Business Development Specialist

Acadia Healthcare - Grassmere • Nashville, TN

23h • Remote

About The Position

The Business Development/Peer Placement Specialist (PPS) is a field-based role designed to provide real-time, community-facing support for patient engagement, referral coordination, and warm handoffs into appropriate levels of care. The PPS uses lived experience, rapport-building, and collaborative problem-solving to assist individuals with navigating substance use disorder (SUD) or behavioral health challenges. These talented individuals strive to bring hope and guidance to those struggling with these diagnosis by collaborating with other professionals in the mental health and addictions community and through liaising with family members to find individualized levels of care within their local, regional and national system of providers. Treatment Placement Specialists collaborate with their client’s treatment team internally and externally to provide comprehensive care coordination including regular communications, while acting as an internal liaison to foster and enhance the experience and outcomes for their clients. The PPS research, uncover, and initiate new professional prospects and business opportunities and have a passion for marketing with the goal of increasing the depth and breadth of Acadia’s reach and positive impact in their treatment community. This role is mobile and flexible, allowing deployment to hospitals, emergency departments, community agencies, partner programs, and other high-need locations to support referral pathways and ensure timely access to treatment.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree preferred or experience in consultative sales and/or clinical training in behavioral healthcare, substance abuse, or related field, or equivalent experience and education.
• Lived experience in recovery with strong ability to connect with individuals in crisis or transition.
• Experience in behavioral health, SUD treatment, or crisis response strongly preferred.
• Experience in managing an assigned territory, building effective business relationships and finding new opportunities to further develop the geography.
• Computer skills including Microsoft Office; Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Ability to work professionally with sensitive, proprietary data & information while maintaining confidentiality.
• Excellent interpersonal skills including the ability to interact effectively and professionally with individuals at all levels; both internal and external.
• Excellent communication and patient engagement skills.
• Ability to collaborate across healthcare, community, and crisis partners.
• Strong problem-solving, motivational interviewing, and de-escalation skills.
• Familiarity with referral management platforms (e.g., CarePort) is a plus but not required.
• Ability to maintain professionalism and boundaries while serving as a peer support role model.

Nice To Haves

• Certified Peer Specialist (CPS) preferred.

Responsibilities

• Engage directly with patients and families in community or facility settings (EDs, hospitals, treatment programs, etc.).
• Build and maintain strong working relationships with local clinical teams, social workers, crisis units, navigators, and community partners.
• Conduct proactive daily check-ins with designated partners to identify potential referrals or emerging patient needs.
• Strategically develop and execute quarterly and annual performance objectives for the target market.
• Complete face-to-face meetings with decision makers to understand customer’s needs and identify/eliminate obstacles to securing partnerships for Acadia services.
• Receive and manage referrals through multiple channels (phone line, CarePort, secure email, partner systems, community contacts) – from receipt to securing communication from facilities through admission.
• Facilitate warm handoffs and coach patients through the transition into the next level of care.
• Serve as a liaison in communicating with the referral source, Acadia program, and referral to lend support through the admission process and address any concerns the client or referral source may have.
• Manage referrals and referral source information in contact base.
• Document meaningful activity related to decision makers in target market in customer relationship manager.
• Provide alternative placement recommendations when Acadia is not the appropriate fit, ensuring a patient-first approach.
• Document all referral interactions, outcomes, and barriers in Acadia systems.
• Collaborate closely with Pod leadership to escalate issues, remove barriers, and ensure timely case progression.
• Support transportation coordination and logistics as needed.
• Manage expenses and company credit card tasks as designated by administrator.
• Participate in quarterly field ride with Director of Business Development.
• Serve as a trusted peer support presence, leveraging lived experience to motivate, encourage, and guide individuals toward recovery

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level