Senior Business Development Manager

Job Title: Senior Business Development Manager

Summary

The Senior Business Development (BD) Manager works as a full-time employee of Zeiders Enterprises, Inc. (Zeiders) in the corporate home office located in Woodbridge, VA. The position is a senior leader within Zeiders reporting directly to the President & CEO. This role is responsible for driving the company’s growth strategy by leading business development, capture, and proposal operations. The position combines strategic planning, customer relationship management, and team leadership to expand Zeiders’ presence across Commercial, Federal, DoD, and State & Local Government markets.

The Senior BD Manager will be accountable for building and maintaining a qualified pipeline, delivering measurable revenue growth, and positioning Zeiders for long-term success. The Senior BD Manager leads all capture and proposal activities and supervises the daily activities of the Business Development team.

Essential Duties And Responsibilities:

Strategic Growth & Market Development

• Lead development and execution of business growth strategies aligned to company objectives.
• Build and maintain a qualified pipeline of opportunities, with accountability for revenue, pipeline health, and proposal win rate (PWIN).
• Conduct market and competitive research; develop customer and competitor profiles; and provide data-driven recommendations for bid/no-bid decisions.
• Identify, develop, and maintain strategic relationships with Federal/DoD and SLED agencies, prime contractors, and subcontractors (including small, disadvantaged, and veteran-owned businesses).
• Represent Zeiders at client meetings, industry events, and conferences to expand market presence. 

Capture & Proposal Leadership

• Lead all capture efforts from opportunity identification through award, ensuring competitive positioning and client engagement.
• Oversee end-to-end proposal development processes (e.g., RFIs, RFQs, RFPs) including storyboarding, win themes, compliance, and pricing strategy.
• Partner with the CFO and pricing analyst on competitive pricing, cost models, and funding profile assessments.
• Ensure proposal quality, compliance, and alignment with Shipley (or similar) methodologies.

 Team & Resource Management

• Direct the daily activities and mentor the Business Development team (3–5 staff, including subordinate managers, support consultants, and BD staff).
• Provide leadership to cross-functional capture teams, exercising influence without direct authority to achieve results.
• Oversee vendor and consultant relationships supporting business development functions.
• Build and maintain Zeiders’ repository of BD intellectual capital, including past performance, resumes, proposal templates, and key contacts.

Performance & Reporting

• Deliver against measurable outcomes: pipeline growth, PWIN targets, revenue objectives, and customer engagement metrics.
• Prepare and present forecasts, pipeline reports, and capture status updates to the President & CEO.
• Ensure alignment between opportunity pursuits and long-range company strategy.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Manage subordinate managers, support consultants, and BD staff with accountability for performance, coaching, and professional development.
• Lead temporary/cross-functional teams assembled for capture and proposal efforts.
• The position is responsible for the overall direction, coordination, and evaluation of their activities.
• Supervisory responsibilities are executed in accordance with the organization's policies and applicable laws.
• Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.
• This job requires strong communication and project leadership of dedicated cross functional matrix staff and temporary employees assembled to support the specific bid activities.
• The successful individual will need to exercise influence without authority with and deliver results without having direct control over the resources they need to achieve.
• Responsibilities include planning, assigning, and directing work, and providing input and feedback to functional leaders regarding shared resource performance.

Other

• Travel up to 25–35% for client meetings, conferences, and site visits.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum of bachelor’s degree in management, marketing, or related field.
• 10+ years progressive business development experience, with 7+ years in Federal and/or State & Local Government professional services.
• 5+ years of experience in proposal development and management in response to Federal Government RFPs, RFIs (write and edit proposal content, including executive summaries, technical sections, past performances, and cost proposals).
• An understanding of the Shipley (or similar) methodology.
• Demonstrated record of securing new business and expanding into new markets.
• Strong knowledge of Federal procurement processes, DoD, SLED, and commercial customer landscapes, and contracting vehicle.
• Experience with industry-specific research tools to assist with information gathering, bid analysis, and decision making (e.g., Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS), GovWinIQ, Bloomberg Government, or DACIS).
• Demonstrated ability to lead teams, manage cross-functional projects, and influence without authority.
• Strong communication, presentation, and relationship-building skills.
• Results-driven individual with a growth mindset mentality and a willingness to learn and be challenged.
• U.S. Citizenship and ability to obtain a Secret clearance.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Operational Experience with Military or Veterans programs; Military experience a plus
• Knowledge and operational experience with military or Veteran quality-of-life, behavioral health, family readiness, or human capital services
• Experience with enterprise CRM tools (e.g., Microsoft Dynamics) and data visualization dashboards (Microsoft PowerBI, Tableau)
• Established customer/partner network and ability to influence decision-makers while strategically positioning Zeiders for continued growth.
• Strong business writing and analytical skills; Proficient in Microsoft Suite: Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, SharePoint; and Online Help Tools.
• Proposal Management Certifications/Experience (e.g., Shipley, Association of Proposal Management Professionals (APMP) or similar credentials)

Work Environment & Physical Demands

• Office-based role with periodic travel.
• Uses personal computers, telephones, copiers, printers and other office equipment.
• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 10 pounds. The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Sits, stands, bends, lifts, and moves intermittently during working hours.
• Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Zeiders Enterprises, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer