Research And Development Design Engineer Jobs in Lafayette, LA

UNITY TACTICAL®

International Markets

Company: UNITY Tactical®

Location: Europe/MENA/APAC (remote / home-office based); U.S.-based candidates with exceptional international experience and relationships will be considered. International travel required.

Department: Business Development / Sales

Reports To: Vice President Global Sales and Business Development

Employment Type: Full-Time - Salaried (non-commission)

UNITY Tactical® is seeking a talented, proven, and driven business development professional to join our team as Director of Sales & Business Development for International Markets. This is a true business development and sales role, focused on driving demand generation, organic growth, and new business capture across international markets.

Success in this role is measured by sustainable, organic growth, built through genuine end-user engagement, deep relationships with foreign program offices and procurement organizations, and strong distributor, dealer, and OEM partnerships.

The ideal candidate is passionate about driving innovation and hungry to lead global growth and strategic partnerships. Operating with a high degree of autonomy, you will pursue and win large military, government, and key international opportunities while cultivating trusted relationships with end users, foreign program offices, existing partners, distributors, and OEM partners in direct support of strategic business goals.

In this role, you will bridge the gap between end-user requirements and product development-collaborating directly with our engineering team through prototyping, testing, and design reviews. You will also evaluate partner performance, manage distributor communication, and effectively align internal cross-functional teams with international market opportunities.

We seek and hire mature, confident, friendly, fun individuals who are intelligent, driven leaders for long-term employment and commitment. We also look for individuals with a passion for innovation who are committed to continuous learning to grow their professional experience and to further the business and the team. The ideal candidate is self-motivated, enthusiastic, detail-oriented and collaborative with an unyielding commitment to excellence.

• Drive organic, new-business growth through proactive, direct engagement with end users, foreign program offices, dealers, distributors, and OEM partners - creating demand and capturing new programs and tenders across the portfolio.
• Develop and execute comprehensive business development strategies for opportunity roadmaps and implement the plans and actions to support and grow company objectives, revenue, and growth targets.
• Identify, evaluate, and pursue new market opportunities, customers, partnerships, and client relationships that grow and enhance the company's strategic goals through analysis, research, communication, and regular interaction with team members, partners, and customers.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key end users, clients, stakeholders, foreign program offices/units, ministries of defense and interior, and industry partners.
• Identify effective solutions that balance the needs of the various partners, distributors, dealers, and customers with a constant focus on value and user experience.
• Gather hard and soft data from all available sources and use it to support proposals, funding, projects, program support, and dealer/customer requests and requirements.
• Gather, organize, and assemble tender data and requirements to compete for and win international business with company products.
• Author and develop internal and external company data and material to support international partner, distributor, dealer, and customer opportunities.
• Develop, provide, and deliver briefings, instruction, and written and oral briefs on UNITY® products as assigned.
• Provide timely assistance to international partners, distributors, and dealers in support of quotation, updates, pricing, product specification data, and order activities.
• Coordinate with internal compliance resources to ensure all international opportunities, quotations, demonstrations, and shipments are pursued in full accordance with U.S. export control regulations (ITAR/EAR) and applicable licensing requirements.
• Provide support to cross-functional teams - including operations, engineering, business development, marketing communications, and customer service - pertaining to international business.
• Lead and participate in internal and external meetings with company teams, departments, distributors, dealers, program offices, government agencies, and end-user customers.
• Conduct market research and competitive analysis to identify regional trends, risks, and opportunities; conduct regional market surveillance to research current trends, identify competitor positioning, pricing strategies, and emerging industry trends and present competitive data to establish key objectives for the brand.
• Negotiate contracts, distribution agreements, partnerships, and deals to secure favorable terms for the company.
• Work with engineering and client requirements through the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) and Critical Design Review (CDR) process.
• Track and report on business development metrics, pipeline, and ROI across international markets.
• Represent the company at international and domestic industry events, tradeshows, conferences, and networking functions.
• Develop deep knowledge and understanding of the UNITY Tactical® brand, its business operations, products, and customer base.
• Consistently over-communicate with team members and partners while applying strong project management skills with the ability to work on a deadline.

• Proven, quantifiable track record of driving revenue growth, capturing new international business, and securing high-value partnerships (with supportive metrics).
• Minimum five (5) years of defense-industry experience across product sales, business development, and program management, with substantial international exposure (or relevant military/law enforcement experience yielding a strong understanding of government procurement).
• Bachelor's degree, or equivalent military / technical / professional work experience.
• Defense, law enforcement, aerospace, and/or outdoor-industry product application and experience.
• Experience in and strong understanding of international defense programs, funding, tender processes, and governmental procurement within NATO and allied/partner nations.
• Working knowledge of U.S. export control frameworks (ITAR/EAR), Foreign Military Sales (FMS), and Direct Commercial Sales (DCS) pathways as they apply to international opportunities.
• Experience initiating, communicating, directing, and developing international distributor and dealer networks.
• Proficiency with word processing, Microsoft Teams, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Ability to travel as required, including frequent international travel; valid passport and ability to travel abroad without restriction.

• Proficiency and operational experience with small arms and heavy weapons systems.Experience working for or with U.S. and international manufacturing companies.
• Established relationships with foreign end users, program offices, and distributors in key allied markets.
• Foreign language proficiency and/or demonstrated cross-cultural business experience.
• Understanding of quality-control best practices at a basic level.

• True business development / "hunter" mentality - results-oriented with a relentless focus on organic revenue growth.
• Strategic thinking and planning.
• Relationship building and stakeholder management with end users, foreign program offices, distributors, dealers, and OEM partners.
• Negotiation and deal-closing skills.
• Cross-cultural awareness and the ability to build trust and conduct business effectively across regions, customs, and time zones.
• Ability to challenge the status quo and innovate new, modern, and efficient ways to do things.
• Resourcefulness and effective verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to capture new business and clearly articulate pros and cons through verbal and written correspondence that directly contributes to company decision-making processes.
• Strong interpersonal skills, professional relationship-building ability, and a positive social demeanor.
• Big-picture, analytical thinker with the grit to execute initiatives with minimal supervision.
• Proven ability for genuine listening and effective discernment of client needs and desired outcomes.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a team setting as well as independently.
• Initiative-taking with the ability to effectively multi-task in a deadline-driven atmosphere.
• Eye for detail - no detail is too small or insignificant.
• Strong analytical and critical-thinking skills, with an eagerness to learn and accept challenges.

UNITY Tactical® is an equal opportunity employer.