Head of Customer - Defence

The role

You will lead the commercial approach for defence opportunities focused on the UK, Europe, NATO, and allied nations. You will define and execute strategies to secure government support, funding, and defence partnerships.

What you will do

• Lead defence sales activity and execute commercial strategy.
• Secure government support and funding for hybrid aircraft roadmap.
• Develop defence value propositions and campaign plans.
• Build and maintain senior relationships with defence stakeholders.
• Identify and pursue opportunities in defence programmes and demonstrations.
• Establish and grow a partnership ecosystem with defence primes and collaborators.
• Translate market and operator needs into commercial input for internal teams.
• Work cross-functionally to support bids, proposals, and funded opportunities.
• Provide insight on market priorities and competitor positioning.
• Represent the company in external defence forums and customer discussions.

Required qualifications

• Strong leadership experience in defence sales, business development or strategic partnerships.
• Proven experience selling into or working with UK MOD, European defence organisations, NATO-aligned customers or allied government stakeholders.
• A well-established professional network to navigate defence buying environments at senior levels.
• Experience developing pitches, submissions, bids or funding cases for defence programmes.
• Good understanding of positioning air platforms, advanced aviation, UAV, drone, helicopter or adjacent aerospace capabilities.
• Ability to work independently and resourcefully.
• Experience building effective partnerships across a complex ecosystem.
• Commercial acumen to translate customer and market needs into product recommendations.
• Confidence working cross-functionally with technical and engineering teams.
• Strong communication, negotiation and stakeholder management skills.
• International outlook with experience operating across non-US defence markets, particularly in the UK and Europe.
• Relevant commercial, engineering, aerospace or defence background through degree-level study or equivalent industry experience.

Benefits

• 26 days holiday, plus bank holiday
• 5 extra days per year to buy (or sell)
• 5 extra days holiday when you get married or enter a civil partnership
• Additional 4% of your salary to spend on extra benefits
• Award-winning digital health and wellbeing service (Help@Hand)
• Company performance based bonus
• Company Share Scheme
• Company Pension Scheme (5% and match)
• Breakfast on us, every day

About the company

Vertical Aerospace is pioneering the way for electric aviation with the Valo eVTOL aircraft. The company is growing from a prototype business to a scaling SME.