Full-Time

Senior Director

Business Development, Sales

Posted on 1/28/2025

BlackSky

BlackSky

201-500 employees

Real-time satellite imagery and analytics platform

No salary listed

No H1B Sponsorship

Reston, VA, USA

Hybrid

Hybrid position; requires in-office presence.

US Top Secret Clearance Required

Category
Sales & Account Management (1)
Requirements
  • Must have Active IC/DoD Top Secret/SCI Clearance, and be willing and able to obtain CI Polygraph.
  • Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field.
  • Very strong technical understanding of space and ground architectures to support complex solution-based problem solving and decision-making abilities.
  • At least 10 years of experience working in the US Intelligence Community and/or DoD.
  • At least 7-10 years of domain experience in remote sensing, Earth science, and/or GEOINT.
  • Full-cycle direct business development experience with a concentration in technical and/or government sales, must have previous experience selling to the NRO.
  • Exceptional negotiation and communication skills.
  • The ability to perform top quality presentations.
  • Strong organizational skills as a good time manager and effective multi-tasker.
Responsibilities
  • Simultaneously manage pursuit and capture of new program or product sales through extensive interfacing with government agencies to achieve set quarterly and annual sales goals.
  • Work with internal division technology leaders and key internal stakeholders in the division on BD and sales opportunities setting sales strategy, tactics, proposals, and negotiations for new product solutions as well as coordinating qualified new business capture and sales with government agencies.
  • Lead sales capture efforts for advanced programs and new technical solutions for the customer that align to the business growth strategies of the division.
  • Lead penetration strategies to gain additional sales with all major government agencies by facilitating contacts to achieve sales objectives.
  • Create and sustain classified communications pursuits for BlackSky, working with existing BD and Program Management Staff.
  • Provide quarterly forecasts to management, and monthly forecasts within the current quarter.
  • Responsible for market growth and expansion.
  • Maintain sales volume, product mix, and selling price by keeping current with supply and demand, changing trends, economic indicators, and competitors.
  • Maintain professional and technical knowledge by attending educational workshops; reviewing professional publications; establishing personal networks; participating in professional societies.
  • Other responsibilities as needed.
Desired Qualifications
  • Master’s degree in business administration or finance.
  • Experience managing opportunity pipeline in Salesforce.
  • Experience in multiple IC, DoD agencies and/or Joint assignments.

BlackSky provides real-time geospatial intelligence by operating a constellation of small satellites that monitor strategic locations and global events. Users access an analytics platform to request on-demand imagery and receive automated data insights about specific economic or security assets. Unlike competitors that may only photograph a site once every few days, BlackSky captures images many times per day to show changes as they happen. The company's goal is to provide a live, high-frequency view of the world to help organizations make immediate decisions during disasters or security threats.

Company Size

201-500

Company Stage

IPO

Headquarters

Herndon, Virginia

Founded

2013

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Q1 2026 added 24 Gen-3 customers, expanding subscriptions globally.
  • Backlog hit $438M with $135.9M 2025 revenue and positive EBITDA.
  • $200M Luno B contract and NGA awards fuel 2026 revenue to $145M.

What critics are saying

  • Planet Labs captures Luno B orders with daily imagery, eroding BlackSky share.
  • CFO Dubois overload from Ward's April 24 resignation triggers audit failures.
  • $46M dilutive offering at $4/share starves $60M Gen-3 capex needs.

What makes BlackSky unique

  • BlackSky Spectra platform delivers AI-driven analytics in under 90 minutes.
  • Gen-3 satellites provide 35cm resolution imagery within hours of launch.
  • Proprietary LEO constellation enables high-revisit monitoring of strategic sites.

Help us improve and share your feedback! Did you find this helpful?

Benefits

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

Life Insurance

Disability Insurance

Unlimited Paid Time Off

Paid Vacation

401(k) Retirement Plan

401(k) Company Match

Flexible Spending Accounts

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

Employee Assistance and Travel Assistance Programs

Professional Development Budget

Employer matching donations

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

0%

1 year growth

-1%

2 year growth

0%
FySelf
Apr 6th, 2026
Spain's Xoople raises $130 million in Series B to create global maps for AI.

