Space & Launch Growth Director

Karman Space & Defense; Mukilteo (WA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

Karman Space & Defense seeks a Director of Business Development, Space & Launch, to drive growth with NASA, DoD, and commercial customers. You will work with engineering, program management, and operations to maximize win probability on RFIs, RFPs, and RFQs, and report to the Senior Director of Business Development, Space & Launch.

The role requires a strong track record in aerospace business development, deep customer relationships, and the ability to lead cross-functional teams in a

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree; advanced degrees a plus.
• 5+ years in aerospace/space/defense business development.
• Proven success in business development, sales, program management, and/or engineering for space products.
• Strong interpersonal, communication, and negotiation skills.

Responsibilities

• Serve as primary contact with key customers and stakeholders to understand needs and tailor solutions.
• Communicate with customers regularly to ensure responsiveness and high-quality engagement.
• Represent Karman at conferences and industry events.
• Lead the team to achieve sales growth across spacecraft and satellite markets.
• Develop product and market growth strategies to capture opportunities and bookings.
• Develop capture strategy including price-to-win assessment and competitive intelligence.
• Coordinate with engineering, BD, and operations to align product roadmaps with market trends.
• Track sales performance against bookings, revenue, and margins.
• Produce and manage CRM data to monitor the sales process and improve conversion.
• Present forecasting results to leadership on market trends and customer satisfaction.
• Support negotiations on contract pricing and delivery schedules.

Skills

Negotiation

Communication

Relationship building

Strategic thinking

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Advanced degree a plus

Tools

CRM tools

Forecasting tools

Job description

Karman Space & Defense seeks a Director of Business Development, Space & Launch, to drive growth with NASA, DoD, and commercial customers. You will work with engineering, program management, and operations to maximize win probability on RFIs, RFPs, and RFQs, and report to the Senior Director of Business Development, Space & Launch.

The role requires a strong track record in aerospace business development, deep customer relationships, and the ability to lead cross-functional teams in a