OxFirst
Business Development Associate – IP & Competition
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London | Full-time | Hybrid
The Role
We are looking for a commercially minded, entrepreneurial and legally knowledgeable Business Development Associate to help grow OxFirst's business, professional network and international conferences.
This is fundamentally a business-development and sales role.
A substantial part of your time will be spent identifying prospective clients, sponsors, partners and conference participants; finding the right senior decision-makers; approaching them directly; building relationships; following up systematically; and converting conversations into commercial opportunities.
You should be someone who naturally asks:
- Who should we be speaking to?
- Who could sponsor this?
- Who should attend?
- Who is the decision-maker?
- What would interest them?
- How do I start the conversation?
This is not primarily a legal research or paralegal role.
You will, however, be working in a sophisticated international legal and economic environment and therefore need to be intellectually curious and comfortable engaging with topics such as intellectual property, competition law, technology and innovation.
What You Will Do
Business Development
- Identify prospective clients, sponsors, partners and other commercial opportunities.
- Research organisations and identify the relevant senior decision-makers.
- Conduct proactive outreach through email, LinkedIn and other professional channels.
- Draft concise and personalised approaches designed to generate conversations and meetings.
- Follow up systematically and professionally with prospects.
- Build relationships with law firms, corporates, technology companies, investors and other relevant organisations.
- Arrange meetings and introductions for senior members of OxFirst.
- Maintain an organised pipeline of prospects, conversations and opportunities.
- Identify new opportunities arising from OxFirst's expertise, relationships and events.
Conferences and Sponsorship
A major part of the role will involve developing OxFirst's international conferences and professional events.
You will:
- Identify prospective sponsors and event partners.
- Approach relevant organisations and decision-makers.
- Develop sponsorship conversations.
- Identify senior professionals who should attend or participate.
- Invite prospective delegates, speakers and contributors.
- Follow up and convert interest into registrations, meetings and sponsorship opportunities.
- Help build a strong professional community around OxFirst's activities.
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You should be comfortable working towards clear commercial and activity targets and taking responsibility for results.
Marketing and Professional Visibility
You will also help:
- Grow OxFirst's professional network on LinkedIn.
- Support targeted networking and engagement.
- Draft LinkedIn posts, newsletters and event announcements.
- Promote OxFirst's studies, events and expertise.
- Identify opportunities to increase OxFirst's visibility among relevant legal, economic and business audiences.
Research
Research supports the commercial work rather than being the principal purpose of the role.
You may:
- Research developments in intellectual property and competition law.
- Investigate companies, law firms, markets and policy developments.
- Prepare short briefing notes.
- Support senior staff with background research for meetings and events.
Who We Are Looking For
We are looking for someone at an early stage of their career who combines intellectual ability with genuine commercial instinct.
You should have:
- Excellent written and spoken English.
- Strong professional writing and communication skills.
- Confidence approaching senior professionals whom you have never met.
- Strong research skills.
- The ability to identify the right people within an organisation.
- Persistence and confidence in following up.
- Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.
- Confidence using LinkedIn and other professional networking tools.
- The ability to manage a substantial number of prospects and conversations simultaneously.
- The ability to work independently and take initiative.
- A genuine interest in developing business and professional relationships.
A degree in Law, Economics, PPE, Business, Politics or a related discipline would be particularly relevant.
Legal training or experience within a law firm or professional-services environment would be an advantage.
An interest in intellectual property, competition law, technology, economics or innovation is important. Existing specialist knowledge of IP or competition law is helpful but not essential.
Typically, we would expect applicants to have 0–2 years of relevant professional experience.
German language skills are an advantage but are not essential.
Personal Qualities
The right person will be:
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Commercially minded You naturally think about clients, sponsors, relationships, opportunities and revenue.
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Entrepreneurial You look for opportunities rather than waiting for them to be presented to you.
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Proactive You take the next sensible step without requiring constant supervision.
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Persistent You understand that successful business development often requires several thoughtful follow-ups.
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Confident You are comfortable initiating conversations with senior professionals.
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Highly organised You can manage many contacts and opportunities without losing track of important details.
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Intellectually curious You are interested in law, economics, technology, innovation and international business.
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Results-oriented You care not simply about completing tasks, but about whether those activities produce meaningful commercial outcomes.
About OxFirst
OxFirst is an economic consultancy specialising in intellectual property valuation and the economics of intellectual property and competition law.
Since 2011, we have advised Fortune 100 companies, law firms, private equity firms, public institutions and policymakers internationally.
Our work includes patent valuation, licensing and damages analysis, competition economics, investment assessment and strategic advice relating to innovation and intellectual property.
OxFirst: https://oxfirst.com/
Through OxFirst Club, we also run an international programme of IP & Competition Forums, Expert Groups and professional discussions bringing together judges, policymakers, industry leaders, practitioners and academics.
Our 2027 programme includes the 15th IP & Competition Forum in Oxford, 13–14 January 2027, and the 16th IP & Competition Forum in Munich, 3–4 June 2027.
OxFirst Club: https://oxfirst.club/
The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work directly with senior professionals internationally and take substantial responsibility at an early stage of their career.
Strong commercial performance will be recognised and rewarded.
Application
Email: recruiting@oxfirst.com
Please submit your CV together with a short response to the following:
Imagine OxFirst is organising an international conference on intellectual property and competition law. Identify three organisations you would approach as potential sponsors. Briefly explain your choices and draft one short outreach message to one of them.
We are particularly interested in the quality of your commercial thinking, research, judgement and communication. Please indicate your earliest start date.
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