The expansive and ever-changing government contracting landscape requires esteemed experts to advance various mission portfolios and nurture partnerships between the federal and private sectors. At the helm of these initiatives are business development executives overseeing smooth business operations. They also take charge in cultivating existing customer relationships, and promoting existing and new offerings to expand business reach.
What do business development executives do?
The primary responsibilities of business development executives include driving growth profiles, increasing sales, and acquiring new customers. Add to that, they must be good at convincing existing customers to purchase new products and services. Business development executives are at the helm of decision-making, nurturing customer relationships, and forming long-term strategies to sustain their companies’ longevity and profitability.
7 Key Business Development Executives in 2023
Note: The following list of business development executives is ranked in no particular order. The selection criteria are based on a variety of factors, including experience, accomplishments, and overall industry impact. That said, while they are highly regarded in the industry, plenty of other executives are exceptional and influential.
Joshua Stinson, Chief Growth Officer at Edge Autonomy
Joshua Stinson joined Edge Autonomy in March 2021 as SVP, then assumed the role of Chief Growth Officer the following year. He leverages over 20 years of experience in investments, sales, warfare analysis, national intelligence, and corporate growth. Among his accomplishments as CGO is Edge Autonomy’s partnership with the US Army to build and deliver uncrewed aerial vehicles.
Under the Joint effort, the company will develop a roster of uncrewed, remote-controlled aircraft, fully integrated and adaptable to customer needs, and equipped with a turnkey mechanism–allowing continuous flights of over 20 hours. Stinson highlighted that this is a testament to Edge Autonomy’s commitment to cater to U.S. Army customers while bolstering defense and honoring deep military history.
Before joining the team, he took on business development executive roles at notable companies such as Dresdner Bank, SRA International, and CACI International among others. He also worked for federal government agencies such as the Army Special Forces-Airborne Division and the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA).
Image from LinkedIn
Jimmy Zinter, Senior Director of ISR and Digital Solutions, Cubic Digital Intelligence
Jimmy Zinter is a distinguished leader in the public and private sectors. He has a wealth of experience in business development, ISR programs, imagery analysis, and operations and integration synchronization. He gained most of his valuable experiences during his tenure at the US Air Force, which lasted 20 years, and at Pixia Corporation, which lasted 12 years.
Zinter joined Cubic Digital Intelligence in May 2022 as the current Senior Director of ISR and Digital Solutions. He brings in his extensive experience to propel Cubic’s growth portfolios on intelligence analysis, analytical skills, and federal government intelligence and tactics.
Besides Pixia and the US Air Force, Zinter took on leadership roles at SRA International and BAE Systems. he holds a bachelor’s degree in Management of Technical Operations from Embry-Riddle Aeronautics University and a Master’s in Business Administration from the Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University.
Baris Yener, Chief Growth Officer of the Public Sector Group at ICF
Baris Yener, a seasoned leader in market strategy and business development, has a track record in propelling transformational efforts and achieving sustainable growth. His first position was SVP of Mission Services and Technology Solutions where he spearheaded market strategy, consortium-building efforts, level marketing, and branding strategies.
Yener had been a crucial part of ICF’s business development portfolio since May 2018. He led teams of other business development executives and focused on driving growth through innovation and market leadership. He carried these responsibilities over to his current position as CGO leading ICF’s Public Sector Group.
As highlighted by Executive Vice President of the Public Sector Mark Lee, Yener epitomizes ICF’s values in delivering the company’s unique combination of deep domain expertise and technology prowess to federal civilian agencies and customers. His role is seminal in helping current and future clients position their enterprises to better heights and providing significant impact on communities.
Daryle Wingerter, Senior Vice President, Business Development & Strategy Defense at Leidos
Daryle Wingerter is a seasoned executive with more than a decade of experience in the business development realm. He joined Leidos in July 2018 and has been serving as its Senior Vice President of Business Development and Strategy Defense.
Under Wingerter’s purview are building business development teams, winning new contracts that expand business reach, and effective communication with customers. He applies his extensive professional experience to lead strategic planning portfolios, aggressively set business goals to bolster pipeline opportunities, and foster corporate and capture strategies.
Before joining Leidos, Wingerter assumed leadership roles at The Centech Group Inc. and BAE Systems. There, he developed his expertise in driving enterprise growth for portfolios in homeland security, strategy defense, and strategic capture.
Chris Townsend, Vice President of Public Sector Sales at Elastic
Chris Townsend is the current Vice President of Public Sector Sales at American-Dutch company, Elastic. It specializes in self-managed and Software-as-a-Services (SaaS) offerings for search, logging, security, observability, analytical, and cloud computing purposes. In a span of 20 years, its technology has been utilized by notable enterprises such as eBay, Netflix, Uber, Lyft, among others.
One pivotal moment for Elastic and Townsend’s career is the company’s affiliation with the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC). JCDC is run by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). In an April 2023 blog post, Townsend wrote the partnership of the JCDC and Elastic Security Labs will work together to remove data silos and streamline data-sharing capabilities.
This will identify and track malicious content and combine cutting-edge industry and government efforts to fight cyber threats. He mentioned that this joint effort will sustain a public-private partnership to help customers stay ahead in identifying and mitigating cyber vulnerabilities and dangers.
Sean Thompson, Chief Growth Officer at J&J Worldwide Services
Sean Thompson is a distinguished business development executive who brings nearly 30 years of experience in propelling growth portfolios. He is expected to draw in millions worth of revenue and foster customer relationships with private enterprises as well as federal government agencies.
Assuming the role of Chief Growth Officer at J&J Worldwide Services in January 2023, his main responsibilities include driving expansion strategies, implementing business development processes, and restructuring and building sales teams. He will also take on developing growth-focused leadership and fostering a culture of success and innovation.
Prior to joining J&J Worldwide, Thompson served as Chief Growth Officer at IDEMIA North America. Among his accomplishments include accelerating growth while streamlining headcount by 24% and significantly boosting New Business Total Contract Value from $10 million in 2019 to an estimated $22 million in 2022. Additionally, Thompson gained valuable experience as a business development executive from his previous positions at UniSys, iGov, and Sotera Defense Solutions.
Trey Theimer, Chief Growth Officer at DMI
Trey Theimer took the reins of Digital Management LLC’s business development division as Chief Growth Officer in June 2022. In this role, she oversees the development of the company’s growth strategy and the implementation of sales and marketing efforts. These initiatives bolster DMI’s current growth trajectory and its position as a leading enterprise in digital services.
The organization relies on Theimer’s more than 20 years of experience in promoting business growth strategies, developing strategy programs, and nurturing client relationships. All these emphasize public sector clients from the homeland security and strategy defense domains.
CEO Jay Sunny Bajaj praised Theimer for being a results-oriented leader with the acumen and expertise to lead winning capture strategies that deliver superior client satisfaction. He added that her appointment as DMI’s Chief Growth Officer will expand the impact of the company’s growth investments and the value they bring customers across different industries.