Strategy & Business Development Associate

Ignitia is a venture-backed, Series A growth company in the climate tech and AI sectors that provides industry-beating weather and climate intelligence to climate vulnerable populations in low and middle income countries. Today, ignitia has grown to reach more than 3 million users, primarily through distribution and commercial partnerships – be they leading telecommunication companies including Orange, crop input companies including OCP and UPL, as well as farmer cooperatives supplying large multinational companies including Guiness and Nestle. The company has an ambitious vision to improve the lives of 200 million individuals around the world by building their resilience to climate change.

We started in 2010 as a new research team in physics and meteorology, gathered from different renowned universities and institutions including NASA and the UN. We set out to tackle the difficult problem of accurately predicting weather conditions in the tropics and have built simple, yet powerful tools for our customers. We are democratizing weather and climate intelligence to build resilience to shocks and improve livelihoods - at scale.

Why ignitia?

Climate change is fueling more extreme weather events around the globe leading to lost lives and economic destruction. Half of the world’s countries lack adequate early warning systems for extreme weather events. In parallel, the current food system, dominated by small-scale and rain-dependent growers, contributes to roughly a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions and is ill-equipped to meet rising global food demand in a socially and environmentally sustainable way.

We take complex, AI-driven models and package it into actionable intelligence for 1) farmers to apply climate smart practices and mitigate weather risks, 2) urban populations to become better prepared for disasters through early warning systems and 3) financial institutions and industry stakeholders to identify climate risk factors affecting their lending, insurance, and business activities.

We are a deep tech, social enterprise that leverages advanced technologies to provide a unique and valuable means for our customers to stabilize operations, mitigate risks, build resilience, and maximize profits. Ignitia is a low-ego, high-energy environment. We don’t have multiple management layers and we are not into red tape or office politics. We have some of the best minds in meteorology, math, AI, and technology working alongside a powerful commercial sales team to change how our customers anticipate the effects of climate change and mitigate its risks.

Requirements

Scope: To help drive sales and grow the business. You will attract new clients and build solid relationships with them while maintaining existing relationships. Other duties will include market research, developing business strategies and pitches, managing a variety of projects, and identifying new business opportunities.

Responsibilities:

Business development

Conduct market research and identify potential clients.

Lead market intelligence gathering efforts, and provide analytical support to create presentations, formulate pitch, and proposed partnership structure for future customers.

Assist with drafting business plans, reference material, and other documents as required.

Help cultivate strong relationships with new clients, while maintaining existing client relationships.

Help structure and collect customer feedback during and after project delivery.

Develop database and maintain client information in the database.

Maintain CRM records including deal pipeline and conduct relevant analysis on historical and forecasted sales for trends, insights, and learning

Execute consultative sales from beginning to end including: customer research, problem identification, and solution mapping, pitch deck development and presentation to the customer, concept note and proposal writing, and basic budgeting for target customer segments

Support Development and implementation of sales strategies, client service and retention plans, and analyzing sales data to inform or update marketing strategies.

Work with executive team to drive efficient business development process and support information sharing across the team.

Strategy:

Supports Senior Management on the Development of Business Strategy Leading market intelligence gathering efforts and competitor analysis

Conduct extensive research, perform qualitative and quantitative analysis, and develop presentations for executive team and Board

Provide analytical support to assess operational, and financial viability of new and ongoing initiatives.

Support development, rationalisation, and execution of strategic initiatives across business lines.

Work closely with staff across departments to implement growth strategies.

Requirements:

Degree in business management, marketing, or related field.

1 - 2 years' relevant work experience in business development or similar field preferred.

Demonstrate strong interpersonal skills with the ability to engage effectively with various levels of management, staff, and clients.

Excellent English written and verbal communication skills.

Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously and work under pressure.

Strong organisation and project management skills.

Proficient in Microsoft Office and relevant software.