Associate Director, Business Development - Army

The posting, as Distributed Spectrum wrote it

DS creates systems that power the next generation of radio spectrum intelligence. We collect radio data from all over the world, train neural networks to decipher it, and run them on the smallest chips we can. We’re solving a new, technically hard problem where nothing from other fields works out of the box, and along the way, we’ve built our own stack from scratch, including entirely new embedding model architectures, custom GPU kernels, and much more.

Joining DS means owning major parts of a fast-growing AI research organization, joining a collaborative, talent-dense team with decades of experience in probabilistic ML, accelerated computing, embedded systems, and signal theory, and growing your career in the areas that interest you. You’ll fit in if you want to come to work for the problem itself and don’t want to choose between technical rigor, business value, and real-world impact.

We work with high ownership and trust.

THE ROLE

We are hiring an Associate Director, Business Development - Army to build and convert opportunities across the U.S. Army.

This hands-on role requires someone who can enter an unfamiliar Army organization, identify key stakeholders, understand how requirements and funding move, and create a credible path toward a funded opportunity. Success will depend on hunting, research, relationship building, and comfort navigating ambiguity.

The strongest candidate understands the Army from direct experience and can translate that knowledge into disciplined commercial execution. Knowing where to go, how to build credibility, and how to identify another entry point when an initial approach stalls will be critical.

You will own opportunities from customer discovery through pilot development, proposal submission, source selection, and follow-on expansion, partnering across Engineering, Mission Operations, leadership, contracting stakeholders, and external partners.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Build and manage an Army-focused pipeline from opportunity identification through proposal submission, source selection, and expansion.
• Develop net-new relationships across operational units, program offices, requirements organizations, acquisition communities, contracting organizations, and technical stakeholders.
• Research customer structures, decision-makers, mission priorities, budgets, acquisition pathways, incumbents, and competitors.
• Create stakeholder maps and engagement strategies identifying champions, blockers, decision-makers, funding owners, and alternative entry points.
• Develop informed perspectives on where Distributed Spectrum can address meaningful Army mission problems and how those opportunities should be pursued.
• Translate operational problems into opportunity strategies, technical narratives, requirements, acquisition approaches, and measurable mission outcomes.
• Scope pilots, demonstrations, exercises, experimentation efforts, and user evaluations that prove mission value and can transition

[…]
or assigned Army customer communities.

• Build credible relationships with net-new operational, acquisition, program, and technical stakeholders.
• Establish a qualified pipeline supported by account research, stakeholder maps, engagement plans, and clear next actions.
• Advance at least one pilot, demonstration, evaluation, or customer engagement toward a funded opportunity and broader program.
• Become a trusted source of Army customer, acquisition, and competitive insight while creating momentum without a complete playbook.

WHO THRIVES AT DISTRIBUTED SPECTRUM

• Fast learners over specific backgrounds – We care more about how quickly you can pick up new skills than where you’ve worked before.
• Intellectual honesty – The right answer matters more than being right. You challenge assumptions, test ideas, and pivot when needed.
• Adaptability – We’re organized, but sometimes things change quickly. You find a way to make it work and balance short-term deliverables with long-term goals.
• Ownership of outcomes – You optimize your own time, focus on what matters to deliver quickly, and cut out inefficiencies.
• Not building in a vacuum – You stay connected to the rest of our teams and our customers to make sure all the pieces fit together.

WHAT WE OFFER

• Above-market salary, equity, and benefits package.
• Early Series A Equity
• Excellent health, dental, and vision coverage
• 401(k) match - up to 4% of your salary
• Flexible PTO
• Daily office lunches in NYC

ITAR Requirements

To conform to U.S. Government technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here https://www.pmddtc.state.gov/?id=ddtc_kb_article_page&sys_id=24d528fddbfc930044f9ff621f961987.