Director of Business Development & Corporate Memberships

Arizona State University•Tempe, AZ

25d•$130,000 - $160,000

About The Position

This is a senior, relationship-driven business development role within a research center operating at the intersection of academia and enterprise. CAPS Research is looking for a senior, relationship-driven business development leader to grow corporate memberships with Fortune 500 and Fortune 1000 companies. CAPS operates as an executive commons for senior supply management leaders – bringing together trusted peer relationships, rigorous benchmarking, and applied research grounded in Arizona State University’s nationally ranked Supply Chain Management department . If your best work has come from building long-term executive relationships and selling insight rather than products, this role is worth a closer look. About CAPS Research CAPS Research (the Center for Advanced Procurement Strategy) is a self-funded research center within the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. Since its founding in 1986, CAPS has operated through long-term corporate memberships and partnerships, reflecting sustained relevance and trust among leading global organizations. CAPS works directly with Chief Procurement Officers and senior supply management leaders at global companies. Members come to CAPS for perspective, benchmarking, and access to peers facing the same complex, real-world challenges. Today, CAPS serves a growing corporate membership base with clear expectations for thoughtful, sustained growth in the years ahead. This is a hands-on, senior business development role with real ownership. The Director of Business Development & Corporate Memberships is personally responsible for acquiring new corporate members, stewarding long-term executive relationships, and driving membership renewals, growth, and select custom benchmarking or research engagements. This is a hands-on role that requires personal ownership of the full business development lifecycle, with an emphasis on consultative, relationship-driven selling rather than high-volume transactions. You will report directly to the Executive Director of CAPS Research and work closely with a small, highly collaborative internal team. This role calls for confidence, sound judgment, and a strong sense of ownership, paired with professionalism and self-awareness. This role is for someone who wants responsibility more than title, impact more than visibility, and autonomy paired with accountability.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in business, supply chain management, marketing/communications, or a related field
8+ years of experience in enterprise B2B business development, partnerships, or relationship-driven sales
Demonstrated experience personally closing complex, high-value deals
Comfort and credibility engaging with senior executives
Ability to manage a disciplined business development pipeline using CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce), including tracking executive interactions, maintaining accurate opportunity stages, and producing reliable revenue forecasts.
Exceptional communication, negotiation, and executive-level presentation skills, with demonstrated experience leading discovery conversations, shaping proposals, and presenting value propositions to senior executives.
Ability to build credibility and trust quickly with senior leaders through preparation, insight, and sound judgment in complex, relationship-driven sales environments.
Ability to prioritize high-impact opportunities, manage follow-up rigorously, and sustain momentum across long sales cycles without reliance on high-volume or scripted approaches.
Ability to synthesize input from executive conversations, market trends, and internal stakeholders to inform positioning, messaging, and go-to-market refinement.

Nice To Haves

Capacity to translate CAPS content, data, and insight into compelling commercial value stories for senior executives
At least 2–3+ years of experience selling corporate memberships, advisory services, research, data, or consulting offerings directly to senior leaders (VP, SVP, or C-suite level).
At least 3 or more years’ experience engaging senior executives in consultative conversations, including understanding business priorities, framing implications, and guiding solution discussions.
Comfort operating in a fast-paced, evolving environment, with the judgment to adapt without losing focus.
Familiarity with supply management, procurement, or supply chain environments

Responsibilities

Initiate, develop, and close new corporate memberships and related partnership opportunities, primarily with Fortune 500 and Fortune 1000 organizations
Build and continuously refine a high-quality prospect list using research, judgment, prioritization and relevance over indiscriminate volume
Lead thoughtful, curiosity-driven discovery conversations with senior executives and translate CAPS capabilities into compelling value propositions
Shape, present, and negotiate proposals, including pricing, scope, and structure, to arrive at durable, win–win agreements
Own renewals and expansion conversations with existing members, ensuring long-term engagement and revenue continuity
Serve as a trusted, credible representative of CAPS with senior executives at member and prospective companies
Manage a portfolio of high-value relationships with an emphasis on trust, relevance, and long-term partnership
Engage selectively in events, executive roundtables, and meetings where there is clear relationship or revenue impact
Stay current on supply management, procurement, and supply chain priorities to inform prospect targeting and conversations
Work closely with CAPS benchmarking and research colleagues to understand current and emerging offerings, and how they resonate with executive audiences
Identify patterns across member and prospect conversations that inform refinements to CAPS’s positioning, packaging, and pricing over time
Maintain a clear, well-qualified pipeline with defined next steps and realistic close probabilities
Use Salesforce (or equivalent CRM) consistently to track outreach, conversations, proposals, renewals, and forecasts
Produce accurate revenue forecasts that reflect both opportunity and risk
Bring discipline to follow-up, documentation, and cadence – handling outreach, follow-ups, and data entry rather than delegating core sales work
Review pipeline and performance regularly with CAPS leadership to support informed decision-making