For Australian businesses, deciding between full-time and part-time employment often comes down to one role: sales and business development.
Do you hire a full-time BDM at $140,000+ per year? Bring in a part-time salesperson with limited hours? Or is there a smarter way to build pipeline without taking on headcount?
While understanding full-time vs part-time employment in Australia is important, many growing businesses are now choosing to outsource sales and business development instead of hiring in-house.
This article breaks down the real cost of employment — and explains why outsourcing sales and BDM has become a practical alternative for Australian businesses.
Under the Fair Work Act 2009, full-time and part-time employment are defined by working hours and entitlements. These rules apply across all roles, including sales and business development.
Understanding these structures is important — but for revenue-driving roles, the cost and risk of hiring often outweigh the difference between full-time and part-time hours.
Full-time employees typically work around 38 hours per week, depending on the applicable award or agreement.
For sales and business development roles, full-time employment usually includes:
Base salary
Superannuation
Paid annual and personal leave
Commissions or performance incentives
Equipment, systems, and onboarding costs
Once everything is factored in, the true cost of a full-time sales or BDM hire often exceeds $140,000 per year — before results are guaranteed.
While full-time roles offer consistency, they also come with long ramp-up periods and ongoing performance management.
Part-time employees work fewer than 38 hours per week, with hours agreed in advance. Entitlements apply on a pro-rata basis.
For sales roles, part-time employment can:
Reduce upfront salary costs
Offer some flexibility
However, part-time sales and BDM roles often struggle to deliver consistent results due to:
Limited hours for outreach and follow-up
Reduced access to decision-makers
Slower pipeline development
Part-time employment lowers hours — but it doesn’t remove payroll, compliance, or management overhead.
The biggest difference between full-time and part-time employment isn’t just hours worked — it’s total cost, risk, and output.
For sales and business development roles, results are driven by:
Access to the right people
Consistent follow-up
Industry relationships
Experience navigating long sales cycles
These factors aren’t guaranteed by employment type alone.
Beyond wages, hiring sales or business development staff in Australia requires:
Recruiting and interviewing suitable candidates
Onboarding and training time
CRM setup and ongoing management
Months of ramp-up with little or no revenue
Performance management and turnover risk
For many businesses, these hidden costs add up quickly — especially if the hire doesn’t work out.
Sales and business development roles aren’t just about hours worked. They’re about relationships, access, and timing.
A full-time employee without industry connections can take months to gain traction. A part-time hire may never build enough momentum to move the needle.
That’s why many Australian businesses now look beyond employment models and consider outsourcing sales and BDM altogether.
Outsourcing sales and business development allows businesses to build pipeline without committing to full-time or part-time employment.
Instead of hiring internally, businesses gain:
Immediate access to experienced sales and BDM professionals
Established outreach systems and processes
Faster pipeline activity
Flexibility without long-term employment risk
This approach is particularly effective for:
Construction contractors and suppliers
B2B service providers
Professional firms selling high-value services
Businesses with long sales cycles
ResultsGroup acts as an outsourced sales and business development team for Australian businesses.
Rather than hiring a full-time or part-time salesperson, businesses partner with ResultsGroup to:
Identify and target the right decision-makers
Open doors with builders, directors, and senior stakeholders
Manage outreach, follow-ups, and pipeline activity
Support complex, relationship-driven sales cycles
In short, businesses get sales momentum without the $140,000+ cost of hiring.
Full-time or part-time employment may suit some businesses. But for many, outsourcing sales and business development provides:
Lower risk
Faster results
Predictable costs
Reduced internal management
If you’re weighing up whether to hire a sales or BDM role, it’s worth considering whether outsourcing makes more sense.
If you’re deciding between hiring full-time, part-time, or outsourcing sales and business development, ResultsGroup can help.
We work with Australian businesses to build pipeline, open doors, and win work — without adding internal headcount.
Get in touch with ResultsGroup to explore a smarter approach to sales and business development.
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