Business Development Associate - Aperio

At Aperio (part of BlackRock), our strategies are designed to put our clients’ and their clients’ interests at the center of our investment advice; to minimize costs and taxes; and to incorporate each client’s unique environmental, social, and governance (ESG) preferences. We are a purposefully growing quantitative/index-tracking investment management business specializing in managing customized equity portfolios tax efficiently.

At Aperio, we work hard and move quickly as a well-coordinated, collaborative team whose exceptional people are focused on providing extraordinary client service. If you are looking for an opportunity to grow and contribute in a fun, industry-disruptive, fast-paced environment, Aperio is the place for you.

About This Role

We are looking for a Business Development Associate who will primarily support our team in the Central Region. Our preference would be to have someone located in the central region near a major metropolitan city. This is a great opportunity to work for a growing investment management firm. The primary responsibility of the Business Development Associate is to serve as a day-to-day liaison internally with our Central Region business development team and externally with our clients. Accordingly, the ideal candidate will have excellent problem-solving skills, a high degree of attention to detail, and strong organizational and analytical abilities. They will also be highly proficient in Microsoft Office applications (particularly Excel and PowerPoint), be familiar with Salesforce (or other customer relationship management [CRM] software), and be able to manage and prioritize multiple tasks with clients and colleagues.

Key Responsibilities

Support internal and external sales initiatives for the business development team, including:

• Providing sales and support for our clients and prospects in the Central part of the United States
• Servicing and cultivating client relationships, such as creating detailed documentation of all calls, meetings, and emails from the team and coordinating appropriate follow-up
• Scheduling and managing client calls and meetings (trip planning, handling client-/prospect-facing logistics such as confirming, calendaring, and prepping materials and background)
• Responding to inquiries and effectively discussing all product offerings with the Aperio and BlackRock sales teams and the broader BlackRock organization
• Distributing marketing and research materials to clients and prospects, both prior to meetings and as follow-up after meetings
• Liaising with portfolio management and operations teams to ensure responsive and high-touch client and prospect service
• Tracking progress and status of all new business opportunities in the central region (opportunity management)
• Keeping client- and prospect-level information current and relevant; identifying firms and key contacts (prospects/influencers)
• Collaborating on special projects with the other region’s Business Development Associates
• Creating and maintaining prospecting campaign lists
• Effectively identifying firms and key contacts (prospects/influencers)—reactively and proactively
• Representing the company in a professional, positive manner and consistently maintaining an appropriate level of confidentiality

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance or Economics preferred
• Five-plus years of work experience, with a minimum of two years of industry experience preferred
• Excellent people skills, including the ability to both ask relevant questions and exhibit effective listening
• Professional demeanor with a positive attitude
• Self-motivation and the ability to work both independently and in a collaborative manner
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Strong organizational and time-management aptitude, including experience managing projects and processes
• Acute attention to detail; strong proofing skills for text, data, and graphics
• Efficiency and process orientation
• Experience utilizing Salesforce or other CRM software
• High proficiency in the use of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Adobe Acrobat