Strategic Business Development Specialist, CoLab Software

• You do not see prospecting as only a numbers game
• You enjoy digging into annual reports, organizational structures, industry programs, and strategic initiatives to find opportunities others miss
• You can connect dots between business objectives and customer challenges. You ask thoughtful questions, develop informed opinions, and communicate with confidence
• You can hold your own in conversations with senior leaders while maintaining a low ego and high respect for others
• You won't thrive here if you're looking for a highly structured playbook with clear answers
• You will thrive if you're energized by ambiguity, enjoy solving difficult problems, and are motivated by creating meaningful business outcomes
• Experience in Business Development, Sales Development, Account Development, or a related prospecting role
• Strong research and account planning capabilities
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Confidence engaging with stakeholders at all levels, including executives
• Demonstrated curiosity and ability to learn complex industries and technical concepts
• Ability to work independently while collaborating closely with Account Executives and cross-functional teams
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
• Experience with Salesforce or similar CRM platforms
• Frequently cited statistics show that people who identify with historically marginalized groups are likely to apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. We encourage you to help us break that statistic and apply even if you don’t meet every single qualification—your potential is what matters most to us

Desirable

• Our Aerospace & Defense market requires a fundamentally different prospecting approach. Success comes from identifying a small number of highly strategic opportunities and helping organizations navigate complex business priorities, industry initiatives, and government incentives
• The goal isn't to book as many meetings as possible. It's to help create the next large strategic opportunity
• In this role, you'll work in lockstep with an Account Executive, operating as an extension of the account team rather than a standalone outbound rep
• Together, you'll build account plans, map stakeholders, uncover strategic business drivers, and contribute to executive-level business cases that open doors into some of the world's largest engineering organizations
• This role is part researcher, part strategist, and part relationship builder. You'll spend as much time understanding an account's business priorities as you will prospecting into it
• The average person might think this job sounds too hard. If that feels energizing rather than intimidating, you'll probably thrive here
• Identify and develop high-value opportunities within Aerospace & Defense organizations across North America
• Research target accounts to understand strategic initiatives, procurement programs, innovation investments, and business priorities, then develop a clear point of view before initiating outreach
• Build relationships across engineering, innovation, R&D, business development, government affairs, and executive leadership teams
• Identify opportunities where government programs, industry incentives, and innovation initiatives create compelling business cases for CoLab
• Execute highly personalized outreach through LinkedIn, email, phone, industry events, and warm introductions
• Partner closely with Account Executives on account planning, stakeholder mapping, and opportunity development
• Create multi-threaded engagement strategies that establish credibility across large organizations
• Maintain accurate account intelligence and engagement activity in Salesforce and other sales tools
• Continuously improve your understanding of the Aerospace & Defense industry, procurement processes, and CoLab's customers
• Success won't be measured by how many calls you make or meetings you book
• Instead, you'll be evaluated on:
• Strategic pipeline value created
• Progression of opportunities through the sales process
• Depth of account penetration across target organizations
• Quality and quantity of multi-threaded stakeholder relationships
• Creation of large, enterprise-level opportunities
• Influence on long-term revenue outcomes
• A successful Aerospace & Defense BDR creates a small number of highly qualified opportunities with significant revenue potential rather than a large volume of early-stage conversations