Business Development Advisor

Business Development Advisor (Woodland Creation) North West and West Midlands
Location: North West and West Midlands

About the job
Never has there been a more important time for trees and forests to help tackle the climate emergency and provide a much-needed sanctuary for people and wildlife. Our Prime Minister and our government are committed to creating 30,000ha of woodland a year across the UK by the end of this Parliament. This acceleration in current planting rates in England will contribute to meeting the net-zero by 2050 ambitions, and to government’s wider environmental targets. This was supported by the announcement in the March 2020 budget of a new Nature for Climate Fund ‘to support natural habitats like woodland and peat’. 

The post holder will be expected to live in the North West & West Midlands area and be ideally based from our Delamere office. There will be travel across the area with blended working between the office, site and home. The main area covered by the role will be from South Lancashire down to Shropshire and Staffordshire.

The Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Forestry Commission have set up a joint tree planting programme for England to support the forestry sector, landowners and communities in the delivery of these ambitions. 

Forestry Commission will lead the delivery of the following parts of the tree planting programme: 
-    promotion and engagement 
-    developing sector capacity 
-    woodland creation on public land 
-    woodland creation on private land 

As part of the promotion and engagement project, this role will develop a pipeline of woodland proposals through identifying how woodland creation and management can meet land owners’ and managers’ objectives. You will work closely with a broad range of customers and stakeholders, and will have a sound understanding of land management and/or agriculture complemented by an understanding of forestry.

If you are passionate about the role forestry can play in creating a better future for England, and want to play a part in that, we want to hear from you.
By joining this programme you will become part of a team of passionate, committed colleagues, and you will have the opportunity to build on a wealth of expertise to take this ambitious work forward. You will be able to make your mark by helping the Forestry Commission to revolutionise how we reach new audiences and influence the woodland creation agenda. Our staff engagement levels are consistently well above the Civil Service average and staff turnover is well below. We value our people, we look after them, and we will look after you. We hope you will join us for the challenge.

Job description
The Business Development Advisor will be responsible for identifying opportunities for woodland creation and management that meet land-owners’ and managers’ objectives, to create a pipeline of woodland creation proposals supporting tree planting ambitions.

KEY WORK AREAS

-    Plan and prioritise engagement with landowners and managers based on Area plans and priorities, and relevant data available, working closely with Area colleagues
-    Meet landowners and managers to assess their business requirements, conduct whole holding or business audits, and identify woodland creation and management opportunities that meet the landowners’ objectives
-    Develop a local network with the forestry and land management sector, sharing skills and knowledge with advisors and those supporting land-use decisions.
-    Approach and engage with local advisors/agents/stakeholder networks offering information on woodland creation
-    Attend events to talk directly to farmers/landowners engaging in proactive lead generation/targeting and to provide advice on woodland creation
-    Assist with the planning and delivery of local networking events and agricultural shows
-    Engage with existing and new customers and stakeholders to strengthen understanding and awareness of the woodland creation offer, building on established relationships with Area teams
-    Manage customer journey from initial engagement through to the point of proceeding with woodland creation project, liaising with the Woodland Creation Officer and Woodland Officer
-    Keep CRM system information up to date, following up on all leads and tracking prospective customers
-    Lead the programme agenda with the sector to facilitate accelerated woodland creation
-    Collect and feedback intelligence to inform development or improvement of promotional tools, and to inform improvements to the woodland creation offer.  
-    Provide content input as subject matter expert.
-    Maintain an understanding of current market trends and work with regional and national teams to address market challenges and opportunities

We are open to part-time working, particularly when combined with farming or other land-based activity.
The duties of this post require the applicant to have a full current driving licence that enables them to drive in the UK. However, the Forestry Commission is willing to consider any proposals put forward by applicants that would allow them to do the job by any other means.

The role will report to the Regional Promotion Manager.

Benefits

• A Civil Service pension
• A range of family friendly benefits
• An environment with flexible working options
• Learning and development tailored to your role
• A culture which promotes a diverse and inclusive work environment
• A range of wellbeing benefits including discounted Civil Service Healthcare, access to an Employee Assistance   Programme 24/7, Bike to Work Scheme, plus many more.
• 25 days annual leave, with 1 additional day for each years’ service up to 5 years (pro rata)
• Ability to buy or sell 5 days annual leave
• 3 days volunteering per year (pro rata)

We aim to provide a great place to work, whichever location you work from. Blended working forms part of our flexible and inclusive approach to future ways of working. It is an informal arrangement which gives you the option to work some of the week from home, and some of the week from our Forestry Commission workplaces, subject to role requirements, business needs, and regular review. Informal blended working arrangements will be available as agreed with the line manager.

Salary £35,870 - £38,842
To apply, please click the apply button. 
Closing date: Apply before 11:55 pm on Sunday 5 March 2023