Sr. Director, Business Development

Position description

The Senior Director for Middle East & African International Business Development is responsible for strategically leading the planning and execution of all international business development activities for AV within the MEA market, including the regional business development strategy, capture planning and capture execution for winning contracts in the region, while leading a team responsible for regional growth. This individual will work in partnership with senior BD leadership, fellow AV Business Development leaders, AV Product Line General Managers (PLGMs), and key functional groups. This individual will be responsible for proactively creating aggressive strategic capture plans and then working across the AV team and throughout the highest levels of customer organizations, including national leaders, to shape these efforts into contract wins for AV.

Position Responsibilities

• Responsible for the sale of all AV products within the Middle East and Africa, including the identification of strategic opportunities, capture plan development and execution, and winning contracts to ensure progressive sales growth in alignment with AV strategic plans
• Coordinates and collaborates with GMs and AV leaders to develop and achieve annual regional bookings target; leads a team of Business Development Directors to build, manage, and close a robust pipeline of regional opportunities, exceeding bookings targets to drive multi-year growth
• Institutes and manages a strategic review process for identifying, analyzing, and down-selecting major strategic key captures and helps create and manage focused efforts to execute these initiatives
• Identifies and develops key “value-add” partnerships that support AV strategic international growth goals and localization efforts
• Provides thought leadership and strategic guidance in the following areas:
• Analyzes current and new markets, develop campaign / capture strategies to grow business
• Gathers pertinent information on market, customer structure, and the competition
• Identifies funding sources and sales vehicles
• Regional impact of USG policies and geopolitical events
• Potential customers and technical/operational requirements including identifying influencers and key decision makers to shape requirements towards AV solutions
• Builds trusted relationships with senior military and political leaders within the region, organically growing strategic programs for AV to win
• Advances brand recognition and thought leadership with senior regional stakeholders
• Manage and develop a network of in-country representatives and resellers, who facilitate local BD engagement and data gathering

Qualifications

Basic Qualification (Required Skills & Experience

• Minimum of 15 years of relevant corporate business development experience in the region
• 7-10 years of experience leading geographically dispersed teams to accomplish complex tasks in a dynamic operating environment
• Extensive understanding of the cultural and political attributes of countries in the region
• Demonstrated experience engaging with MEA military and political leaders at the rank of General/Flag Officer or Deputy Minister and above
• Demonstrated experience writing proposals, winning contracts, and navigating international acquisition processes, both foreign material sales (FMS) and direct commercial sales (DCS)
• Experience working with or around defense technology (e.g. UAS, electronic warfare, C-UAS)
• Experienced in export licensing requirements (e.g ITAR, EAR), FCPA regulations, and interfacing with pertinent foreign and US government channels in areas of operation
• Currently living in (preferred) or willing to relocate to the MEA region

Other Qualifications & Desired Competencies

• Master’s degree in international relations or foreign policy is a plus
• OCONUS US military, diplomatic, or intelligence community experience preferred
• Strong track record of successful sales of autonomous systems to defense & security entities in the region
• Strong communications, negotiation, strategic planning, and interpersonal skills
• Demonstrated experience working with cross-functional teams
• Able to excel in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment
• Displays strong initiative and drive to accomplish goals and meet company objectives
• Takes ownership and responsibility for assigned tasks

Physical Demands

• Ability to sit, stand, stoop, reach, lift (up to 10 lbs.), bend, etc. Hand and wrist dexterity to utilize the computer.
• May require travel to sites/program and special functions.

Environmental Conditions Critical to Performance:

• Work is in an office environment, climate controlled through central air conditioning/heating.
• May have some exposure to outside environment while traveling.

Special Requirements

• U.S. Citizen, U.S. Permanent Resident (Green Card holder) or asylee/refugee status as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3) required.
• Must be able to travel within the Continental U.S. and internationally when required.
• Native fluency in Arabic
• Active US SECRET clearance preferred
• Computer skills with proficiency in MS Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook) and Salesforce
• Must have a valid driver’s license and clean DMV record

The salary range for this role is:

$181,370 – $257,250

AeroVironment considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the location, the role and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, education/training, and key skills.

Application instructions

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