Business Development Director

What to know

Help us win new dream clients by collaborating with our industry-leading creative strategy and technical teams. We are seeking a Business Development Director to join our team and partner with office leadership to grow our business. In this role you will have the rare opportunity to work with a client base that spans across corporate nonprofit and political sectors. If you want to be proud of your clients then this might be the position for you.

The company

Blue State is a purpose-driven agency. We partner with leading causes brands and campaigns and create real change. From Google and UNICEF to Amnesty International and Oxfam we transform how brands and causes raise money influence policy build platforms and grow communities of supporters. Led by the most creative and analytical minds from the political nonprofit and brand worlds Blue State is an independent agency and has 150 employees in the US and London.

A day in the life

• Manage proposal and pitch process
• Sell Blue State offerings and services to brands nonprofits and advocacy organizations
• Develop and present new creative concepts to prospective clients in collaboration with experts from our creative strategic technical and account management teams
• Communicate Blue States value proposition to prospective clients in a manner appropriate for the target audience of C Suite executive and/or nonprofit leadership
• Develop contracts and scopes of work in collaboration with internal teams to help set pricing client goals and program objectives
• Negotiate pricing and scope of work with prospect
• Build manage and continually develop a sales pipeline to achieve new business targets
• Originate and develop new leads in targeted verticals through traditional and creative approaches to outbound sales
• Attend conferences promote Blue State collateral and collaborate with the marketing team to generate awareness of Blue State
• Qualify and manage inbound leads
• Regularly report to office leadership and executive leadership on pipeline development
• Manage pipeline through Salesforce

The team

The Partnerships Team drives Blue States growth. We are the face of Blue State to prospective clients. We help prospects see opportunities more clearly and we help Blue State understand the challenges our prospects face. We find solutions to complex business challenges. And we work with our colleagues to persuasively articulate creative strategic and technical ideas to executives and practitioners alike.

What we offer

• Unlimited time-off (inclusive of sick personal and vacation days)
• $1250 annually in professional development funds
• Competitive health dental and vision insurance
• Flexible and health savings accounts
• 401K & employer match
• Generous paid holiday schedule
• 12-week fully-paid parental leave for all parents-to-be
• Short-term and long-term disability insurance
• Pre-tax commuter benefits
• Remote work flexibility

We approach in-office working with a hybrid model. On-site presence is welcome for US staff who are within commuting distance of the NY or DC office. Managers retain discretion to require in-person attendance for folks on their discipline or client teams as necessary including for those whose roles require them to be in person.

The salary range for this position is $95000-$120000; compensation will be commensurate with experience.

Some things were looking for

• 7 years of experience in business development or account management within an agency public relations or communications firm or directly comparable experience working inside a corporation or institution
• Extensive direct experience working within the nonprofit or corporate vertical either inside a relevant corporation or institution or as a vendor or service provider
• Proven track record of managing and building relationships with new clients or the ability to retain and grow existing clients
• A proven track record of delivering consistent revenue growth
• History of consultative sales with large average deal size strongly preferred
• Exceptional communication skills and ability to write quickly
• Entrepreneurial self-motivated mentality; driven at all times to meet and exceed goals
• Ability to work with all levels within the team and across the organization
• Excellent in-person presentation skills relationship building and experience in contract negotiation
• Comfortable with high volume of client interaction both in person and through phone and email
• Impeccable ethical standards and professional presence

At Blue State diversity is a necessity not a nice-to-have. We encourage those from underrepresented communities women people of color LGBTQIA immigrants those with disabilities and people at all the intersections in between to apply. Even if you dont think your current skill set checks every box but this role seems to align with your strengths we want to hear from you.

Blue State is committed to creating an inclusive and accessible application and interview process. If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation for a disability including the use of AI tools throughout the hiring process please contact us at with the subject line: Accommodation Request to get started.

Required Experience:

Director