Senior Director of Business Development

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube. 

Job Description:

Shield AI’s International Business & Strategy team is hiring a Senior Director Business Development to accelerate growth and support the adoption of its autonomy ecosystem: X-BAT, V-BAT, ViDAR, and Hivemind across Japan, South Korea and Taiwan

The Senior Director of Business Development will lead Shield AI’s regional growth strategy, building out a team that is responsible for significant annual orders targets. The leader must have deep defense, national security, or aerospace experience in the country / region (Japanese language fluency preferable), established government relationships, and a track record of closing complex defense programs (ideally across both hardware and software).  

You will operate with significant autonomy and ownership, shaping country strategy, leading major pursuits, and building long-term defense partnerships. You will report to the Vice President of International Business & Strategy (Middle East & Asia Pacific) and work closely with international business development colleagues around the globe, as well as product, engineering, and operations teams, to deliver mission-relevant autonomy capabilities at scale.  

What you'll do:

• Own and execute regional (Japan/South Korea/Taiwan) go-to-market strategy for Shield AI’s product portfolio, including X-BAT, V-BAT, ViDAR, and Hivemind.  

• Maintain direct responsibility for annual order targets, multi-year pipeline development, and order growth.  

• Lead end-to-end capture and sales efforts from early engagement through contract award and follow-on growth.  

• Engage directly with senior military, government, and defense industry stakeholders across the region.  

• Differentiate Shield AI in competitive and regulated defense procurements.  

• Provide actionable market and customer intelligence to influence product roadmap and broader international strategy.  

• Work cross-functionally with product, legal, export compliance, and operations.  

• Lead proposal/program development and complex product demonstrations.  

• Structure and manage local partnerships, primes, and industrial participation or offset strategies.  

• Represent Shield AI at senior-level engagements, exhibitions, and industry forums.  

Required qualifications:

• 10+ years business development experience in the country or broader region within defense, aerospace, or national security.  

• Specific prior defense or government-facing experience in Japan/South Korea/Taiwan with a deep understanding of procurement processes, offset requirements, export sensitivities, local defense primes, and indigenization requirements.  

• Fluency in English & Japanese preferable (written and spoken).  

• Demonstrated success closing complex defense or government programs - ideally across both hardware (aircraft/UAS) and software (autonomy/ai).  

• Technical experience with autonomy, UAVs, ISR, and advanced sensing technologies.  

• Strong negotiation, relationship-building, and stakeholder management skills.  

• Ability to manage multiple concurrent pursuits, involving technical products, in ambiguous environments.  

• Proven cross-functional leadership across operations, product, and BD teams.  

• Exceptional written, verbal, and presentation skills.  

• Willingness and ability to travel frequently in country/region and internationally   

• Willingness and ability to work across multiple time zones  

• Based today in Tokyo, Japan. 

• Mastery of critical business tools (Microsoft Suite – PPT, Excel, Word, LLMs, etc.)  

• Experience forecasting, tracking, and managing deal cycles using Salesforce.  

Preferred qualifications:

• Existing U.S. or allied security clearance.  

• Prior military service or operational leadership experience in Japan 
  (++ if directly related to UAS, autonomy, or fighter jet aircraft).  

• Prior experience supporting foreign military sales (via DSCA), engaging with SAF/IA, or working directly with foreign air forces.  

• Direct experience with UAV operations, mission autonomy, AI-enabled C2 systems. 

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Our international teammates receive a comprehensive total rewards package aligned to your country office location. For full details on compensation and benefits, please consult your talent acquisition partner.