Space & Launch Business Growth Director

Karman; Huntington Beach (CA); Hybrid; USD 160,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) with company match

Paid time off

Health Savings Account (HSA)

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)

Company‑paid life and AD&D insurance

Short‑ and long‑term disability

Job summary

Karman Space & Defense seeks a Business Development Director (Space & Launch) to drive growth across NASA, government prime contractors, and commercial space. You will lead capture, shape roadmaps, and coordinate with engineering and ops to expand Karman’s footprint in spacecraft and satellite programs.

As a senior leader, you will manage major customer relationships, develop competitive capture plans, and present forecasts to leadership, while guiding pricing and delivery strategies to maintain

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree; advanced degrees are a plus.
• Five or more years of experience in aerospace, spacecraft, satellite, or defense industries.
• Demonstrated success in business development, sales, program management, or engineering for space systems.
• Strong interpersonal, communication, and negotiation skills.

Responsibilities

• Serves as the primary point of contact for key customers and stakeholders, ensuring satisfaction and fostering long‑term partnerships.
• Communicates directly with customers in person and remotely to maintain responsiveness and high‑quality engagement.
• Represents Karman at conferences and industry events.
• Leads teams to achieve sales growth targets across spacecraft and satellite markets.
• Develops product and market growth strategies to generate new opportunities, proposals, and bookings.
• Creates capture strategies including price‑to‑win assessments, competitive intelligence, and risk mitigation.
• Collaborates with engineering, business development, and operations to develop long‑term product roadmaps aligned with market trends.
• Tracks and monitors sales performance against key performance indicators (KPIs) to exceed goals for bookings, revenue, margin, and customer satisfaction.
• Produces and manages customer relationship management (CRM) data to support high conversion rates from lead to deal.
• Presents financial forecasting results to leadership to inform market strategy and customer insights.
• Supports contract negotiations including pricing and delivery schedules to balance profitability and competitiveness.

Skills

Business development

Sales

Program management

Engineering

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Advanced degree beneficial

Tools

CRM systems

Financial forecasting tools

Job description

Karman Space & Defense seeks a Business Development Director (Space & Launch) to drive growth across NASA, government prime contractors, and commercial space. You will lead capture, shape roadmaps, and coordinate with engineering and ops to expand Karman’s footprint in spacecraft and satellite programs.

As a senior leader, you will manage major customer relationships, develop competitive capture plans, and present forecasts to leadership, while guiding pricing and delivery strategies to maintain