Partnerships and Business Development Manager

About us

XDI (Cross Dependency Initiative) is a specialist, mission-led physical climate risk analytics company, focused on changing how climate risk is understood, valued and acted on by the institutions that shape the global economy.

 

Established in 2007, XDI is the world’s longest-standing independent specialist in physical climate risk and adaptation analytics, and is named market leader in two of the world’s most prestigious independent evaluations of climate risk analytics — the Forrester Wave™: Climate Risk Analytics Software and Verdantix’s Smart Innovators: Physical Climate Risk Solutions. We translate climate risk into financially decision-useful intelligence, enabling decision-makers to plan for resilience and adaptation, and to redirect capital away from high-risk, high-emission activities toward a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy. Our clients include major banks, investors, asset owners and governments around the world, and we increasingly partner with academic institutions and NGOs to help deliver our impact goals. 

 

XDI is part of The Climate Risk Group. Across the group, we have around 50 team members based in Australia and Europe.

 

Our European client base has grown rapidly over the past three years through a combination of strategic partnerships and direct client relationships. In early 2023, we established our first European office in London, providing a base for team members across the UK and Spain and supporting our continued growth across the region. We are now looking to expand our UK-based team. 

The Role

As Partnerships & Business Development Manager, you will join a globally distributed, high-performing team of Sector & Partnership Leads, Customer Success Managers, and Data Product Specialists whose combined expertise delivers exceptional value to our clients across banking, asset management, insurance, advisory, data, and sustainability.

You will work with our clients and partners, including management advisory, data providers, and risk and sustainability consultants, to help them understand our services and customer-focused packages of SaaS, consulting, and hybrid solutions. 

You’ll be hands-on across the entire sales cycle: responding to inbound interest, generating new opportunities, shaping proposals and pitches, and securing strategic partnerships. In a small, agile team, your initiative and confidence will directly drive sector growth and client acquisition.

If this sounds like you, please apply now with your CV and a cover letter including why you’d like to work for XDI. Or contact Caroline Parisy – People & Culture for an informal chat. Interviews will start in early January 2026. 

Key Accountabilities

Business Development & Pipeline Growth

• Build and nurture strategic relationships with clients, prospects, and industry partners to expand awareness and drive the development of solutions to complex problems in climate and physical risk.
• Respond promptly and professionally to inbound queries, leads, and partner requests.
• Qualify opportunities, manage the pipeline with discipline, and guide prospects smoothly through each stage of the sales cycle.
• Maintain consistent and proactive follow-up so no lead goes cold.
• Identify cross-sell and upsell opportunities within existing accounts.

Client Engagement & Solution Design

• Build trusted relationships through clear, timely, and confident communication.
• Understand stakeholder needs and recommend the right pathways across our product suite.
• Translate client requirements into tailored proposals, scopes, pitches, and presentations.
• Work closely with product and delivery teams to assess feasibility, timelines, and solution options.
• Coordinate RFP responses, information requests, and local pitches, ensuring high-quality, persuasive submissions.

Market Insight & Collaboration

• Work with Sector Leads and C-suite to understand priority markets and connect customer feedback to product development.
• Partner with Product, Technical, and Science teams to communicate emerging client needs and opportunities.
• Collaborate with Communications & Marketing to shape sales collateral, value propositions, and thought-leadership content that strengthens our market presence.
• Provide regular insights on pipeline health, conversion barriers, and emerging market trends.
• Keep CRM systems up to date with accurate lead status, notes, forecasts, and reporting.

Capabilities and Experience Sought After

• 7+ years’ experience in banking, finance, corporate, engineering, or similar B2B environments.
• Experience in technical consulting, fintech, climate-tech, or SaaS is an advantage.
• Strong grasp of lead management, with proven experience writing proposals, tenders, and pitches.
• High responsiveness, able to act quickly on incoming requests, anticipate needs, and maintain momentum under pressure.
• Strong commercial judgement with the ability to understand client drivers, articulate value, qualify opportunities, and assess strategic fit.
• Outstanding communication skills; confident, clear, and persuasive across both written and verbal formats, with an ability to simplify complex or technical ideas.
• Exceptional collaborator who works well across functions (tech, science, analytics, delivery, marketing) to solve problems and drive shared outcomes.
• Highly organised and effective at prioritising, multitasking, and keeping multiple leads progressing simultaneously.
• Comfortable working with CRM systems (HubSpot experience is a plus).
• Solutions-focused mindset; creative problem-solver who looks for pathways forward rather than roadblocks.
• Confident making judgement calls, adapting to change, and escalating issues with constructive options.
• Motivated by the opportunity to “shift the dial” on climate change through partnerships, products, insights, and systemic influence.

If this sounds like you, please apply now with your CV and a cover letter including why you’d like to work for XDI. Or contact Caroline Parisy – People & Culture for an informal chat. Interviews will start in early January 2026.

Why work with us?

Want to know more about us and our work? Visit our Newsroom and explore our latest 2025 Physical Climate Risk Reports: https://xdi.systems/news

We are a mission-led organisation powered by people who want to apply their professional skills to deliver meaningful, real-world outcomes on climate change. Our team is united by a strong alignment to our purpose and a culture where everyone is encouraged to contribute, challenge ideas, and be heard.

We take pride in maintaining an inclusive, supportive environment where we care deeply about wellbeing, teamwork is strong, and people feel connected to the bigger picture. You’ll find empowered, collaborative teams, clear alignment to organisational goals, and leadership that values clarity, trust and impact. 

We also offer a range of generous employment conditions designed to support balance, autonomy and growth, including: 

• Flexible working arrangements, including hybrid working
• Fortnightly Wellbeing Days while remaining on full-time pay
• Access to our Employee Assistance Program
• Empowered, cross-functional ways of working
• A culture of continuous feedback and recognition