Director of Business Development

Director of Business Development

Our client is a company unlocking the true capacity and economics of batteries. Its mission is to provide the fastest path to transforming the battery industry so that clean energy solutions can be deployed on a global scale. The company is accomplishing this with its uniquely scalable thin-film coating process that solves battery electrode surface instability – a fundamental problem that is at the root of capacity and safety issues in nearly all rechargeable batteries. These coatings dramatically reduce battery manufacturing costs while improving cycle lifetime, energy density and thermal runaway propensity for both state-of-the-art as well as next-gen battery chemistries.

The Position: The company is looking for an experienced Director of Business Development with a technical background and work experience in enterprise corporate business development, stakeholder mapping, customer discovery to develop new markets & customer segments, managing complex customer relationships, and helping establish a go-to-market strategy.

• Opportunity to work directly with the CEO and executive leadership on commercial strategy.
• Chance to engage in the rapidly growing battery industry and electrification space.

Responsibilities:

• Identifies and develops new business opportunities.
• Builds relationships with customers, suppliers, distributors, partners, and vendors.
• Evaluates existing partnerships and sales efforts with an eye toward building on what works and changing what doesn’t.
• Manages key client relationships and works to build new ones within the battery manufacturing and Automotive OEM ecosystem.
• Performs stakeholder mapping in order to best target key stakeholders within large enterprise organizations.
• Develops and strengthens internal and external relationships that will lead to increased lead generation and increased chances of success for existing customer projects.
• Fosters and works to maintain an entrepreneurial growth culture throughout the company and across all teams and work functions.
• Proposes and develops strategic partnerships.
• Researches and identifies new markets and trends within the battery ecosystem. Helps to ensure the company’s long-term objectives are directed toward the most advantageous position.
• Provides advice on product development and distribution and promotion strategies.
• Identifies sponsorship and marketing opportunities.
• Conducts webinars and presentations to raise the brand or product profile.
• Travels to customer, vendor, and conference locations.

Requirements:

• Strong background in product and/or business development. Ideal candidate has a track record of success in bringing novel, highly technical products to market.
• Strong relationship management and deal negotiation skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills. Ability to present detailed information precisely and effectively.
• Able to understand and synthesize the bigger picture and overall company goals in order to act independently and strategically.
• Strong leadership, management, and mentoring skills.
• Background in the Battery or Automotive space is preferred.
• Background in enterprise sales is preferred.
• Background working in European and/or APAC markets is preferred.
• Interested in a career in cleantech or batteries and passionate about the clean energy space.

Required Qualifications: B.S. or equivalent in Chemistry, Materials Science, Engineering or a similarly relevant field and 5-10 years of sales, marketing, or business development experience.

Location & Benefits: Hybrid remote position with 2-3 days per week of in-person activities at the company’s San Leandro, CA office. Full-time. Salary and equity options depend on experience. Dental, vision, healthcare and 401(k) benefits are included. Applications will be screened as received.

Salary Range: $170k/year – $216k/year

Berkner Group has been retained to execute this search. If you were contacted by Berkner Group, please reply to the person who contacted you. If you are applying to a job posting, please email your resume and a brief introduction to [email protected]. Please include your name and the title for this position (“[Your name] – Director of Business Development – L334Y86V”) in the subject line of your email. We look forward to hearing from you!