Business Development Manager - Defence

• Oversee and execute Valarian’s defence business development strategy

• Build and mature our defence market posture, including security clearances, UK Government Security Classifications and relevant assurance requirements

• Design and implement a scalable go-to-market approach across government, primes, integrators and end users

• Work with Product and Engineering to ensure our offering is positioned and built for defence customers

• Build and maintain BD playbooks, standards and processes for defence sales

• Lead opportunity management, account mapping and pipeline generation

• Own bid and proposal development, capture management and responses to RFIs/RFPs

• Develop and manage relationships with primes, system integrators, government stakeholders and industry bodies

• Manage audits, certifications and engagement with external assessors and procurement teams

• Set metrics and reporting for pipeline, win rates and market penetration

• Hire, develop and lead a small, high-performing defence BD team

• Proven experience leading in BD, defence, government or highly regulated B2G/B2B environments

• Deep knowledge of defence procurement and how to win in it

• Hands-on experience with capture management, bid and proposal development

• Experience managing an ecosystem of primes, integrators, government stakeholders and partners

• Practical experience with defence assurance and compliance, including UK Government Security Classifications and procurement frameworks

• Strong understanding of account mapping, stakeholder engagement and long sales cycles

• Experience using CRM and pipeline management tools

• Track record of building go-to-market capability from scratch in high-growth environments

• Ability to balance compliance and security requirements with speed to market

• Excellent stakeholder management and communication across technical, commercial and executive audiences

• Experience building or scaling BD/sales teams, or readiness to do so

• Focus on real outcomes, not box-ticking

• Security Clearance is preferable, but not essential 

Background is secondary to mindset. We want someone prepared to hustle, learn the defence landscape fast, and own outcomes. The successful candidate could be from any background.

• Equity – because you have the right to own what you’re building

• A competitive salary – because we value your unique skills

• Employer pension contributions – because you deserve a secure future

• Private health insurance - because your health is important to us

• Hybrid work setup – because everyone has different needs

• Gym memberships - because staying active fuels productivity

• Rewarding company retreats and meetups that respect your work/life balance – because we love getting to know each other

Valarian Technologies Limited is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applications from invdividuals regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, veteran, amnesty, or any other legally protected characteristic.

We are committed to ensuring a fair and inclusive recruitment process and providing employment opportunities to all applicants. Decision recruitment, hiring, and employment are based solely on qualifications, skills, and experience relevant to the job requirements.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analysing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgement. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.