Business Development

Business development (Biz Dev) refers to creating strategic opportunities for a business by building lasting relationships with customers, partners, etc.

A much broader term, business development shouldn’t be confused with sales development. Business development roles at an organization are usually in charge of growth – from revenue and profitability increase to business expansion in general and forming strategic partnerships.

As a result, business development requires close cooperation with other departments, i.e., marketing, human resources, finances, product development, manufacturing and vendor relationships, outside of sales.

Related terms:

• Business development representative (BDR) is a person in charge of creating strategic opportunities, usually through cold outreach, networking, or social selling.
• Chief Partnerships Officer is often the top executive who oversees all business development activities and is responsible for growing the company’s strategic partnerships.