Director of Business Development

Loft Orbital, Inc.; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 600,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

Orbitworks is seeking a Director of Business Development to drive commercial growth for its UAE-based joint venture with Loft Orbital. You will identify opportunities, establish partnerships, and build strong customer relationships to position Orbitworks as a leader in satellite manufacturing and operations in the UAE and beyond.

The role requires strategic vision and market expertise to meet ambitious goals, with responsibility for partner engagement, contracting, and ongoing program support

Qualifications

• Minimum 10 years of experience in strategic partnerships, business development, or sales, in aerospace or GIS, with a track record of success in the MENA region and beyond.

Responsibilities

• Lead Generation: Identify, classify, and qualify new opportunities from inbound inquiries and outbound prospecting.
• Sales: Engage prospects to explain Orbitworks’ satellite manufacturing and services, understand objectives, and assess fit.
• Proposal Development: Create tailored proposals articulating Orbitworks’ value proposition.
• Contracting: Draft and negotiate contracts aligning customer needs with Orbitworks’ objectives.
• Account Management: Maintain relationships throughout programs to ensure mission success and uncover new opportunities.
• Product Development Support: Provide market insights to inform future capabilities and services.

Skills

Strategic partnerships

Business development

Sales

Customer relationships

Job description

Wanna join the adventure?

As the Director of Business Development for Orbitworks, you will drive the commercial growth of this groundbreaking joint venture. By identifying opportunities, establishing partnerships, and fostering strong customer relationships, you’ll play a pivotal role in positioning Orbitworks as a leader in satellite manufacturing and operations in the UAE and beyond. This leadership role demands a blend of strategic vision, customer engagement, and market expertise to ensure Orbitworks meets its ambitious goals.

About This Role

• Lead Generation: Identify, classify, and qualify new opportunities, both from inbound inquiries and outbound prospecting.

• Sales: Connect with prospective and existing customers to provide information about Orbitworks’ satellite manufacturing and operational services, understand their objectives, and evaluate how we can support them.

• Proposal Development: Formulate tailored proposals for customers, clearly articulating Orbitworks’ value proposition.

• Contracting: Once a proposal is accepted, draft and negotiate contracts, ensuring alignment with both customer needs and Orbitworks’ objectives.

• Account Management: Maintain strong relationships with customers throughout program lifecycles, offering support to ensure mission success and uncovering new business opportunities.

• Product Development Support: Provide market insights and feedback to inform the development of future capabilities, products, and services that address customer needs.

Must Haves

• Deep understanding of the new space ecosystem, including satellites and/or downstream applications.

• Minimum 10 years of experience in strategic partnerships, business development, or sales, ideally in the aerospace or GIS fields, with a demonstrable track record of success in the MENA region and beyond.

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with experience in externally facing roles interacting with customers, partners, and stakeholders in the UAE, MENA region, and/or beyond.

• A solutions-oriented mindset with a passion for turning customer needs into actionable opportunities.

• Ability to represent Orbitworks’ values and vision to customers, partners, and at industry and government events.

Nice to Haves

• Senior leadership role in UAE government agencies or MENA satellite industry.

• Management experience, including in a lean sales environment.

• Experience selling within the satellite services or geospatial analytics markets.

• Familiarity with government contracting or public-private partnership models.

Orbitworks' mission is to make space simple for organizations that want to deploy physical and virtual missions to space. Building on Loft Orbital's heritage, Orbitworks will be the first commercial firm in the United Arab Emirates to mass-manufacture satellites. Orbitworks aims to manufacture tens of satellites annually and operates out of a 50,000-square-foot facility in Abu Dhabi.