Spain's Xoople raises $130 million in Series B to create global maps for AI. By April 6, 2026 No Comments 3 Mins Read Space data companies have long argued that the private sector needs their products, but the real buyers are government buyers. As artificial intelligence becomes a top priority in business today, a Spanish startup is becoming the go-to source of ground truth for businesses. Xoople (referred to as "Zoople") develops a constellation of satellites to collect precise data for deep learning models. The startup was founded in 2019 and has spent the past seven years developing a technology stack around data collected by government spacecraft and integrating with cloud providers. CEO and co-founder Fabrizio Pirondini told TechCrunch that the company has completed a $130 million Series B led by Nazca Capital. Other investors include MCH Private Equity, CDTI (Spanish government-backed technology development fund), Buenavista Equity Partners, and Endeavor Catalyst. The company announced Monday a deal with U.S. space and defense contractor L3Harris Technologies to begin building sensors for the Xoople spacecraft. The sensors are designed to collect "two orders of magnitude better data flow than existing monitoring systems," Pirondini told TechCrunch. L3Harris has built some of the most advanced commercial imaging systems in orbit. But Pirondini did not provide any details about the satellites, other than that the sensors would collect optical data, or even how many the company wanted to build. These systems don't come cheap, and the company continues to raise funds to fund full development. Pirondini declined to share his company's valuation after the latest funding round, other than to say, "We're in unicorn territory." The company has raised a total of $225 million. The company's focus on data quality is a key differentiator. Still, Xoople is entering a competitive field crowded with several mature competitors that already operate satellites in orbit and develop AI-focused datasets, including Vantor, Planet, BlackSky, and Europe's Airbus. tech crunch event San Francisco, California | October 13-15, 2026 What sets Xoople apart is its focus on enterprise platforms. "Our business model is to embed our data and solutions directly into those ecosystems so that we can provide those services directly to our customers," Pirondini said. Pirondini described use cases such as government agencies tracking transportation networks and damage from natural disasters, agribusinesses monitoring the health of crops, and large corporations monitoring infrastructure projects and supply chains. Aravind Ravichandran, CEO of Earth observation consultancy TerraWatch Space, told TechCrunch that Xople's decision to prepare a distribution strategy before acquiring its own data is interesting. For now, it relies on publicly available data, such as data collected by the European Space Agency's Sentinel 2 spacecraft. "They laid distribution pipes before creating their own data feed and built it into Microsoft and Esri, two platforms that enterprises, governments and most GIS buyers already use, but neither of them had their own EO data," Ravichandran said. "Google's lead in geospatial AI models is the benchmark against which those models will be measured." It's unclear how Xoople will strike a balance between providing raw data and developing its own analytical tools, but Pirondini says he wants to create a "system of record for the planet" and expects the project will eventually include working with partners to develop a true AI world model.

Yahoo Finance
Mar 10th, 2026
BlackSky's fourth Gen-3 satellite delivers first light imagery within hours of launch

BlackSky Technology has achieved first light imagery from its fourth Gen-3 satellite within hours of launch, demonstrating rapid operational capability for intelligence and defence missions. The satellite captured a 35-centimetre resolution image of an aircraft taking off from Santiago's international airport on 8 March. The company has consistently reduced launch-to-first light time to just hours, with full operational readiness within days. All Gen-3 satellites have delivered initial images with high clarity, detailing vehicles, vessels, aircraft and individual people. BlackSky's vertically integrated approach, encompassing satellite production and proprietary AI development, provides customers with flexible access to real-time intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data. The Gen-3 constellation expansion continues on schedule, increasing capacity for tactical battlefield monitoring and strategic defence applications.

MarketScreener
Mar 6th, 2026
BlackSky secures seven-figure NGA funding for AI-powered facility monitoring contract

BlackSky Technology has secured a seven-figure award under its NGA Luno A Facility Monitoring Delivery Order. The funding renewal for the four-year contract follows customer satisfaction with the company's high-cadence, AI-enabled change detection analytics. Under the delivery order, BlackSky performs AI-enabled object and pattern-of-life change detection to monitor trends and anomalies in vehicle, aircraft, vessel, railcar and ground equipment activity at military and economic facilities worldwide. The company monitors over 14 million square kilometres of Earth's surface for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. BlackSky recently added advanced, very high-resolution Gen-3 satellites to its constellation. The company's CEO Brian O'Toole highlighted the value of reliable commercial space-based monitoring services, particularly in a constrained budget environment.

Business Wire
Feb 26th, 2026
BlackSky reports $135.9M revenue with $438.2M backlog as Gen-3 satellite wins drive growth

BlackSky Technology has reported fourth quarter 2025 revenue of $35.2 million, up 16% year-over-year, bringing full-year revenue to $107 million. The space-based intelligence company achieved positive adjusted EBITDA of $0.9 million for 2025, marking its second consecutive profitable year on that measure. The company's backlog grew 32% to $345 million, driven largely by international defence contracts for its Gen-3 satellite technology. BlackSky converted several international pilot programmes into subscription contracts, with one customer reaching a seven-figure quarterly run rate. Cash and cash equivalents totalled $126 million as of 31 December 2025. For 2026, BlackSky projects revenue between $120 million and $145 million, with adjusted EBITDA of $6 million to $18 million. The company plans capital expenditures of $50 million to $60 million.

Investors Hangout
Feb 18th, 2026
BlackSky raises $46M through public offering of 11.5M shares at $4 each

BlackSky Technology has completed a public offering of 10 million shares of Class A common stock at $4.00 per share. Underwriters exercised their option to purchase an additional 1.5 million shares, bringing total gross proceeds to approximately $46 million before fees and expenses. The space-based intelligence company filed a shelf registration statement with the SEC for the offering, which was managed by Oppenheimer & Co. and Lake Street Capital Markets as joint book-running managers. BlackSky plans to use the proceeds to enhance operational capacity and maintain its competitive position in the real-time intelligence services sector. The company serves government agencies and commercial enterprises, competing in a rapidly evolving market for space-based data and analytics capabilities.

INACTIVE