Director, Market Strategy

Front Door Defense; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 200,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity grants

Excellent benefits

Job summary

Merlin Labs, based in Washington, DC, seeks a Director of Market Strategy to lead growth initiatives across defense and commercial aviation. You will evaluate markets, analyze opportunities, and present strategic options to senior leadership.

Responsibilities include building business cases, aligning with Business Development, Engineering, and Programs, and tracking evolving market assumptions. This role requires rigorous research, clear communication, and an ability to drive decisions in a

Qualifications

• 7+ years in market strategy or defense market analysis.
• Experience researching complex government or regulated markets.
• Ability to assess opportunities beyond headline market size.
• Strong analytical judgment with actionable options.
• Clear writing and presentation skills for senior leaders.
• Ability to work credibly with technical, program, and commercial teams.

Responsibilities

• Evaluate new markets, customers, and mission opportunities across gov and commercial aviation.
• Research customer needs, budgets, policy developments, and procurement pathways.
• Develop and compare strategic options including market size and investment.
• Build concise recommendations and business cases with assumptions and open questions.
• Run cadence for opportunity reviews and drive decisions to resolution.
• Work with BD, Engineering, and Programs to test fit with capabilities.
• Track assumptions behind major strategic decisions and update as needed.

Skills

Market strategy

Defense market analysis

Business development

Strategic analysis

Communication

Cross-functional work

Executive briefing

Job description

Director, Market Strategy

Develop and present market-entry strategies for Merlin's defense and commercial aviation

Location: Washington, District of Columbia

Compensation: $200,000 - 220,000 USD / year

About The Role

Director Of Market Strategy

Merlin (NASDAQ: MRLN) is a publicly traded aerospace and defense company building a non-human pilot to deliver full-stack autonomy for any aircraft from takeoff to touchdown. The Merlin Pilot autonomy system powers a growing range of aircraft and mission profiles and has been proven through hundreds of autonomous flights from Merlin's global flight test facilities, including Kerikeri, New Zealand; Quonset Point, Rhode Island; and soon, Bedford, Massachusetts. Headquartered in Boston, Merlin is expanding its organization to accelerate the development and deployment of its autonomy platform, helping customers solve some of aviation's most pressing challenges, from pilot shortages to improving flight safety. Backed by some of the world's leading investors prior to its public listing, Merlin continues to advance the certification and commercialization of autonomous flight across commercial and defense aviation.

Merlin is looking for a Director of Market Strategy to help leadership make informed decisions about where to pursue growth across defense and commercial aviation. You will investigate potential markets and mission opportunities, turn fragmented information into a clear set of options, and lead the process for evaluating those options. This role requires someone who enjoys doing the research as much as presenting the recommendation. You will work closely with Business Development, Engineering, Programs, and executive leadership, but your central responsibility is to bring rigor and clarity to strategic choices.

Responsibilities:

• Evaluate new markets, customers, and mission opportunities across government and commercial aviation.
• Research customer needs, requirements, budgets, policy developments, competitors, and procurement pathways to identify where Merlin has a credible opportunity.
• Develop and compare strategic options, including potential market size, investment required, technical fit, timing, and probability of win.
• Build concise recommendations and business cases that make assumptions, tradeoffs, and open questions clear to leadership.
• Run the cadence for opportunity reviews: establish evaluation criteria, bring the right teams into the discussion, and drive decisions to resolution.
• Work with Business Development, Engineering, and Programs to test whether proposed opportunities fit Merlin's capabilities and development priorities.
• Track the assumptions behind major strategic decisions and revisit them as customer needs and market conditions change.

Requirements:

• 7+ years in market strategy, defense market analysis, business development strategy, consulting, or a related role involving consequential growth or investment decisions.
• Experience researching complex government or regulated markets and drawing useful conclusions from incomplete information.
• Ability to assess an opportunity beyond its headline market size, including customer demand, competitive position, resources required, and likelihood of winning.
• Strong analytical judgment and the ability to develop distinct, actionable options rather than a single predetermined recommendation.
• Clear writing and presentation skills, especially when explaining complex findings to senior leaders.
• Ability to work credibly with technical, program, and commercial teams.

Nice to Haves:

• Experience in autonomous systems, aviation, or AI-driven platforms
• Familiarity with FAA certification, DoD procurement, or mission-based program development
• Background in management consulting, corporate strategy, or high-growth startups
• Experience scaling strategy in a venture-backed or rapidly growing company
• Ability to navigate ambiguity and build structure in evolving environments
• Operator mindset with a track record of driving strategy through execution

$200,000 - $220,000 a year The compensation range provided is reflective of base salary only, and is a good-faith estimate based on a wide range of factors. The actual offer will be determined by a variety of factors including the candidate's qualifications, skills, experience, education, and training. Highly competitive equity grants are considered part of Merlin's total compensation package. Additionally, Merlin offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees.

Merlin Labs offers an innovative, entrepreneurial, and team-focused startup environment. We also offer a top-notch benefits package (health, dental, life, unlimited vacation, and 401k with match) and work/life integration. Being part of the Merlin team allows you to become part of a small team that supports professional development while working together to achieve our mission.

Merlin Labs is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, genetic information, sex (including pregnancy), gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, military service or obligation or disability status, or any other characteristic protected by law. All job offers are contingent upon the candidate passing background and reference checks.

At this time, we are unable to provide visa sponsorship or consider candidates who require visa transfers. Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States without the need for visa sponsorship now or in the future.

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.

If you require reasonable accommodation in completing an application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to: [e-mail]

Merlin Labs does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than directly from candidates.