Head of Business Development Middle East
Shield AI is a U.S. defense-technology company developing AI-powered autonomy software and autonomous aircraft for military and allied operations.
Funding history
Investors
About Shield AI
Shield AI builds Hivemind, an end-to-end AI-pilot and mission-autonomy software platform for resilient operations in GPS- and communications-denied environments, alongside aircraft and simulation products including V-BAT, X-BAT, and Aechelon.
Skills
Candidate Availability
Required and preferred rules are kept separate and reflect the wording in the original posting.
About the Role
You will lead district strategy, sales execution, pipeline development, and market expansion across the Middle East, excluding Saudi Arabia. You will engage senior stakeholders, coordinate business development leads and cross-functional partners, manage quotas and active opportunities, develop partnerships, and mitigate operational, procurement, political, and strategic risks.
Requirements
- 10+ years of experience in defence, military operations, business development, capture management, or international government relations
- Technical and operational understanding of V-BAT, Hivemind, and X-BAT
- Experience across international defence, aerospace, or national security markets
- Experience leading distributed cross-functional teams
- Experience engaging senior military, government, embassy, CENTCOM, GCC, and industry stakeholders
- Track record in pipeline development, capture strategy, and closing high-value defence opportunities
- Arabic and English proficiency
Responsibilities
- Serve as the senior district representative across the Middle East
- Develop and execute a unified district strategy across CENTCOM, the GCC excluding Saudi Arabia, and bilateral frameworks
- Own district quota, pipeline development, forecasting, order intake, and opportunity execution
- Direct and coordinate Country Business Development Leads
- Grow business across the product portfolio
- Coordinate cross-functional teams to support capture, execution, and customer outcomes
- Manage active district opportunities and customer satisfaction
- Build a data-driven pipeline and stakeholder engagement strategy
- Develop district partnerships, resellers, and industry relationships
- Identify and mitigate district risks