Business Development Manager, Tactical Edge

Socket.dev; Ashburn (VA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

15 days PTO per year

10 Federal holidays

Health plan options

401k plan with matching employer

Employee Assistance Program

Flexible core hours

Job summary

KäGwerks is seeking a Business Development Manager, Tactical Edge to generate demand and convert opportunities within the U.S. DoD and federal tactical-edge market.

You will engage operators, leaders, and program offices to identify gaps, shape requirements, and secure unit-level purchases, with a path to larger programs. The role requires field engagement across the US, a strong commercial focus, and the ability to manage pipeline and forecast across assigned accounts.

Qualifications

• DoD defense BD, sales, capture, customer engagement experience
• Executive-level and program-level discussion capability
• Travel 30-50% to customer sites, installations, events

Responsibilities

• Identify mission gaps and translate field demand into customer requirements
• Identify funding pathways to convert needs into unit purchases
• Build a qualified pipeline with accounts, requirements, value, and actions
• Convert demonstrations and field activity into funded follow-on efforts and bookings
• Own engagement plans across tactical accounts and coordinate BD team alignment
• Develop partner-enabled pursuits with primes, integrators, software and sensors
• Translate customer demand into capture-ready briefs and win actions
• Maintain Salesforce data with opportunity values, stages, and forecast inputs
• Coordinate demos and integrations with clear objectives and commercial follow-through
• Provide market feedback to product, engineering, marketing and leadership

Job description

About Us

Kägwerks designs and develops rugged, tactical operator-worn communications technologies that enable unmatched connectivity and integrated secure networking for the individual war fighter.

We strive to increase the survivability and lethality of the war fighter on the battlefield. We do so by providing unmatched integrated tactical communications solutions that help further our national security objectives.

Location - Remote / hybrid | Travel - 30-50%

About the Role

Join Kägwerks as a Business Development Manager, Tactical Edge and help generate demand and convert opportunities across our U.S. Department of Defense and federal tactical-edge customer base. Working within an enterprise-led business development model, you will engage operational units, tactical formations, and leaders primarily at the 0-6 level and below to identify mission gaps, shape requirements, secure unit-level purchases, and create pathways toward larger programmatic adoption.

You will be equally effective in executive and program-level discussions and alongside operators during demonstrations, exercises, technical exchanges, and field evaluations. This is a commercially accountable role with an annual quota target of $5 million and qualified pipeline expectations aligned to company coverage targets.

Key Deliverables

• Work directly with operators and tactical leaders to identify mission gaps, define desired outcomes, and translate field demand into actionable customer requirements.
• Identify funding and procurement pathways that convert validated customer needs into executable tactical-unit purchases.
• Connect unit-level demand, field evidence, and recurring use cases to program offices, enterprise stakeholders, and larger acquisition pathways.
• Build and progress a qualified pipeline with clear customers, requirements, value, funding pathways, stages, blockers, owners, and next actions.
• Convert demonstrations, exercises, technical exchanges, and partner activity into funded follow-on actions, proposals, awards, and bookings.
• Own engagement and opportunity plans across assigned tactical accounts, mission sets, organizations, and geographic areas while coordinating account alignment across the BD team.
• Develop partner-enabled pursuits with primes, integrators, software, sensor, radio, autonomy, UxS/C-UxS, and channel partners.
• Translate customer demand into capture-ready opportunity briefs, competitive positioning, required evidence, win actions, and decision timelines.
• Maintain accurate and defensible Salesforce data, including opportunity values, stages, close dates, next steps, risks, partner roles, and forecast inputs.
• Coordinate technical demonstrations and integrations by defining the business objective and customer outcome, while retaining accountability for commercial follow-through.
• Provide actionable market feedback to Product, Engineering, Marketing, Capture, and leadership without committing unsupported capabilities, pricing, schedules, or contractual terms.

About You

You are an accomplished defense business development professional who can build trust with operators, tactical leaders, senior executives, program offices, and industry partners. You combine field credibility with strong commercial judgment, disciplined follow-through, and the ability to operate independently across a geographically distributed market.

You will bring demonstrated experience in defense business development, sales, capture, customer engagement, program, technical, or operational experience, with demonstrated success moving customer interest into qualified pipeline and funded opportunities.

You have working knowledge of DoD tactical mission environments and several of the following areas: UxS, C-UxS, autonomy, edge AI/ML, computer vision, sensor fusion, C2/C5ISR, TAK-enabled workflows, tactical radios, resilient networking, human-machine teaming, or edge compute. Experience working across government customers, operational users, primes, integrators, resellers, and technology partners is important.

You communicate clearly, bring credible executive presence, and maintain strong CRM and forecast discipline. You are comfortable supporting demonstrations, exercises, and customer engagements in field environments and can travel 30-50% to customer sites, military installations, and industry events.

The ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance is required. An active Secret clearance and prior military or government experience are preferred.

Benefits and Culture

Our culture is supportive and collaborative. You will be part of a multidisciplinary team where we share our ideas and innovation is strongly encouraged. We are looking for someone with genuine passion and a can-do attitude.

Our staff receive the following benefits:

• 15 days accrued paid time off per year
• 10 Federal holidays
• An opportunity to join our sponsored health plan
• A generous 401k plan with immediate vesting and a matching employer contribution
• An Employee Assistance Program
• And more

Additionally, we offer flexible core working hours and we take a personal approach to training and development.