Business Development Manager

Challenge Testing, Inc.; Mobile (AL); On-site; USD 110,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company vehicle

Job summary

Challenge Testing, Inc. in Mobile, Alabama seeks a Director of Business Development to lead revenue growth in the Southeastern United States. You will identify target accounts, build relationships with engineers and clients, and manage proposals from initial contact through closing.

This hands-on, client-facing role emphasizes strategic account development, CRM discipline, and cross-functional collaboration with estimating, operations, and executives. Travel 30–50% is required.

Qualifications

• At least seven years of successful business-development, sales, account-management, or project-development experience.
• Established relationships with buyers in engineering, environmental, construction, industrial, or federal sectors.
• Ability to understand and communicate technical services credibly.
• Willingness to travel for client meetings and project pursuits.

Responsibilities

• New client acquisition and build a prioritized list of strategic target accounts.
• Generate qualified opportunities for drilling and NDT services.
• Secure meetings with engineers, project managers, estimators, procurement leaders, quality managers, environmental managers, and executives.
• Develop Challenge into a preferred partner for recurring projects.
• Reactivate former and inactive clients.
• Represent Challenge at relevant industry meetings and events.
• Create account plans for high-potential customers.
• Identify opportunities to provide multiple Challenge services to the same client.
• Develop relationships at multiple levels within each account.
• Maintain visibility into upcoming projects, budgets, procurement schedules, and contracting requirements.
• Coordinate executive and technical involvement in major pursuits.
• Qualify opportunities based on fit, value, margin, schedule, capacity, and competitive position.
• Coordinate with operations, estimating, technical leaders, and executives to develop proposals.
• Ensure every opportunity has an owner, next action, and anticipated award date.
• Follow up consistently on submitted proposals.
• Support presentations, interviews, negotiations, and closing activities.
• Protect pricing discipline and avoid unprofitable or unsuitable work.
• Develop relationships with federal prime contractors, government buyers, small-business liaison officers, and teaming partners.
• Position Challenge’s service-disabled veteran-owned small-business status as part of its value proposition.
• Monitor relevant federal and defense opportunities.
• Support teaming arrangements, capability presentations, and subcontracting pursuits.
• Establish and maintain a disciplined CRM process.
• Produce accurate 30-, 60-, and 90-day forecasts.
• Track pipeline by client, service line, sales stage, value, probability, expected margin, and award date.
• Lead a weekly sales meeting focused on pipeline movement, obstacles, decisions, and next actions.
• Report sales activity, proposal performance, win rate, new-client revenue, and market conditions to leadership.
• Build a database of at least 100 qualified target accounts.
• Develop a qualified pipeline equal to approximately three to four times the assigned new-revenue goal.
• Generate 40–50 qualified sales opportunities.
• Convert approximately 15–20 prospects into active new clients.
• Increase profitable revenue from former and underdeveloped accounts.
• Establish relationships with targeted engineering firms, contractors, industrial companies, and federal prime contractors.
• Implement consistent CRM, proposal-follow-up, and forecasting practices.
• Achieve agreed new-client revenue and gross-profit objectives.
• Ensure new work meets Challenge’s margin, safety, capacity, and strategic requirements.

Skills

Business development

Sales

Account management

Project development

Communication

Negotiation

Relationship building

Job description

Target total compensation: $160,000–$200,000

Travel: Approximately 30%–50%

About Challenge Testing

Director of Business Development

Company: Challenge Testing, Inc.

Location: Mobile, Alabama

Territory: Southeastern United States

Reports to: Chief Executive Officer

Compensation: $110,000–$140,000 base plus performance incentive

Target total compensation: $160,000–$200,000

Travel: Approximately 30%–50%

About Challenge Testing

Challenge Testing, Inc. is a veteran-owned field-services company providing geotechnical drilling, environmental drilling, water-well drilling, and nondestructive testing services.

We serve engineering firms, contractors, industrial companies, government agencies, and defense-related clients across the Southeast and Pacific regions. We are seeking an experienced business-development leader to acquire new clients, expand strategic accounts, and build a disciplined sales process.

Position Summary

The Director of Business Development will be responsible for generating profitable new business for Challenge Testing.

This is a hands-on, client-facing role. The successful candidate will identify target accounts, open doors, build relationships, uncover upcoming projects, coordinate proposals, and convert qualified opportunities into profitable work.

This is not primarily a marketing or administrative position. It is a revenue-producing role for someone who understands relationship-driven selling in technical field services.

The ideal candidate has established relationships with engineering firms, environmental consultants, general contractors, heavy-civil contractors, industrial companies, federal contractors, or government buyers.

Responsibilities

• New Client Acquisition

• Build and manage a prioritized list of strategic target accounts.


• Generate qualified opportunities for Challenge’s drilling and NDT services.


• Secure meetings with engineers, project managers, estimators, procurement leaders, quality managers, environmental managers, and executives.


