Associate Director - Business Development

About the Role This is a senior, player-coach sales role within YouGov MENA: you focus on running and closing a portfolio of complex, higher-value opportunities yourself, with people leadership responsibilities to follow as a team is built out. You set the standard for how business is qualified, shaped and won, and you are the point of escalation when a deal needs senior judgement, sign-off or a steady hand with the client. You are a credible senior presence with clients and prospects across the UAE and Saudi Arabia, comfortable leading a pitch, negotiating terms or stepping into a stalled deal, while also coaching more junior colleagues on how to do the same. You report to the GM/Regional VP of MENA, and work closely with Research and Product to make sure every proposal that carries your sign-off is commercially sound and deliverable. Key Responsibilities Team Leadership & Development There is no direct team in place at present. As and when Business Development Executives or Managers are recruited into the role, you would be expected to lead, coach and develop them, including taking part in their recruitment, bringing them into your own deals wherever possible so they gain experience. Pipeline Ownership & Deal Leadership Own a personal sales target linked to revenue, forecasting it accurately enough to defend under scrutiny. Lead qualification and discovery on the team's more complex, sensitive or high-value opportunities, applying MEDDPICC rigorously. Manage a portfolio of concurrent opportunities, allocating resource across deals and balancing competing priorities across the team. Make defensible calls under pressure and with incomplete information, weighing the bigger picture and not only the immediate deal. Commercial Quality & Sign-off Work with management to sign off on significant proposals and pricing before they reach the client, within agreed parameters. Shape bespoke commercial solutions for deals that don't fit a standard template, working with Research and Product where needed. Own quality for what leaves your team's book of business, acting as the final check on high-value or sensitive deliverables. Client Leadership & Account Growth Act as a trusted adviser to senior client stakeholders on complex opportunities, brought in when a decision genuinely matters. Own senior client relationships through the sales cycle and into early account life for the team's most significant deals, making sure YouGov is never reliant on a single contact. Build recognised sector expertise and share it across the team so knowledge isn't dependent on one person. Confidently position the full YouGov suite (Data Services, Data Products, Sport and Custom) and advise honestly on what's appropriate for the client. Cross-Functional Collaboration Partner with Research and Product to keep proposals methodologically sound and deliverable, and to shape bespoke solutions. Use the YouGov platform suite (Crunch, BrandIndex, Profiles) confidently in front of senior prospects, and monitor usage to spot growth or retention risk early. Build data-led narratives that connect insight to a client's business decisions, coaching the team to do the same. What We're Looking For Qualifications 7-9 years' experience in consumer insights, market research or subscription/SaaS sales, including preferably meaningful time in MENA markets. Some experience leading, coaching or mentoring junior colleagues, or clearly ready to step into first-line people leadership. A track record of managing and closing a portfolio of complex or higher-value opportunities, beyond simply carrying a personal quota. Strong knowledge of brand and communications tracking, syndicated and custom consumer research. Confident using Salesforce and Gong (or equivalent) to manage a book of business and forecast accurately. Fluency in English required; Arabic an advantage. Based in the UAE, with good working knowledge of the UAE and KSA markets. Preferred Skills Experience running MEDDPICC-based qualification and coaching others on it. Exposure to tenders, RFIs or multi-stakeholder deals. Existing relationships with mid-to-senior client stakeholders in the UAE or KSA. Comfortable acting as escalation point and sign-off for proposals and pricing. An eye for process improvement and a genuine interest in developing people who go on to outgrow the role. Experience registering and maintaining accounts, where needed, on client platforms for RFQ sharing and proposal submissions. A genuine interest in using AI to work smarter across the sales cycle, from speeding up proposal reviews to building sharper MEDDPICC account and target cards and pulling together client insight. Why Join Us? You'll take on a senior, hands-on sales role in one of YouGov's highest potential growth regions, in a team with significant autonomy while still closing your own deals, shaping how the team sells, and building the experience that leads towards Director-level leadership of the MENA sales function. Why join YouGov? Join our global team to help us achieve our social mission: to make millions of people’s opinions heard for the benefit of our local, national, and international communities. Understanding diversity of opinion requires diversity of background. Although our global panel of millions of people worldwide powers our research, our biggest asset is our people. If our research is to be truly representative of what the world thinks, we need people from all walks of life to be part of the team to bring their perspective to the work we do. Life at YouGov We are driven by a set of shared values. We are fast, fearless, and innovative. We work diligently to get it right. We are guided by accuracy, ethics, and proven methodologies. We respect and trust each other, bringing these values into everything that we do. We strive to provide YouGovers with best-in-class benefits to support their physical, financial, and emotional wellbeing. We want our employees to have a sense of belonging and uniqueness in a supportive workplace, so they can bring their full selves to work. Equal Opportunity Employer As an Equal Opportunity Employer, qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity or expression, and sexual orientation), parental status, national origin, marital status, age, disability, genetic information, HIV status, political affiliation, socioeconomic background, veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law or in line with our responsibilities as a fair and ethic employer. 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