Good academics is not a requirement for a Business Development Executive

I am Kuntal Raha, currently working with Shriram Properties (Real Estate) as an Assistant Manager. I have nearly 9 years of experience in business development and real estate industry. After joining Shriram Properties (Kolkata Division), I was assigned to develop a launch plan for a new township project of around 2500 Apartments. The job responsibilities included logistics planning for nearly 180+ centres.

Who is a Business Development Executive?

Business Development Executive can be described as the work force, who are in charge of increasing the revenue of an organization through offering of products or services of the organization.

What did you want to be when you were in higher secondary school?

I really did not have a definite professional goal when I was at school, but like most other kids at my age, wanted to be professionally successful and earn a lot of money.

I started my career in real estate with a marketing company, where my main job responsibility was to sell high-end properties in South Kolkata. The job profile immediately hooked me.

What do you do and how do you do it?

Currently, my job revolves around preparing and updating various MIS (Management Information System) reports, data reconciliation and inventory management.

When I was assigned the data management, initially I faced a lot of problem dealing with huge data. I had to work very closely with accounts department to manage & process large data.

Now I am very confident of my MIS skills (Management Information System). For this, I will be always indebted to my accounts team of the current organization for teaching me a skill set that sets me apart from most other business development executives.

What steps did you take to land in your present job?

I had an experience of dealing with township project beforehand. It gave me an edge over other candidates while I applied for the post of Business Development in my current organization.

What do you wish you knew before you started preparing for your career?

I wish I had more definite professional goals and more perseverance when I started my career.

What things would you do differently in preparing for this career?

I would try to improve my people skills.

What do you love about your current role?

I really love to develop new skill set at regular intervals. Working in my current role, I did manage to handle different responsibilities by learning new skills and improve them constantly. I am fortunate to learn and grow in the industry, which I believe has huge potential for my substantial growth in near future.

What are the challenges you face in your career?

Keeping myself motivated when things are not going according to the plan and keep myself updated regularly of the market scenarios.

What are your future aspirations?

To become the HOD – Sales & Marketing for a renowned organization someday.

Can you please summarise your career journey?

Graduation – B.com (Hons), Calcutta University
Certification Course – Information Technology, CMC Limited
Post Graduation – MBA Marketing & Finance, Pune (2008)
Certification Course – Capital Market – Dealer’s Module, National Stock Exchange (2007)
Centre Manager – ICA Infotech
Working in Real Estate since 2009

What are the skills required to be a Business Development Executive?

A Business Development Executive should have strong communication & persuasion skills. In addition, he/she should have business intelligence to analyse and solve impeding issues.

What do you think potential recruiters look for in a fresh Business Development Executive?

I think recruiters look for attitude mostly for hiring fresh Business Executives. For experienced Business Development Executives, recruiters should mostly consider their competence and character.

How do I know if a career in Business Development is for me?

I think anyone who loves to communicate with people and have business intelligence can opt for a career in Business Development. You do not have to be very good in academics to be successful in this career, but you should always be ready to adapt and learn.

What do you think everyone leaving higher secondary school should know?

I feel everyone should interact with professionals from different sectors to not only understand the market scenario but also to be market ready.
Academic courses will only provide knowledge, but interacting with professionals will help you in application of knowledge.