Director of Business Development - Civil Space

About the Role

Odyssey Space Research (Odyssey) is seeking a Director of Business Development to own growth in the Civil Space and related commercial space markets. Headquartered in Houston, Odyssey has grown every year for more than two decades into a product and engineering firm of roughly 200 people supporting space mission programs.

The Director identifies, shapes, and captures new business across NASA, other civil agencies, related commercial space companies, and related prime contractor teaming partners. This person leads capture on all qualified opportunities and oversees proposal management from RFP release through submission.

This is a hands-on role with no direct reports (an individual contributor). The Director is expected to personally build relationships, develop win strategies, and drive captures. The position reports to the Chief Growth Officer and works closely with Odyssey’s engineering leadership and subject matter experts to translate technical capability into winning solutions. Supports BD and Capture within other markets as corporate priorities dictate.

Key Responsibilities

Business Development

• Build and manage a qualified pipeline across NASA (Johnson Space Center and other centers), other civil agencies (e.g., Other NASA Centers, NOAA, FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation), and related commercial space companies.

• Develop and maintain relationships with government program offices, contracting officers, commercial space leaders, and prime contractors.

• Identify and position Odyssey on opportunities early, including recompetes, new starts, SBIR/STTR, and commercial partnerships.

• Shape requirements through customer engagement, RFI and Sources Sought responses, and industry days.

• Run bid/no-bid evaluations and present opportunity qualification to leadership.

• Track market trends, budgets, procurement forecasts, and competitor activity across the civil and commercial space sectors.

• Attend selected conferences and industry events to promote Odyssey and identify opportunities.

Capture Management

• Lead capture on all qualified Civil Space and related commercial opportunities.

• Develop win strategies, customer hot buttons, discriminators, and price-to-win inputs.

• Identify, evaluate, and negotiate teaming arrangements with primes and subcontractors, including teaming agreements, product deployment opportunities, and workshare.

• Coordinate solution development with Odyssey engineering leads and subject matter experts.

• Lead capture gate reviews and keep leadership informed of pipeline status.

Proposal Oversight

• Oversee proposal management from RFP release through submission, including schedule, compliance, and color team reviews.

• Direct internal contributors and outside proposal support as needed.

• Contribute to key proposal sections such as executive summaries, win themes, and management approach.

• Ensure proposals are compliant, compelling, and submitted on time.

• Lead post-submission activities, including evaluation notice responses, orals preparation, and debriefs.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree.

• 8+ years of experience in business development and/or capture management in the government or space market.

• Demonstrated record of preparing competitive federal contracts as a capture lead.

• Experience overseeing proposals from RFP release through submission.

• Working knowledge of the FAR and federal acquisition processes.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including briefing senior customers and executives.

• U.S. citizenship and the ability to obtain and maintain a Secret clearance.

• Ability to work on-site in Houston, TX, and travel approximately 25%.

Preferred

• Experience with NASA contract vehicles and procurements (e.g., NASA SEWP, center-level recompetes, SBIR/STTR) and GSA vehicles used by NASA.

• Established relationships within NASA and the commercial space industry.

• Shipley and/or APMP certification.

What Success Looks Like

• A qualified, growing Civil Space and commercial pipeline with clear capture plans for priority pursuits.

• Strong customer relationships across NASA centers, civil agencies, and commercial space companies.

• Teaming relationships with primes and partners that position Odyssey to win.

• Compliant, high-quality proposals delivered on schedule, with improving win rates.

This position requires access to information subject to U.S. export control regulations (ITAR/EAR); U.S. citizenship is required.