Business Development & Partnerships Manager - Eastern Europe (Defence)

About the company

A fast-growing European defence-tech start-up building scalable, intelligent air-defence systems. The team develops low-cost interceptors and mission systems that combine missile-grade performance with modern embedded computing and advanced autonomy, to counter today's drone threats. The company is backed by leading European investors and already flies working systems.

About the role

You will be the company's first commercial hire in Eastern Europe. You will lead its business development and partnerships in Poland first, then the Baltics and Ukraine. The role sits at the meeting point of industrial strategy, defence procurement and international business development. You will work closely with the founders, engineering and public affairs teams, and the founders visit Poland regularly.

What you'll do

Business development and revenue growth

• Define and run the go-to-market plan for Poland and allied defence markets in the region

• Find, qualify and pursue opportunities with the Ministry of National Defence, the Armament Agency, NATO bodies and defence primes

• Lead the full cycle, from first contact to signed contract

• Track procurement plans, tenders and competitors to decide where to focus

Strategic partnerships

• Build and manage partnerships with industrial primes, system integrators, local production partners and technology partners

• Structure teaming agreements, MoUs and joint-venture frameworks

• Represent the company at industry events, defence exhibitions and bilateral meetings

Customers and proposals

• Build tailored value propositions and technical-commercial presentations for key accounts

• Lead bids, RFI/RFP responses and unsolicited proposals

• Build long-term relationships with senior decision-makers, and feed customer needs back into the product roadmap

Market intelligence and planning

• Follow defence budgets, procurement priorities and policy across target markets

• Contribute to annual business planning and revenue forecasts

• Report regularly on pipeline, partnerships and market dynamics to the executive team

What success looks like

• In the first 3 to 6 months: strong relationships with the relevant military, MoD and local production partners

• Within the first year: a first contract worth several million euros

You are a fit if you have

• 7+ years in business development, sales or strategic partnerships in defence, aerospace or dual-use technology

• A strong understanding of Polish and European defence procurement and its customers

• A track record of closing complex, multi-party deals with long sales cycles

• The drive to own a market on your own and build from zero

• Fluent Polish and English, and the right to work in Poland

• A Master's degree in business, engineering, international relations or a related field

Nice to have

• An existing network at the Ministry of National Defence, the Armament Agency, PGZ, WB Group, NATO agencies or major primes

• Knowledge of EU defence funding (EDF, EDA, EDIRPA, SAFE) and offset rules

• Experience in a start-up or high-growth industrial company

• Knowledge of export control (ITAR, EAR, national rules)

• A technical background in systems engineering, missiles, drones or embedded systems

What's on offer

• Competitive base salary plus a meaningful bonus and equity

• Full health coverage

• High autonomy and real impact: you build the company's presence in the region from the ground up

• Work on real systems that fly, at a company shaping a new category in European defence

• Warsaw-based, starting from a co-working space, with regular travel in the region and to headquarters

Hiring process

• Screening call with TechTree

• Deep dive with the founders

• Case study

• Reference calls

• Final on-site meeting with the team