Director, Business Development (Advanced Energy)

Avalanche • Seattle, WA

7d • $170,000 - $250,000

About The Position

Avalanche is a Seattle-based start-up developing compact fusion machines for clean, energy-dense power generation. Its modular technology is intended for applications ranging from austere environments and deep-sea vehicles to maritime transport and lunar power. The company works in a hands-on, fast-iterating environment and values self-motivation, problem-solving, creative collaboration, adaptability, and continued learning.

Avalanche is seeking a senior business development professional to lead commercialization activities for its energy technologies during a period of rapid growth. The company will remain R&D-intensive for the next several years, and this leader will connect mission needs, acquisition and budget strategy, technology maturation, and commercialization while helping establish scalable operating discipline. The role will secure government and commercial contracts and agreements, build strategic partnerships across government, industry, national labs, and academia, and support the development of value chains needed to go to market. It is critical to commercializing Avalanche Energy’s fusion and fusion-enabling technologies and could grow into a GM-level role with P&L responsibility.

The position reports to the Director of Strategy and works closely with executive, technical, legal, finance, regulatory, compliance, and operations leadership to align business development priorities with RDT&E, commercialization, and growth objectives.

Requirements

• 15+ years of experience in business development and capture/proposal management, with referenceable success winning $10M+ DOE and other federal prime RDT&E grants, contracts, and agreements.
• Deep experience spanning DOE, national labs, and industry, including a strong network and demonstrated ability to navigate DOE funding processes and lab partnership mechanisms.
• Demonstrated success negotiating and closing multi-million-dollar, high-risk, long-term contracts involving government regulation, complex financing structures, and highly technical products or services.
• Strong understanding of the FAR, federal contract vehicles and types, and DOE grants and agreements, including partnership intermediary agreements, cooperative agreements, other transaction agreements, and consortium agreements.
• Experience collaborating with engineers and scientists to develop detailed white papers, proposals, RFI responses, presentations, and other business development communications from complex technical concepts.
• Understanding of the federal regulatory landscape for fusion or nuclear technologies and related processes, including emerging fusion-specific regulations.
• Startup builder mindset and comfort wearing many hats and driving outcomes in ambiguous, resource-constrained environments.
• Bachelor’s degree in business, engineering, finance, or a related technical field.
• Ability to obtain and hold a DoW TS/SCI or DOE Q clearance.

Nice To Haves

• MBA or advanced technical degree.
• Direct experience with fusion, nuclear, neutron sources, isotopes, radiation-relevant programs, or adjacent deep-tech hardware commercialization and deployment.
• Experience commercializing or deploying complex capital projects.
• Experience capturing and negotiating federal procurement or production contracts.
• Experience selling technical services to the federal government and industry.
• Experience in defense technology or other high-compliance environments.
• Business development experience with the DoW and major defense primes.
• International business development experience.
• Experience with DFARS.
• Experience working for or with non-traditional contractors.
• PMP or equivalent certification and experience maintaining a strong program/capture operating cadence.
• Experience with financial modeling and business case development.
• Active DoW TS/SCI or DOE Q clearance.
• Previous P&L responsibility.

Responsibilities

• Own a 12–24-month federal contracts pipeline, from opportunity shaping through proposal development and award-execution handoff.
• Prepare presentations, white papers, technical proposals, and agency responses.
• Lead capture operations, including opportunity qualification, bid/no-bid decisions, capture planning, and solution development.
• Organize and lead cross-functional proposal teams to pursue non-traditional and FAR-based prime and subcontract awards and agreements that advance technical milestones and support future production and procurement.
• Negotiate teaming agreements, subcontracts, and awards, addressing pricing, cost share, intellectual property and technical data rights, flow-downs, security, and transition rights.
• Translate complex scientific concepts into compelling, fundable value propositions for technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Support strategic Congressional and Departmental engagement activities.
• Build and maintain senior relationships across DOE program offices, NNSA, national labs, and aligned industry partners.
• Structure partnerships that provide access to facilities, testing capabilities, supply chains, manufacturing, and deployment and disposal channels.
• Represent Avalanche at conferences, customer engagements, and partner meetings to build credibility, partnerships, and deal flow.
• Coordinate with strategy and technical teams to align business development priorities with the go-to-market and commercialization plan.
• Drive ongoing market and customer discovery and relay findings to R&D and engineering priorities and program plans.
• Develop and negotiate teaming and other commercial agreements that support technology commercialization.
• Develop go-to-market pathways leading to recurring revenue for emerging products and services.
• Source materials and procure suppliers; support marketing, sales, and customer success activities; and advise on organizing the firm for successful go-to-market execution.
• Lead future site-selection efforts focused on scaling production and operations.
• Support development of Avalanche’s federal business unit.

Benefits

• Excellent medical, dental, and vision benefits; the company pays 100% of premiums.
• 10 paid holidays and a company-wide December holiday break.
• Generous paid vacation and sick time.
• Small, tight-knit team with low barriers to action.
• Exposure to a wide variety of problems and hands-on professional growth.
• Weekly employer-provided team meals, a well-stocked kitchen, and employee events on and off site.
• Opportunity for equity.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior