Business Development Associate

Responsibilities

• Own coverage and relationship management for a high-volume portfolio of generalist intermediaries, brokers, and channel partners, particularly those that do not publicly list deal flow.
• Execute high-volume outbound relationship building across phone, email, LinkedIn, conferences, and referral networks to uncover proprietary and off-market acquisition opportunities.
• Conduct ongoing follow-up, nurturing, and relationship development with intermediaries to maintain top-of-mind positioning and drive repeat deal referrals.
• Qualify inbound and outbound opportunities and escalate promising deals to Deal Leads for deeper evaluation and review.
• Carefully coordinate closely with Deal Leads to ensure smooth handoff and own relationship through LOI submission.
• Lead creation and iterative improvements of sales collateral, programming and other assets to aid in prospecting and relationship management efforts.
• Track all outreach activity, intermediary engagement, and pipeline progress within HubSpot and internal CRM systems.
• Develop a deep understanding of intermediary landscapes, market dynamics, and sourcing channels to identify untapped relationship opportunities.
• Participate in weekly pipeline, sourcing, and strategy meetings, providing updates on outreach performance, intermediary engagement, and market insights.

Qualifications

• 2+ years of experience in a corporate development or M&A business development role, with a focus on broker or intermediary coverage.
• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Economics, or related field.
• Solid understanding of the M&A process, three-statement financials, and transaction dynamics.
• Experience using HubSpot, CRM systems, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Slack, Zoom, Google Workspace, and related productivity tools.
• Proven success building out channel or referral partnerships (e.g., indirect sales).
• Strong ability to build rapport quickly and maintain long-term professional relationships across a broad network of intermediaries and referral partners.
• Highly motivated self-starter with a hunter mentality, comfort operating in a metrics-driven environment, and happy to hop on a plane.
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills with strong follow-up discipline.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple relationship pipelines simultaneously.
• Comfortable working cross-functionally with investment, deal, and operations teams.
• Entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-growth environment.

About the Role

American Operator is a company dedicated to preserving the legacy of America’s small businesses and creating more pathways to meaningful ownership. We believe in the power of entrepreneurship and the importance of supporting local communities. Our team is diverse and passionate about helping operators grow their businesses and achieve their goals.