Careers at Best Practices, LLC

Best Practices, LLC is a rapidly-growing business research and Internet content provider. Based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, our firm is a leader in the field of best practice performance improvement. Our clients include Fortune 500 companies and worldwide corporations. The work environment is fast-paced and intellectually exciting. We're always interested in top-notch performers.

If you are a student looking for an internship in the field of research & consulting, marketing, publishing or sales, view our internship openings at the bottom of this page.

Job Openings

Senior Solutions Consultant – Inside Direct Sales Professional

Best Practices, LLC, a consulting and publishing firm and world leader in the field of best practice benchmarking research, is seeking a Solutions Consultant to join our inside professional sales force reporting to the national sales director.

In this role, you will be working in a team environment and responsible for establishing and maintaining customer relationships within Fortune 500 companies, focused primarily in the pharmaceutical, financial services, technology, and aerospace industries. Benchmarking products and services include membership research services, best practice databases and reports, benchmark metrics library, and custom studies. These research-based product lines are designed for mid-level managers and directors, and have price points between $2,000 and $50,000.

Qualifications

• 4 year BA/BS degree
• 5 plus years selling experience; Inside sales strongly preferred
• Demonstrated success of exceeding sales targets & strong relationship building skills to develop profitable customer relationships
• Ability to comprehend complex products of an analytical or scientific nature
• Excellent communication skills (oral, written, listening); Bilingual a plus

• Ability to manage an annual sales target of $400,000 - $500,000
• Industry experience and knowledge in one or more of the following areas: Pharmaceutical/Biotechnology Sales and Marketing, Supply Chain, Customer Service/Call Centers, Quality and Six Sigma, Human Resources, & Knowledge Management
• Develop and cultivate a sales pipeline utilizing structured selling and time management skills
• Manage clients and close sales via telephone interaction; approximately 20-40 calls/day
• Document selling activities through contact management database

• An annual base of $35,000 plus a pay-for-performance commission system that pays you a percentage (up to 10%) of each sale without any caps!
• Full Health benefits including vision, dental, life insurance, and matching 401k program
• 24 days of paid time off

Responsibilities:

• Building on previous subject knowledge, have knowledge in one or more of the following areas: pharmaceutical marketing, customer service and call centers, human resources, knowledge management, supply chain management, and quality/ Six Sigma.
• Master information about our research products, services, and capabilities.
• Prospect leads from an extensive list of previous customers and leads, as well as pro-actively identifying new leads at targeted companies
• Filter, prioritize and respond to incoming web inquiries, telephone inquiries, recent purchases, databases, and other sources for warm leads
• Develop and cultivate a sales pipeline that requires structured work habits, persistence and structured selling skills
• Create hot leads by inviting prospects to educational webinars
• Ability to sell via telephone and conduct 30 - 50 sales calls per day.
• Prioritize prospects to focus on high-value opportunities
• Proactively call prospects to discuss their needs, identifying potential fit with our published information
• Close the sale
• Document sales activities and keep detailed customer histories

• 5 years or more selling experience. Insides sales strongly preferred
• A verifiable track record of meeting sales targets of $400K - $500K per year
• Superior work ethic
• A proven ability to converse with and sell to mid- and upper-level managers and executives through inside sales organizations

• Previous research sales experience (Gartner, Corporate Executive Board, IDC etc.).
• SalesLogix, ACT, Sidekick or other contact management software expertise
• Existing knowledge of our most important topics (such as pharmaceutical business issues)
• Preference given to local candidates

Benefits include health, vision, dental, and insurance; 24 days of paid time off (vacation/holidays/personal/sick days); and 401(k) contribution.
The positions are full-time in our Chapel Hill office.

If you feel that Best Practices, LLC could benefit from your skills and qualifications, we encourage you to apply.

Please forward a cover letter, résumé, and writing samples via email.

You may also fax or mail (e-mail preferred) the above materials to:  

Best Practices, LLC
6350 Quadrangle Drive, Suite 200
Chapel Hill, NC 27517

Fax: 919-403-0144

Student Internships

APPLY NOW FOR SPRING 2009 INTERNSHIPS

Experience research and consulting firsthand by becoming an intern at Best Practices, LLC. Be a part of our friendly and informal work environment, and learn whether research and consulting is right for you. You will have the opportunity to work with our researchers on benchmarking projects, marketing content development, website management or sales support. Our internships typically require 8-10 hours of your time per week and are unpaid.

To inquire about these listings or to apply for an internship, contact Kim Hardin at khardin@best-in-class.com or 919.767.9221. Applications should include your resume and a cover letter.

We typically have openings for the following internship positions:

Research
Assist in advancing our product quality, data management and work productivity in our research and consulting channel. Interns will be responsible for supporting project teams with analyzing benchmark data, preparing data slides, importing and maintaining benchmarking data in spreadsheets, assisting in the data collection phase, helping with customer relationship management assignments and secondary research, and other benchmarking tasks. Students should be able to interpret raw survey data/metrics and present it in a meaningful format. Applicants should have strong analytical thinking skills, as well as working knowledge of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Adobe Acrobat. Juniors and seniors preferred majoring in business, economics or statistics.

Marketing and Publishing
Assist in marketing of our products and services. Interns will be responsible for creating marketing collateral such as press releases and e-marketing messages, editing product web pages and research documents, developing new marketing ideas around new and existing products, tracking marketing success, preparing marketing schedules, assisting our media relations initiatives etc. Applicants should have strong writing and editing skills, as well as working knowledge of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Adobe Acrobat. Juniors and seniors preferred majoring in business, marketing, journalism or communications.

Sales
Support continuing effort to expand, qualify and prune the customer relationship database. Interns will be responsible for mapping out the organizational structures of client companies, researching competitors’ products and services, forecasting sales of Best Practices’ offerings and competitors’ offerings. Applicants should have strong writing skills, as well as working knowledge of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Adobe Acrobat. Juniors and seniors preferred majoring in business, marketing or communications.

Event Planning
Responsibilities include developing, refining, and evaluating potential marketing strategies based upon an understanding of the conference overview. Research and identify potential speakers for upcoming conferences. Assist meeting planning staff in various aspects of the pre-event planning and internal processes. Present new ideas and designs for collateral and flyers. Conduct competitor analysis searches for conferences/seminars, and update competitor files. Seeking intern with superb organizational skills, computer skills (Excel experience required), and an energetic can-do attitude.

Business Operations Research Analyst

Business Operations Research Analyst needed for Best Practices, LLC, a research and consulting and database publishing company serving the pharmaceutical, health care and biotech industries and located in Chapel Hill, NC. Related degree and experience required. Fax resume and transcripts to 919-403-0144.