Business Development Market Leader

Location: Charlotte, North Carolina 

Reports To: Charlotte Branch Manager 

Functional/Dotted-Line Reporting: Director of Client Services  

Status: Full-Time, Exempt 

Overview of Bunnell-Lammons Engineering, Inc. 

At Bunnell-Lammons Engineering (BLE), we are committed to delivering exceptional value to our clients through technical excellence, ethical leadership, and outstanding client service. As an employee-owned engineering consulting firm, we believe our greatest strength is our people, and we are committed to creating an environment where employees are empowered to lead, innovate, grow professionally, and make a lasting impact on our clients, our communities, and our firm.  

Our values are Clients, Respect, Excellence, Safety, and Trust, which together form the foundation we call C.R.E.S.T. These principles guide how we work together and serve our clients every day. As BLE continues to expand its geographic footprint and technical capabilities, we are seeking leaders who share our commitment to building strong teams, cultivating lasting client relationships, and shaping the future of our firm. 

Position Overview 

The Business Development Professional is responsible for driving profitable revenue growth for BLE's Charlotte operations by identifying, qualifying, pursuing, and converting new business opportunities. This is a dedicated business development and sales role focused on expanding BLE's market presence, developing new relationships, growing strategic accounts, and building a qualified pipeline across the Charlotte metropolitan area and surrounding markets. The position will represent BLE's full range of geotechnical, environmental, construction materials testing, geostructural, and related consulting services. 

The Business Development Professional will coordinate with BLE’s Director of Client Services to ensure alignment with company wide business development strategy, CRM standards, brand positioning, and cross-office account development. 

This role is not responsible for proposal writing, project management, technical delivery, or day-to-day client handling at the project level. Once work is awarded, responsibility for scope, schedule, budget, deliverables, and project-level client communication will transition to the appropriate technical and operational leaders. The Business Development Professional will remain engaged at the strategic relationship level to gather feedback, identify follow-on opportunities, and support long-term client growth. 

Success requires a self-directed, entrepreneurial sales professional who can open doors, earn trust, understand client needs, coordinate effective pursuits, and consistently convert relationships into profitable opportunities while working collaboratively with BLE's technical, operational, marketing, and leadership teams. 

Minimum Qualifications 

• Bachelor's degree in business, marketing, communications, engineering, construction management, or a related field preferred; equivalent relevant experience will be considered. 

• 8+ years of successful business development or consultative sales experience, preferably within the architecture, engineering, construction, environmental, or professional services industries. 

• Demonstrated record of originating new relationships, developing qualified opportunities, and converting pursuits into profitable revenue. 

• Established relationships within the Charlotte metropolitan area and surrounding markets strongly preferred, particularly among developers, architects, contractors, owners, municipalities, industrial clients, and other buyers or influencers of engineering consulting services. 

• Strong prospecting, networking, presentation, negotiation, and relationship-building skills, with the confidence and persistence to initiate contact and develop business with new organizations. 

• Ability to understand BLE's technical services and communicate their business value clearly without serving as the technical project lead. 

• Experience managing a disciplined sales pipeline, maintaining accurate CRM data, forecasting opportunities, and reporting progress against defined sales goals. 

Working knowledge of RFP/RFQ processes, proposal strategy, client interviews, and professional services contracting. 

• Excellent verbal and written communication, organization, follow-through, judgment, and time-management skills. 

• Ability and willingness to work regularly in-person, attend early-morning and evening industry events, and travel throughout the regional market as-needed. 

Primary Responsibilities 

Sales & Revenue Growth 

• Develop and execute the Charlotte business development and sales plan in coordination with the Charlotte Branch Manager, Department Managers, the Director of Client Services, and BLE leadership, consistent with BLE’s companywide growth strategy. 

• Establish and maintain a consistent cadence of prospecting, outreach, meetings, follow-up, and relationship development to generate qualified opportunities and new revenue. 

• Identify and pursue new clients, markets, teaming partners, and project opportunities that align with BLE's services, strategic priorities, capacity, and risk profile. 

• Build relationships with key decision-makers and influencers, including developers, architects, engineering firms, general contractors, owners, municipalities, manufacturers, utilities, attorneys, and other organizations that procure or influence engineering consulting services. 

• Expand relationships across BLE's service lines by identifying cross-selling opportunities and connecting clients with the appropriate technical leaders. 

• Meet or exceed agreed-upon goals for sales activity, qualified pipeline, new clients, booked revenue, win rate, and other performance measures established with BLE leadership. 

Strategic Client & Market Development 

• Develop and maintain strategic relationships with clients and prospects at the organizational and decision-maker level, separate from day-to-day project delivery and project-level client management. 

• Create strategic account plans for priority clients and prospects, including relationship maps, client needs, upcoming opportunities, competitor positioning, and planned next actions. 

• Conduct ongoing market research to identify planned developments, capital programs, public solicitations, industry trends, competitor activity, and emerging opportunities. 

• Monitor public and private sources on a frequent basis for RFPs, RFQs, vendor registrations, prequalification requirements, municipal initiatives, and other indicators of future work. 

