Director, Sales & Business Development - Defense

Director of Sales & Business Development - Defense

We are hiring for a Director to lead our Sales and Business Development function by developing and executing commercial strategies that drive sustainable revenue growth, expand market share, strengthen customer relationships, and position the Company for long-term success in domestic and international defense markets.

The Director is responsible for business development, capture management, strategic planning, proposal leadership, market intelligence, strategic partnerships, customer engagement and commercial execution while ensuring alignment across Engineering, Operations, Program Management, Supply Chain and Finance.

Location: Mississauga, ON

Salary: $175,000 - $200,000 plus incentives

Please note that the salary range information provided is a general guideline only, reflecting a position based in Ontario. Criteria such as the candidate’s qualifications and relevant experience, the scope of the specific position, as well as market and business considerations will be evaluated when extending an offer.

We Take Care of Our People

RRSP with Employer Match I Health and Wellness Benefits I Learning and Development Opportunities I Competitive Pay I Referral Program I Recognition I I

Curtiss-Wright invests in the development, recruitment, and retention of critical skills as part of its model for business success. We offer a competitive wage, a comprehensive benefit package, RRSP, tuition reimbursement, and paid vacation/holidays.

Your Challenge:

• Direct control of departmental operating budget. Member of the Senior Management Team responsible for contributing to annual sales, bookings, profitability and strategic business objectives.
• Develop and execute the Company’s annual and long-range Sales & Business Development strategy aligned with corporate growth objectives.
• Develop and maintain a rolling three-to-five-year opportunity pipeline including opportunity qualification, capture strategy, customer engagement plans, probability of win, pricing strategy and executive action plans.
• Lead capture activities for all strategic pursuits from early customer engagement through contract award.
• Establish and maintain executive-level relationships with customers, government agencies, strategic partners, sales representatives and key industry stakeholders.
• Ensure the Voice of Customer is routinely captured, communicated throughout the organization and incorporated into strategic planning, product development and operational decision-making.
• Develop market entry strategies for new products, technologies and international markets.
• Identify and establish strategic partnerships that improve market access, local content capability and competitive positioning.
• Own the Company’s competitive intelligence process by monitoring customer priorities, competitor activities, technology developments and procurement trends.
• Lead the Company’s Price-to-Win process for strategic opportunities, ensuring pricing strategies balance competitiveness, profitability and probability of award.
• Provide executive leadership and oversight for the preparation of all major proposals and quotations, ensuring submissions are compliant, competitive, technically sound and delivered on schedule.
• Chair proposal reviews and commercial gate reviews for major opportunities.
• Work closely with Engineering to ensure product development priorities are aligned with validated customer requirements and future market opportunities.
• Lead cross-functional pursuit teams involving Engineering, Operations, Program Management, Supply Chain, Quality and Finance to ensure coordinated execution of strategic opportunities.
• Lead commercial negotiations for major contracts and strategic agreements while ensuring compliance with corporate policies and customer requirements.
• Develop annual sales forecasts, bookings forecasts and market assessments to support business planning.
• Mentor, coach and develop members of the Sales & Business Development organization while fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Ensure all employees perform their work in accordance with the Company’s Quality Management System (QMS).
• Take every reasonable precaution to protect the health and safety of employees including:
  • Establishment of safe work procedures.
  • Education and orientation of employees.
  • Appointment of competent supervision.
  • Performance of workplace inspections.
  • Immediate reporting and investigation of incidents.
  • Corrective action for unsafe conditions.

Functional Areas Reporting to this Position

• Sales Managers
• Business Development Managers
• Proposal Manager
• Contracts Manager
• Spares Administrator
• Sales Administrator
• Estimator
• Strategic Capture Lead (future)

What You Bring:

• Minimum ten (10) years of progressive leadership experience in Sales, Business Development or Capture Management within the defense, aerospace or related industries.
• Demonstrated success by securing complex domestic and international defense programs.
• Strong understanding of Canadian, U.S. and international government procurement processes.
• Proven experience leading strategic capture efforts from opportunity identification through contract award.
• Experience developing commercial strategies, Price-to-Win analyses and competitive assessments.
• Strong understanding of proposal management, contract negotiations and commercial risk management.
• Demonstrated ability to build executive-level customer relationships with military, government and industry stakeholders.
• Experience working within cross-functional organizations involving Engineering, Operations, Program Management and Finance.
• Excellent leadership, communication, negotiation and presentation skills.
• Strong analytical, commercial and financial acumen.
• Ability to think strategically while driving disciplined execution.
• Willing and able to travel internationally as required.

Minimum Education Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Business Administration, Commerce or a related discipline.

• MBA or equivalent business education is considered an asset.

Key Performance Measures

• Annual Bookings
• Qualified Opportunity Pipeline
• Proposal Win Rate
• Gross Margin at Award
• Price-to-Win Discipline
• Customer Satisfaction
• Market Share Growth
• Strategic Partnership Development
• Forecast Accuracy
• Business Development Team Performance

Who We Are

Curtiss-Wright's INDAL facility combines a high level of engineering and manufacturing capability with expertise in the management of large and complex defense programs to produce specific solutions for the world's navies. With over 50 years of experience, we lead in the design and development of ship-borne helicopter handling systems, undersea sensor handling systems and specialized on-deck structures.

Our employees are highly motivated, self-starters and able to work in a fast-paced team environment where critical and tight deadlines are common, and Customer Satisfaction is our foremost mission.

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