• Develop Challenge into a preferred partner for recurring projects.


• Reactivate former and inactive clients.


• Represent Challenge at relevant industry meetings and events.

Strategic Account Development

• Create account plans for high-potential customers and prospects.


• Identify opportunities to provide multiple Challenge services to the same client.


• Develop relationships at multiple levels within each account.


• Maintain visibility into upcoming projects, budgets, procurement schedules, and contracting requirements.


• Coordinate executive and technical involvement in major pursuits.

Opportunity and Proposal Management

• Qualify opportunities based on fit, value, margin, schedule, capacity, and competitive position.


• Coordinate with operations, estimating, technical leaders, and executives to develop proposals.


• Ensure every opportunity has an owner, next action, and anticipated award date.


• Follow up consistently on submitted proposals.


• Support presentations, interviews, negotiations, and closing activities.


• Protect pricing discipline and avoid unprofitable or unsuitable work.

Federal Business Development

• Develop relationships with federal prime contractors, government buyers, small-business liaison officers, and teaming partners.


• Position Challenge’s service-disabled veteran-owned small-business status as part of its value proposition.


• Monitor relevant federal and defense opportunities.


• Support teaming arrangements, capability presentations, and subcontracting pursuits.

Sales Process and Forecasting

• Establish and maintain a disciplined CRM process.


• Produce accurate 30-, 60-, and 90-day forecasts.


• Track pipeline by client, service line, sales stage, value, probability, expected margin, and award date.


• Lead a weekly sales meeting focused on pipeline movement, obstacles, decisions, and next actions.


• Report sales activity, proposal performance, win rate, new-client revenue, and market conditions to leadership.

First-Year Success Measures

The Director of Business Development will be expected to:

• Build a database of at least 100 qualified target accounts.


• Develop a qualified pipeline equal to approximately three to four times the assigned new-revenue goal.


• Generate 40–50 qualified sales opportunities.


• Convert approximately 15–20 prospects into active new clients.


• Increase profitable revenue from former and underdeveloped accounts.


• Establish relationships with targeted engineering firms, contractors, industrial companies, and federal prime contractors.


• Implement consistent CRM, proposal-follow-up, and forecasting practices.


• Achieve agreed new-client revenue and gross-profit objectives.


• Ensure new work meets Challenge’s margin, safety, capacity, and strategic requirements.

Required Qualifications

• At least seven years of successful business-development, sales, account-management, or project-development experience.


• Demonstrated success generating business in one or more relevant industries:


• Geotechnical or environmental services


• Drilling or construction-materials testing


• Nondestructive testing


• Engineering or technical consulting


• Heavy-civil or commercial construction


• Industrial or maritime services


• Federal contracting or defense services


• Established relationships with relevant buyers, contractors, consultants, or project owners.


• Documented history of personally developing opportunities and winning business.


• Ability to understand and communicate technical services credibly.


• Experience managing complex, relationship-driven sales cycles.


• Strong commercial judgment and understanding of margins.


• Ability to work effectively with estimating, technical, operational, and executive teams.


• Willingness to travel for client meetings and project pursuits.


• Strong communication, presentation, negotiation, and relationship-building skills.


• Ability to maintain accurate CRM records and forecasts.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience selling to engineering firms, contractors, industrial clients, maritime organizations, federal prime contractors, or government agencies.


• Familiarity with drilling, geotechnical, environmental, water-well, NDT, or related services.


• Experience with federal procurement, teaming arrangements, or small-business programs.


• Relationships in Alabama and other Southeastern markets.


• Experience building a sales process within a growing technical-services company.


• Relevant bachelor’s degree or equivalent industry experience.

Ideal Candidate

The right person:

• Is effective at opening relationships and creating opportunities.


• Has a credible network but does not depend entirely on existing contacts.


• Can demonstrate how they personally helped win business.


• Understands that sales activity is not the same as results.


• Protects profitability instead of chasing revenue at any price.


• Earns the confidence of customers, executives, and field personnel.


• Takes ownership without requiring a large support staff.


• Communicates honestly about pipeline risk.


• Wants to build a commercial organization, not simply inherit one.

Compensation

Challenge Testing offers:

• Base salary of $110,000–$140,000, depending on experience and demonstrated performance.


• Target annual incentive of approximately $40,000–$70,000.


• Additional upside for exceptional performance.


• Vehicle allowance or company vehicle.


• Company-provided technology and approved business-development expenses.


• Benefits consistent with Challenge Testing’s compensation program.

Incentives will emphasize collected gross profit from qualified new business, strategic-account growth, pipeline development, forecasting discipline, and company objectives.

Note

Equal Opportunity Employer statement retained: Challenge Testing, Inc. is an equal-opportunity employer. Employment decisions are based on qualifications, merit, performance, and business needs without unlawful discrimination.