• Represent BLE at professional organizations, trade associations, conferences, community events, networking functions, client meetings, and other market-facing activities that strengthen visibility and generate leads. 

• Plan and coordinate client visits, introductions, presentations, lunch-and-learns, and other targeted outreach activities with technical and operational staff as appropriate. 

Opportunity Qualification, Pursuits & Handoff 

• Qualify opportunities based on client need, relationship strength, strategic fit, competitive position, timing, revenue potential, profitability, delivery capacity, and risk. 

• Lead pursuit strategy and go/no-go discussions in coordination with the Charlotte Branch Manager, appropriate Department Manager, technical staff, marketing, and other BLE leaders. 

• Coordinate the sales process from initial lead through selection, including discovery, positioning, teaming, proposal strategy, interview preparation, follow-up, and commercial discussions. 

• Provide client and competitive insight to proposal teams while relying on technical and operational leaders to define scope, fee, schedule, staffing, deliverables, and project risk. 

• Ensure a clear, timely handoff of awarded work to the responsible Department Manager and project team, including client expectations, commitments, decision drivers, relationship history, and follow-up actions. 

• Remain engaged after award at the strategic relationship level to obtain feedback, protect the relationship, and identify future opportunities without assuming responsibility for project execution or routine project communication. 

Pipeline, CRM & Performance Management 

• Maintain complete, timely, and accurate CRM records for organizations, contacts, activities, opportunities, pursuit stages, estimated value, probability, expected award date, and next actions. 

• Build and maintain a healthy, forward-looking pipeline sufficient to support Charlotte's revenue and growth objectives. 

• Prepare regular sales forecasts, activity summaries, pipeline reviews, account updates, and performance reports for the Charlotte Branch Manager and BLE leadership. 

• Track and evaluate lead conversion, pursuit outcomes, win/loss reasons, sales cycle, source of work, and return on business development activities to improve sales effectiveness. 

• Identify stalled opportunities, gaps in market coverage, and risks to forecasted revenue, and develop clear corrective actions. 

Internal Collaboration & Market Alignment 

• Develop a practical understanding of BLE's services, differentiators, experience, geographic reach, and delivery capabilities and translate them into clear client value propositions. 

• Collaborate closely with Charlotte Department Managers and technical professionals to align sales activity with operational capacity, strategic priorities, and appropriate technical expertise. 

• Coordinate with corporate business development and marketing resources to maintain consistent messaging, develop sales materials, support campaigns, and increase BLE's visibility in the Charlotte market. 

• Share relevant client and market intelligence across service lines and offices to support coordinated pursuits and broader firm growth. 

• Represent BLE's C.R.E.S.T. values and uphold the firm's ethical, professional, and risk-management standards in all sales activities and external relationships. 

What Success Looks Like 

First 90 Days | Establish 

• Learn BLE’s services, capabilities, and Charlotte market strategy. 

• Identify priority clients, prospects, and market influencers. 

• Establish key relationships and consistent prospecting cadence. 

• Build an initial qualified pipeline and maintain accurate CRM activity. 

First 6 Months | Build 

• Develop approximately $2.5M to 3M in qualified pipeline opportunities. 

• Conduct 10+ new client meetings per month. 

• Generate 10+ qualified opportunities per month. 

• Establish 20+ meaningful client and market relationships. 

• Maintain a disciplined, visible, and accurately forecasted pipeline. 

• Begin converting targeted relationships into qualified pursuits and awarded work. 

First 12 Months | Deliver 

• Generate $0.75M–$1.25M in new booked revenue. 

• Achieve a 30% to 40%+ pursuit win rate. 

• Develop opportunities across multiple BLE service lines. 

• Demonstrate effective coordination and clean handoff of awarded work to BLE’s technical and project-delivery teams. 

• Maintain accurate forecasting and clear visibility into pipeline, opportunities, and next actions. 

Long-Term | Grow 

• Establish BLE as a recognized and trusted engineering resource in the Charlotte market. 

• Build sustainable, profitable, and repeat business through strategic client relationships and accounts. 

• Increase relationship depth with priority clients, partners, and market influencers. 

• Expand opportunities through cross-selling across BLE’s service lines. 

Work Environment 

This position primarily operates in a professional office and market-facing environment and requires regular in-person work. Frequent local travel to client and prospect meetings, industry events, company offices, and other business development activities is expected, with occasional travel elsewhere in BLE's geographic footprint. 

Why Join Us? 

• Opportunity to play a central role in launching and growing BLE's Charlotte presence within one of the fastest-growing regions in the Southeast. 

• A pure business development and sales position with a clear mandate to build relationships, open new markets, and generate growth. 

• Employee-owned company where individual performance and long-term firm success are closely connected. 

• Established technical resources, multidisciplinary services, and corporate support combined with the opportunity to help shape and execute BLE’s Charlotte market strategy. 

• Collaborative environment with direct access to technical and operational leaders who can support pursuits and deliver the work sold. 

• Competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits package. 

Benefits 

• Medical/Vision/Dental 

• 401(K) with partial company matching. 

• Life Insurance 

• Short/long term disability 

• Paid vacation 

• Paid sick leave. 

• Eight (8) paid holidays. 

• Vehicle allowance (conditions apply)