Director of Business Development – Food & Beverage

Hawkins Careers•Loves Park, IL

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Director of Business Development is responsible for driving strategic growth and expanding market share within the Food & Beverage manufacturing sector by developing new business opportunities for industrial water and wastewater treatment equipment, process water systems, water reuse technologies, and related service solutions. This leadership role is responsible for identifying high-value opportunities, cultivating executive relationships with food and beverage manufacturers, engineering firms, system integrators, and EPC contractors, while positioning the company as a trusted partner for sustainable water management solutions.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, Environmental Science, or related field.
10+ years of successful business development, technical sales, or account management experience in water treatment, process equipment, or related industrial markets.
Proven success selling capital equipment, engineered systems, or process technologies to industrial manufacturing and/or municipal customers.
Strong understanding of water and wastewater treatment processes, including filtration, membrane systems, chemical treatment, utility operations, and water reuse applications.
Experience developing and managing complex sales opportunities involving multiple stakeholders and long sales cycles.
Demonstrated ability to build relationships with executive, technical, and operational decision-makers.
Strong communication, presentation, negotiation, and strategic account planning skills.
Highly organized, self-motivated, and results oriented.
Proficient with Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Outlook, Word).

Nice To Haves

Experience serving Food & Beverage manufacturing markets.
Experience working with municipal utilities, consulting engineers, contractors, or EPC firms.
Knowledge of CIP systems, sanitary process design, sustainability initiatives, and environmental compliance.
Experience with process design engineering.
Existing relationships within industrial or municipal water treatment markets.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute strategic business development plans focused on the Food & Beverage manufacturing market.
Identify, qualify, and pursue new capital equipment opportunities involving process water, wastewater treatment, water reuse, filtration, disinfection, and utility optimization systems.
Build and maintain executive-level relationships with plant managers, engineering directors, operations leaders, corporate sustainability teams, and procurement professionals.
Develop partnerships with engineering consultants, design-build firms, OEMs, and system integrators to increase project opportunities.
Lead consultative sales efforts by understanding customer production processes, water quality challenges, environmental compliance requirements, and operational goals.
Manage the complete sales cycle including prospecting, solution development, proposal preparation, contract negotiations, and project closeout.
Collaborate with engineering, applications, operations, and project management teams to deliver customized technical solutions.
Monitor industry trends, capital investment plans, sustainability initiatives, and regulatory developments affecting water management within Food & Beverage manufacturing.
Represent the company at industry conferences, trade shows, customer events, and professional organizations.
Maintain accurate sales forecasts, opportunity pipelines, and CRM reporting.
Mentor regional sales managers and business development professionals while promoting a high-performance sales culture.