International Business Development Manager

International Business Development Manager

Location: Brétigny-sur-Orge, France – On site

Mission

As International Business Development Manager at Rift, you will open and structure new markets across Europe and selected export countries. You’ll build the ecosystem (end-users, ministries, armed forces, critical infrastructure operators, primes/integrators/partners) and turn it into contracts and repeatable growth. Your objective is to create qualified international opportunities, shape deals upstream, secure reference deployments, and lay the foundations for scalable export sales.

What you’ll do

• Market entry & territory planning — Pick target countries, map stakeholders and buying centers, build an entry plan (accounts, partners, events, timelines), and keep it brutally prioritized.
• International pipeline generation — Open doors, run discovery, qualify use cases, and build multi-stakeholder deals from scratch in new geographies.
• Partner development (primes / integrators / channel) — Identify, sign, and activate strategic partners (teaming, joint offer, co-selling). Build win-win motions that unlock access to programs and tenders.
• Capture & deal shaping (upstream influence) — Work early to influence requirements, define pilot scopes, secure sponsorship, and create a path to budget and procurement.
• Bid & proposal strategy (when relevant) — Lead bid/no-bid decisions, teaming strategy, and proposal orchestration. You don’t just “answer RFPs” — you shape the win plan.
• Complex sales execution — Drive long-cycle institutional deals involving pilots, multiple stakeholders, security constraints, and complex decision processes.
• Government & ecosystem relations — Build relationships across defense/security/public-sector networks internationally (including events, local advisors, and in-country ecosystems).
• Product collaboration — Be the voice of the field. Work closely with the CEO and technical team to sharpen positioning, packaging, and the “why now” per country/use case.
• Operational rigor — Own CRM hygiene, pipeline reviews, forecasting, and reporting. If it’s not in the CRM, it doesn’t exist.

What we’re looking for

• 5+ years in international BD / strategic sales in defense, security, aerospace, critical infrastructure, or adjacent complex B2G/B2B2G.
• You’ve opened new markets (not just expanded existing ones) and can show concrete outcomes (pipeline → pilots → contracts).
• Strong experience with partner-led motions (primes/integrators/channel): agreements, joint offers, co-selling, and bid teaming.
• Comfortable with complex stakeholder environments and long cycles; you can drive clarity through ambiguity.
• Procurement/tender experience is a plus, but not the core of your identity.
• Strong writing + executive communication in English. French is a plus. Additional languages are welcome.

Don’t worry if your profile doesn’t match every point—if this mission feels right, we’d like to hear from you.

How we work

• Boldness is encouraged, we’d rather break the rules than follow them blindly.
• We share both successes and failures openly: learning fast means failing fast.
• We value initiative, agility, and ownership. Everyone is encouraged to take the lead and help move things forward.
• We care personally and challenge directly: honest feedback early and often, without ego.

Hiring process

• Introductory call – Get to know each other, motivations, overall fit.
• Technical interview – Case study or hands-on scenario.
• Final interview – Meet the team & founders.
• Reference check – Quick call with a former manager or colleague.

Who we are

Rift is building the first European long-range drone network to protect borders, critical infrastructure, and territories. Our mission is to make real-time aerial intelligence accessible, anywhere, anytime.

We design, build, and operate a fleet of fixed-wing drones deployed through autonomous ground stations. Each drone covers hundreds of kilometers per flight and is fully remote-controlled from our operations center, delivering live intelligence to security forces in crisis situations.

Rift is entering a phase of industrialization and large-scale deployment. We\'re looking for talented, self-driven individuals who want to make an impact, people ready to help build a strategic tech company that strengthens Europe’s security, sovereignty, and resilience in the face of tomorrow’s threats.

Interested in this opportunity? Apply now