FCOED – Business Development Specialist

• Business Development Specialist
• Frederick County Office of Economic Development
• Salary: $70,095.00
• Job Type: Full-time Regular
• Job Number: FY25-00205
• Department: Economic Development
• Filing Deadline: 09/04/2024

JOB INFORMATION:

Exempt; full-time; 40 hours per week; Monday – Friday; 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; full benefits

Join the Frederick County Office of Economic Development (FCOED), a part of the Frederick County Division of Economic Opportunity, where we drive economic growth and community development in Frederick County, MD. We are committed to fostering a diverse, sustainable, and thriving economy by supporting local businesses, attracting new investments, and enhancing the quality of life for all residents. The Business Development Specialist plays a crucial role in our efforts to market Frederick County as a prime location for business and innovation. This role involves engaging with businesses, organizations, and community partners to support business creation, retention, and expansion, ensuring long-term economic growth for Frederick County. Supervision is received from the Department Director of the Office of Economic Development.

Frederick County Government values the principles of diversity and inclusion, and strives to ensure equal opportunities for its workforce, applicants and community members. If you are a person who wants to make a difference, give back to your community, and be a voice for change, apply to Frederick County Government today.

TOTAL COMPENSATION PACKAGE:

Frederick County offers an extensive compensation package to reflect how highly we value our employees. The following is what you can expect in your first year as a full time benefited Frederick County Government employee.

• 11 days of Vacation leave with increase after 2 years of employment
• 15 days of Sick leave with unlimited annual carryover
• 11 paid scheduled holidays, plus 2 additional floating holidays
• Day 1 coverage of comprehensive Medical Insurance Plan options to include generous County HSA contribution (if enrolled in the high-deductible plan). This is part of a full range of benefits including Dental, Vision, and Flexible Spending
• 100% County paid 2x annual salary Group Term Life Insurance and AD&D benefit
• Work/Life balance programs include: Employee Assistance Program and Employee Wellness Program
• Generous Tuition Reimbursement Program
• County and Employee funded Defined Benefit Pension Plan
  • Vesting after 5 years of service
  • Additional service credit for eligible previous public service, military service, etc.
• Other employee paid benefits such as Deferred Compensation Plan, Legal Resources, Supplemental Life Insurance, Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital Indemnity Insurance, etc.

For more information, visit our benefits page on the Frederick County Government job opportunities webpage.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Assist in recruitment and retention efforts focused on targeted industry sectors including life sciences, information technology, and manufacturing, and collaborate with the FCOED team to implement a wide range of economic development projects and programs
• Become familiar with the full range of economic development assistance provided by FCOED and its partner organizations and identify and develop tools and resources for businesses and community partners
• Schedule and coordinate joint company visits with FCEDO partners, and participate in same
• Respond to requests for information and develop subject-matter expertise to provide connections and guidance to businesses, partners, the general public, and/or outside agencies
• Serve as an economic development contact for businesses, prospective partners, government, and other organizations, and represent FCOED at a variety of meetings, advisory groups, boards, committees, agencies, councils, and/or other related groups
• Research and develop new business contacts and opportunities, and draft proposals, applications, presentations, and other documents as needed to develop opportunities
• Initiate meetings and conduct strategic and effective presentations with representatives of local business and community organizations to cultivate partnerships and generate new opportunities for FCOED to help grow jobs and the business tax base
• Create and implement partnership programs and initiatives that build stronger, more aligned collaboration among FCOED and partner organizations
• Continuously build and maintain a collaborative relationship with businesses, partners, and client communities
• Coordinate with FCOED’s Business Intelligence and Marketing team for lead generation and marketing
• Track business interactions and results in FCOED’s CRM database, Salesforce
• Perform other duties as assigned

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Any single position may not be assigned all duties listed above, nor do the examples cover all duties that may be assigned. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

QUALIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS:

The qualifications/requirements, knowledge/skills/abilities and physical requirements or working conditions described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

• Bachelor’s degree
• Minimum 3 years work experience working in economic development, business development, marketing or related field
• Intermediate skills in Microsoft Office Suite
• NOTE: An additional 2 years of related work experience may reduce the education requirement to an Associate’s degree

KNOWLEDGE / SKILLS / ABILITIES:

• Knowledge of State and Federal financing and incentive programs
• Independent and strategic thinker with the capacity to generate new ideas and act creatively
• Strong team player
• Ability to represent FCOED at community-based events and meetings
• Adaptable to changes in the work environment, managing competing demands, changing approaches or methods to best fit the situation, and dealing with frequent changes or unexpected events
• Demonstrated ability to work under pressure, to meet tight deadlines within budgetary constraints, and to handle multiple projects simultaneously and autonomously
• Ability to effectively organize work, determine priorities and complete assigned duties with minimal supervision
• Ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with business executives, developers and related professionals, co-workers and the general public
• Strong and effective spoken and written (English) communication skills, including public speaking skills

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS AND WORKING CONDITIONS:

• While working in this position, the employee is frequently walking, sitting and performing repetitive motions; occasionally lifting up to 20 pounds, pushing and pulling up to 40 pounds and driving; and rarely climbs and stoops.
• While working in the position, the employee is constantly working indoors; and rarely works outdoors, walks on uneven ground, works in dirty, dusty and noisy environments and works near machinery.
• While working in this position, the employee will be required to periodically visit and tour business locations. These sites may be indoor, outdoor, include walking on uneven ground and climbing stairs. Exposure to dirty, dust, noise and machinery/construction equipment may also occur.
• While working in this position, the employee will be required to transport, carry and setup exhibit booths and materials. This may include pushing or pulling of the exhibit display case, carrying boxes of materials, and reaching, stooping, kneeling and crouching in order to set up the display area.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION / EXAMINATION PROCESS:

• Ability to provide own transportation to meetings and events
• Available for varied working hours/days as needed to accommodate meetings and other commitments, including evenings and occasional travel

EXAMINATION PROCESS (may include):

• An evaluation of training and experience
• One or more interviews