email, LinkedIn, telephone, industry networks, exhibitions and other channels. 
• Generate and qualify new business leads. 
• Conduct initial discussions with potential customers to understand their requirements and applications. 
• Arrange customer meetings, online meetings and site visits. 
• Maintain regular follow-up with prospects and develop leads through the sales pipeline. 
• Support the preparation of customer presentations, proposals and commercial information. 
• Maintain accurate records of business development activities and opportunities. 

Customer & Business Partner Development

• Identify and evaluate potential agents, distributors, representatives and strategic business partners in Southeast Asia. 
• Establish and maintain professional relationships with potential and existing customers.      
• Support management in evaluating potential business partnerships. 
• Coordinate communication and follow-up with customers and partners. 
• Assist in developing long-term customer and partner relationships. 

Technical & Commercial Coordination

• Develop a good understanding of the company's products, technologies and applications. 
• Understand customer requirements and communicate them clearly to internal technical teams. 
• Coordinate with R&D, Engineering, Production and Supply Chain teams to support customer projects. 
• Assist in preparing quotations, product information, technical presentations and other commercial documents. 
• Follow up on customer projects from initial enquiry through to quotation, technical discussion and commercial negotiation. 
• Ensure customer requirements and feedback are properly communicated internally. 

Sales Pipeline Management

• Maintain and continuously update the Southeast Asia business development pipeline. 
• Track leads, opportunities, quotations, customer feedback and project progress. 
• Prioritize opportunities based on commercial potential and probability of conversion.      
• Provide regular reports to the General Manager on: 
• New leads 
• Customer development 
• Sales opportunities 
• Market activities 
• Competitor information 
• Key challenges and opportunities 
• Ensure timely follow-up of all assigned opportunities. 

Business Development Activities

• Support participation in exhibitions, conferences, industry events and customer visits. 
• Conduct customer and market visits when required. 
• Support preparation of marketing materials, presentations and company profiles. 
• Assist in organizing customer visits and business meetings. 
• Develop and maintain professional business networks.

Job Requirements

Job Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's degree or Diploma in Business, Marketing, Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, or a related field. 
• Candidates with relevant commercial or industrial experience may also be considered. 

Experience

Preferred: 2–5 years of experience in one or more of the following:

• Business Development 
• B2B Sales 
• Technical Sales 
• Industrial Sales 
• Sales & Marketing 
• Market Development 
• Customer Development 

Experience in manufacturing, engineering, chemicals, materials, polymers, adhesives, packaging or other industrial sectors would be an advantage.

Skills and Competencies

• Strong communication and interpersonal skills. 
• Good command of English, both written and spoken. Additional Southeast Asian languages such as Mandarin, Bahasa Indonesia, Thai or Vietnamese would be an advantage.
• Good presentation and negotiation skills. 
• Strong customer follow-up and relationship-building skills. 
• Good research and analytical ability. 
• Comfortable with cold calling, email outreach and LinkedIn prospecting. 
• Proactive and willing to approach new customers independently. 
• Good organization and time-management skills. 
• Able to work independently with limited supervision. 
• Good Microsoft Office skills, particularly Excel and PowerPoint. 
• Willing to travel within Malaysia and Southeast Asia when required.

Personal Attributes

We are looking for someone who is:

• Proactive rather than reactive 
• Commercially minded      
• Confident communicating with new people 
• Persistent with customer follow-up 
• Curious about new markets and industries 
• Comfortable working independently 
• Willing to learn technical products 
• Results-oriented 
• Well organized and disciplined 
• Able to turn market information into actionable business opportunities 

A strong hunter mentality and willingness to develop new customers are more important than having a long sales track record.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

First 3 Months

• Build a qualified Southeast Asia target customer database. 
• Identify priority countries, industries and customer segments. 
• Establish initial contact with potential customers and partners. 
• Develop a clear regional business development pipeline. 
• Demonstrate understanding of company products and target applications. 

3–6 Months

• Generate a consistent flow of qualified leads. 
• Establish relationships with potential customers and distributors. 
• Arrange customer meetings and technical discussions. 
• Develop initial quotations / project opportunities. 
• Provide actionable market intelligence and competitor information. 

6–12 Months

• Develop qualified sales opportunities into active projects. 
• Support conversion of leads into commercial opportunities. 
• Develop potential distributor/agent relationships. 
• Contribute to measurable revenue growth in Southeast Asia.

Reporting Structure

• Reports to General Manager

Skills