Note from the author on the 2023 update:

Since I posted the original version of this BRM job description nine years ago, the role of the Business Relationship Manager (BRM) has evolved significantly. Initially introduced as a way to improve stakeholder management and collaboration, the BRM role has expanded to include a broader range of responsibilities and skills.

Today's successful BRMs focus on driving positive business results for their organizations by building strong relationships both inside and outside the organization, fostering a culture of learning and growth, and continuously developing and refining their leadership skills and practices. Additionally, the BRM role has become more strategic in nature, with a greater emphasis on understanding and addressing emerging challenges and opportunities, anticipating changes in the external environment, and driving continuous improvement and evolution across the organization. Overall, the BRM role has become a critical enabler of business success, playing a key role in driving value and impact for stakeholders and customers alike.

- Joe Topinka

BRM Job Description Template

Common BRM Job Titles

• Business Relationship Manager
• Business Relationship Executive
• Business Information Manager
• IT Business Partner

Department: Information Technology

Reports To: Chief Information Officer (CIO), sometimes with a dotted line to the leader of the function or business unit the BRM is responsible for.

Successful Business Relationship Managers advance the BRM capability by nurturing relationships both inside and outside the organization. Successful BRMs focus on driving positive business results for your organization. BRMs perform their work by focusing on collaboration, mutual respect, and inclusivity. BRMs possess a shared commitment to teamwork and building and maintaining successful relationships. BRMs create a sense of trust, creativity, innovation, authenticity, and shared ownership across the organization. BRMs are skilled at bringing cross-functional teams together to drive meaningful results.

BRM JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Collaborate with leaders both inside and outside the organization to ensure delivery of meaningful results from strategic initiatives.
  
  
• Build strategic relationships with partners to stimulate, surface, and shape demand.
  
  
• Establish value management as a strategic organizational capability.
  
  
• Ensure that the business's products, services, and resources are tailored to meet the specific needs and expectations of partners and customers, and that they are delivered in a way that drives the greatest possible value and impact.
  
  
• Demonstrate strong communication and collaboration skills and building and maintaining strong relationships with partners at all levels of the organization.
  
  
• Leading by example and modeling desired behaviors, such as transparency, accountability, and a focus on continuous improvement.
  
  
• Foster a culture of learning and growth, encouraging partners to share their ideas and feedback, and working to incorporate these insights into the business's strategy and operations.
  
  
• Continuously developing and refining leadership skills and practices, through training, mentoring, and ongoing feedback, and reflection.
  
  
• Develop deep domain knowledge of your partner's organizational functions.
  
  
• Ability to be proactive and forward-thinking regarding changes in the external environment and organizational needs to ensure that the business can adapt and thrive in a rapidly changing landscape.
  
  
• Work closely with partners to understand their social, environmental, and financial priorities and ensure that the business is linked with these priorities.
  
  
• Advance the BRM capability beyond just the role and function, sharing ownership with the full BRM community with the aim of continuous improvement.
  
  
• Champion a culture of shared ownership and constant organizational evolution.
  
  
• Emphasize the importance of clear and effective communication by highlighting the role of language as a critical element in effective communication.
  
  
• Continually improve the value framework to drive organizational awareness and education.
  
  
• Advocate as a champion of change for your partners' strategic plans.
  
  
• Collaborate as a BRM team member to actively mature the BRM discipline.

BRM SKILLS & QUALIFICATIONS:

• Strong communication and collaboration skills.
  
  
• Strategic thinking and problem-solving ability.
  
  
• Ability to build strong relationships with partners and customers.
  
  
• Skilled at conflict negotiation and achieving alignment.
  
  
• Focus on delivering value to stakeholders.
  
  
• Ability to identify root causes of issues and gaps.
  
  
• Connect strategy to execution and drive results as a team.
  
  
• Build rapport and credibility as a strategic partner.
  
  
• Exude energy, focus, assertiveness, and diplomacy.
  
  
• Master relationship building and team collaboration.
  
  
• Break down silos and shift opinions using influence.
  
  
• Display humility, creativity, and negotiation skills.
  
  

REQUIREMENTS:

• Business Relationship Management Professional (BRMP®).
  
  
• Certified Business Relationship Manager (CBRM®) with Certificates of Experience preferred.
  
  
• Master of Business Relationship Management (MBRM®) preferred.
  
  
• 10+ years of relevant functional experience.
  
  
• 5+ years of experience championing organizational evolution, e.g., leading initiatives, products, services, or interactions.