[Remote] Business Development & Capture Manager - A&D Tech Startups

Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. Approach Venture is hiring a Business Development & Capture Manager to help frontier-tech startups secure strategic contracts across government and commercial markets. This role focuses on business development, capture strategy, and proposal execution, partnering with early-stage companies to identify opportunities and lead proposals to success.

Responsibilities

• Own capture efforts from early opportunity identification through proposal submission and award support
• Identify, qualify, and prioritize government and commercial opportunities aligned with client capabilities and growth goals
• Develop and execute capture strategies, including win themes, positioning, and competitive analysis
• Lead proposal development across technical, management, and pricing volumes with a focus on clarity, compliance, and competitiveness
• Collaborate directly with founders, engineers, and BD stakeholders to shape compelling narratives and value propositions
• Manage proposal timelines, document control, and compliance tracking to ensure alignment with solicitation requirements
• Coordinate key materials such as teaming agreements, customer memorandums, CRADAs, and letters of support
• Support pricing strategy, milestone planning, and budget justification in partnership with client teams
• Engage in customer and partner coordination where applicable to strengthen positioning and probability of win
• Lead post-submission debriefs and lessons-learned cycles to continuously improve capture effectiveness
• Contribute to investor-facing materials and strategic growth narratives when needed
• Build and maintain reusable templates, playbooks, and capture frameworks to scale execution across engagements

Skills

• 5+ years of experience in business development, capture management, or proposal leadership within aerospace, defense, or government technology programs
• Proven track record contributing to or leading winning contract awards (SBIR/STTR, BAAs, CRADAs, OTAs / CSOs, RFIs / RFPs, etc.)
• Strong understanding of federal acquisition pathways, solicitation structures, and evaluation criteria
• Experience working with or supporting startup or venture-backed organizations
• Excellent writing, communication, and strategic thinking skills
• Ability to operate both strategically (capture planning) and tactically (proposal execution)
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel
• Comfortable working across distributed teams in fast-paced startup environments
• Technical background or exposure to engineering, physics, or related fields
• Experience supporting programs in autonomy, propulsion, spacecraft, or advanced manufacturing
• Familiarity with dual-use and defense innovation funding ecosystems
• Experience working closely with small, highly technical founding teams
• Exposure to customer engagement, partner development, or pipeline building activities

Benefits

• 100% remote environment with flexibility and ownership
• Direct collaboration with founders building mission-critical technologies
• Work across multiple high-growth startups at the forefront of aerospace and defense innovation
• Opportunity to influence strategy, revenue generation, and company trajectory
• Small, high-performance team where execution and impact matter
• Competitive compensation with performance-based upside
• Medical, dental, and vision benefits
• Meaningful opportunity to help startups secure transformational contracts and scale
• Commission
• Bonus

Company Overview