Head of Business Development, Japan (R3905)

The role

Lead Shield AI's business in Japan as the senior district representative. Own the district sales quota, pipeline, order intake and deal execution, and coordinate country business development leads across the district.

What you will do

• Serve as Shield AI's senior district representative across Japan, engaging senior military, government and industry stakeholders.
• Develop and execute a unified district strategy aligned with priorities in Japan.
• Own district quota and sales performance, including pipeline, forecast accuracy, order intake and deal execution.
• Provide strategic direction and coordination for Country Business Development Leads across the district.
• Drive district business growth across V-BAT, X-BAT, ViDAR and Hivemind.
• Coordinate cross-functional teams including Business Development, Government Relations, Program Management, Legal, Contracts, Marketing and Customer Operations.
• Ensure successful execution of active district opportunities, timelines and customer satisfaction.
• Build and maintain a data-driven district pipeline and stakeholder engagement strategy.
• Develop and manage district partnerships, resellers and strategic industry relationships.
• Identify and mitigate political, procurement, operational and strategic risks in the district.

Required qualifications

• Typically 10+ years of experience in defence, military operations, business development, capture management or international government relations.
• Deep technical and operational understanding of Shield AI systems, including V-BAT, Hivemind and X-BAT.
• Proven experience operating across multiple international defence or national security markets, including government procurement.
• Demonstrated ability to lead distributed, cross-functional teams across countries and cultures.
• Strong executive presence engaging senior military leadership, Ministries of Defence, U.S. Embassies/ODCs and industry partners.
• Proven track record of pipeline development, capture strategy and closing complex, high-value defence deals.
• English and Japanese language proficiency relevant to the assigned district.

Nice to have

• Prior district leadership experience across allied defence markets, including Japan.
• Existing relationships with the Ministry of Defence, senior military leadership and defence procurement organizations.
• Experience leading international defence captures, Foreign Military Sales or multinational procurement programs.
• Operational understanding of ISR, autonomy, unmanned systems and AI-enabled capabilities.
• Experience managing district consultants, resellers, partnerships or industrial participation/offset initiatives.
• Familiarity with Japanese operational frameworks, allied capability development and defence modernization priorities.
• Demonstrated success in high-growth, fast-paced, internationally distributed environments.
• Ability to attain or existing relevant national security clearance.
• Master's degree in a relevant field.

Benefits

• Comprehensive total rewards package aligned to the country office location; full details available from the talent acquisition partner.

Before you apply

• A Bachelor's degree or relevant military education is preferred.
• A national security clearance is preferred but the posting says the candidate should attain or already hold one.

About the company

Shield AI is a venture-backed defence technology company building AI pilots and autonomous aircraft, founded in 2015 with a mission to protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems. It works with military and government customers worldwide.