Business Development Associate

Company Description Ace Keystone Consultants (AK Consultants) is a deep-tech innovation firm based in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. Founded in 2025, the company focuses on empowering organizations and professionals to achieve their goals through cutting-edge research, strategic advisory, and transformative solutions. AK Consultants supports clients across sectors by driving innovation, helping them navigate complex challenges, and unlocking new growth opportunities. Core service areas include innovation consulting, research and development for emerging technologies, and customized solutions for sustainable growth.

We are seeking enthusiastic and driven Business Development Interns to support our growth initiatives. The intern will work closely with the leadership team to identify new business opportunities, build strategic partnerships, support proposal development, and contribute to sales and market expansion activities.

With potential conversion to a full-time role based on performance

Key Responsibilities:

Market Research & Opportunity Identification

• Conduct market research to identify emerging industry trends and opportunities.
• Analyse competitors, customers, and target markets.
• Maintain databases of potential clients, industry contacts, and prospects.

Lead Generation & Client Engagement

• Identify and engage potential clients through various channels.
• Support outreach campaigns via email, LinkedIn, and phone.
• Schedule meetings and assist in client relationship management.

Proposal & Bid Support

• Assist in preparing business proposals, presentations, and capability statements.
• Support government tenders, grant applications, and partnership proposals.
• Contribute to project documentation and business reports.

Partnership Development

• Identify collaboration opportunities with universities, industries, innovation centres, and government agencies.
• Support MoU development and stakeholder engagement activities.
• Assist in maintaining relationships with strategic partners.

Sales Support

• Track sales opportunities and maintain CRM records.
• Support business development meetings and follow-up activities.
• Prepare sales performance summaries and pipeline reports.

Strategic Initiatives

• Support the launch of new products, Centres of Excellence, and innovation programmes.
• Assist in evaluating new market entry opportunities.
• Participate in customer discovery and business validation exercises.

Skills & Qualifications

• Pursuing or recently completed a degree in Business Administration, Management, Marketing, Engineering, Economics, or related disciplines.
• Strong communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent research and analytical capabilities.
• Ability to prepare professional reports and presentations.
• Strong organisational and time-management skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Self-motivated with an entrepreneurial mindset.

Preferred Skills

• Familiarity with B2B sales and business development.
• Experience with LinkedIn networking and outreach.
• Knowledge of proposal writing or grant funding.
• Interest in technology, innovation, smart cities, sustainability, or research commercialisation.
• CRM and market intelligence tools experience.