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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Business Services Advisor

💰 $ - $

Business ServicesClient AdvisoryOperationsConsulting

🎯 Role Definition

As a Business Services Advisor you will act as the primary liaison between clients and internal teams to deliver business advisory, operational support, and value-added services that improve client outcomes and drive organizational growth. You will diagnose client needs, design pragmatic solutions, manage service delivery, and ensure compliance and profitability across a portfolio of small-to-medium enterprise (SME) and corporate accounts. This role blends deep stakeholder engagement, process improvement, commercial acumen, and hands-on project coordination.

Keywords: Business Services Advisor, client advisory, account management, operational efficiency, service delivery, business process improvement, compliance, stakeholder management.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Business Analyst or Junior Business Analyst with client-facing exposure.
  • Account Manager, Client Services Representative, or Relationship Officer.
  • Operations Coordinator, Project Coordinator, or Administrative Services Specialist.

Advancement To:

  • Senior Business Services Advisor / Lead Advisor
  • Business Services Manager / Head of Client Solutions
  • Operations Manager, Director of Client Services, or Senior Management roles in Consulting

Lateral Moves:

  • Process Improvement Specialist / Continuous Improvement Consultant
  • Risk & Compliance Advisor
  • Relationship Manager or Commercial Account Manager

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Serve as the dedicated point of contact for a defined portfolio of clients, proactively managing relationships by understanding business objectives, identifying pain points, and delivering tailored advisory services that increase client retention and revenue.
  • Conduct comprehensive needs assessments and discovery workshops with clients to map business processes, identify opportunities for efficiency gains, and create prioritized implementation roadmaps aligned to client goals.
  • Develop and present clear, persuasive business cases and proposals that outline recommended solutions, cost/benefit analysis, ROI estimates, timelines, and success metrics to support client decision-making.
  • Coordinate end-to-end service delivery by creating project plans, assigning internal resources, tracking milestones, and ensuring on-time, on-budget execution of advisory engagements.
  • Perform detailed financial and operational analysis including budgeting, forecasting, variance analysis, and KPIs to inform client strategy and improve profitability and cash flow management.
  • Negotiate commercial terms, service agreements, and contract renewals with clients and vendors while ensuring terms align with company policy and mitigate commercial risk.
  • Provide subject-matter expertise on regulatory and compliance requirements relevant to client industries, guiding clients through necessary controls and documentation to reduce regulatory exposure.
  • Lead cross-functional meetings and act as translator between technical teams (IT, product, operations) and non-technical stakeholders to ensure solutions are feasible, usable, and aligned to business needs.
  • Implement and monitor service-level agreements (SLAs) and performance metrics, producing regular management reports and dashboards that demonstrate service impact and inform continuous improvement.
  • Drive process redesign initiatives (e.g., SOP development, process mapping, automation recommendations) that reduce cycle times, lower cost-to-serve, and improve client satisfaction scores.
  • Manage escalations and complex client issues from identification through resolution, applying root-cause analysis and corrective action plans to prevent recurrence.
  • Onboard new clients and deliver training and change management support to client teams to ensure adoption of recommended tools, processes, and best practices.
  • Support commercial growth by identifying upsell and cross-sell opportunities within your client portfolio and collaborating with Sales to convert these opportunities into revenue.
  • Monitor market trends, competitive landscape, and industry best practices to continually refine offerings and advise clients on strategic shifts and risk mitigation.
  • Prepare and deliver persuasive executive-level presentations to clients and internal stakeholders summarizing insights, progress, and strategic recommendations.
  • Oversee third-party vendors and service partners engaged in client programs, ensuring contracted deliverables meet quality standards, timelines, and budget expectations.
  • Maintain detailed client records, engagement logs, and documentation in CRM/ERP systems to ensure compliance, knowledge continuity, and accurate revenue recognition.
  • Participate in commercial and operational risk assessments for client engagements, recommending controls and mitigations to protect company and client interests.
  • Actively solicit client feedback and conduct satisfaction surveys to measure service performance, analyze results, and lead initiatives that increase Net Promoter Score (NPS) and client loyalty.
  • Drive continuous improvement within the Business Services function by piloting new service offerings, tools, and methodologies and scaling successful pilots across the business.
  • Mentor and coach junior advisors, sharing best practices for client engagement, problem diagnosis, and solution delivery to build team capability and consistency.

Secondary Functions

  • Contribute to the development of standardized templates, playbooks, and toolkit assets that increase scalability and reduce proposal cycle time.
  • Support internal business development efforts by preparing case studies, client testimonials, and content for thought leadership and marketing campaigns.
  • Assist with data collection and basic analysis to inform product teams about client needs and feature requests that improve product-market fit.
  • Participate in periodic audit and quality assurance reviews to ensure internal controls and documentation comply with internal policies and external regulations.
  • Provide backup support for account managers during elevated work periods, ensuring continuity of client service.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Advanced proficiency with CRM systems (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, HubSpot) for opportunity management, client tracking, and reporting.
  • Strong Excel skills, including financial modeling, pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, and scenario analysis for budgeting and forecasting.
  • Experience with enterprise systems/ERP (SAP, Oracle NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics) and an ability to coordinate data flows between systems.
  • Financial analysis and commercial acumen: P&L understanding, margin analysis, pricing strategy, and cost-to-serve modeling.
  • Project management skills with experience using tools like Microsoft Project, Asana, Jira, or Trello to plan and deliver engagements.
  • Business process mapping and improvement techniques such as Lean, Six Sigma, or BPMN for operational redesign and efficiency gains.
  • Contract review and vendor management experience, including negotiating commercial terms and monitoring service-level compliance.
  • Regulatory and compliance knowledge relevant to client sectors (e.g., financial services, healthcare, government procurement).
  • Reporting and dashboarding skills using Power BI, Tableau, or Google Data Studio to visualize KPIs and client outcomes.
  • Basic data literacy: ability to interpret datasets, run queries (SQL desirable), and draw actionable recommendations from quantitative analysis.

Soft Skills

  • Exceptional client-facing communication and presentation skills with the ability to convey complex concepts clearly to executives and operational teams.
  • Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building skills to influence cross-functional teams and maintain client trust.
  • Analytical problem-solving and critical thinking with a structured approach to diagnostics and decision-making.
  • Commercial mindset and results orientation — focused on outcomes, revenue impact, and client ROI.
  • Negotiation and conflict resolution skills to manage contract discussions and de-escalate tensions.
  • Time management and prioritization, able to balance competing client demands and multiple engagements concurrently.
  • Adaptability and resilience in fast-paced environments with shifting priorities.
  • Coaching and mentorship ability to develop junior team members and promote knowledge sharing.
  • Attention to detail and accountability for delivery quality and compliance.
  • Initiative and creativity in designing pragmatic, scalable solutions tailored to client needs.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, Accounting, Economics, Management, or a related field.

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree plus professional certification (PMP, Lean Six Sigma, CPA, ACCA, or equivalent) or a Master’s degree (MBA, MSc) in a relevant discipline.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Business Administration
  • Finance / Accounting
  • Economics
  • Management Information Systems
  • Public Administration
  • Operations Management

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 2–7 years of progressive experience in client advisory, account management, business operations, or consulting roles.

Preferred:

  • 5+ years working directly with SME or corporate clients in advisory, consulting, or professional services environments.
  • Demonstrated track record of managing multiple client engagements, delivering measurable process improvements, and contributing to revenue growth.
  • Sector experience (financial services, healthcare, professional services, government) preferred depending on the hiring organization.
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