Senior Manager, Business Development

About the Role:

Ovative’s Market Development team brings together business development and marketing to help Ovative grow. We work closely with leaders across media, measurement, commerce, creative, and technology to explain what makes Ovative different and turn that expertise into new client relationships.

We are a collaborative team with high expectations for our work and a shared drive to win. We get to know our prospects and their businesses, ask direct questions, and push each other to bring stronger ideas. We take ownership, move quickly, and care about making the work better together.

As the Senior Manager, Business Development, you will own end-to-end deal strategy for assigned new business opportunities, from discovery and qualification through proposal, negotiation, and close. You will lead both competitive RFP processes and more informal pursuits, bringing in senior BD leadership for guidance on the most complex opportunities and key commercial decisions.

For each assigned opportunity, your role is to learn what the prospect needs, define why Ovative is the right partner, and work with leaders across the business to shape the recommendation, scope, and commercial approach. You own the narrative and lead the team that brings it to life, partnering directly with senior leaders across media, measurement, commerce, creative, technology, and Client Services. Your responsibility is to convert assigned opportunities into signed business, with opportunity sourcing led by other members of the team.

This is a hands-on role for someone who loves the strategy and the work it takes to win. You can lead a room of senior experts, write a sharp executive summary, challenge a generic answer, and keep several pursuits moving at once. You move quickly, make clear recommendations amid ambiguity, and create the conditions for others to do their best work. Success is measured by the annual fee value of signed business and qualified pursuit win rate.

Responsibilities:

• Own the strategy to win. Lead qualification and discovery. Understand the prospect’s business, decision makers, buying criteria, and competitive alternatives. Recommend where to invest our effort and build a clear, differentiated right to win.
• Build the answer and own the story. Translate business needs into an integrated recommendation with practice leaders. Set the storyline and synthesize expert contributions into a persuasive case for choosing Ovative, backed by relevant proof.
• Lead the pursuit team. Bring a prepared starting point, clear roles, and specific asks. Set priorities and decision points, challenge thinking constructively, and resolve competing perspectives. Protect expert time while holding contributors and senior stakeholders accountable. Build the right presenter team, lead purposeful rehearsals, and coach presenters to deliver a cohesive recommendation and prepare for tough questions.
• Get into the work. Write and shape RFIs, RFPs, proposals, and pitch presentations. Partner with content and design teammates to make every response clear, distinctive, accurate, and tailored to the buyer.
• Drive the commercial path to close. Partner with Finance, Legal, Client Services, and practice leaders on scope, staffing, pricing, and negotiations. Make our value clear, protect sustainable economics, and keep next steps moving through signed agreement.
• Make the next pursuit stronger. Keep deal status, risks, and revenue timing current in the CRM. Capture win/loss lessons and reusable proof, and use AI and shared tools to improve speed and quality while protecting confidentiality and checking accuracy. Share practical feedback and help teammates work through challenges on active pursuits.

Requirements:

• 6+ years of relevant professional experience, including direct business development experience in marketing services or advertising technology (adtech). Business development experience in one of these industries is required.
• A demonstrated track record of leading competitive pursuits and closing new business, with clear examples of your ownership, strategic decisions, and results.
• Experience independently leading sales or pitch processes involving multiple decision makers and cross-functional teams, with sound judgment about when to seek senior guidance.
• Strong commercial understanding of marketing services or adtech, with the ability to connect capabilities to client business outcomes and discuss scope, pricing, and value credibly.
• Excellent writing, storytelling, and presentation skills. You can turn complex inputs into a clear recommendation and engage senior buyers with confidence.
• Proven ability to lead through influence, challenge senior stakeholders constructively, and build trust across disciplines.
• Ability to manage simultaneous pursuits at a fast pace, make sound decisions with incomplete information, and deliver high-quality work against tight deadlines.

Preferred:

• Business development experience at a media agency, including competitive agency reviews and integrated pitches.
• Experience with agency search consultants, procurement-led reviews, and complex services agreements.
• Familiarity with full-funnel media, commerce or retail media, creative, marketing measurement, and the role of technology and AI in delivering these services.
• Experience using CRM platforms such as HubSpot and AI tools to improve pursuit research, proposal development, or deal visibility.

Pay Transparency: 

At Ovative, we offer a transparent view into three core components of the total compensation package: Base Salary, Annual Bonus, and Benefits. 

For our Senior Manager positions, including the position of Senior Manager, Business Development our compensation range is from $125,000 to $175,000 on an annualized basis, which is inclusive of an annual bonus opportunity of 25% of base salary.

Working at Ovative Group:

We provide strong, competitive, holistic benefits that understand the importance of your life inside and out of work. 

At Ovative, culture isn’t a buzzword—it’s the reason we’ve been named a Top Workplace for ten years running. We lead with trust, transparency, and a commitment to doing the hard work others avoid.

We offer flexibility. You'll work from our Minneapolis, Chicago, or New York office on set days each week, and an option to work remote on others.

Our open floor plan reflects our open communication and flat structure—where interns collaborate with VPs, analysts partner with senior leaders, and our CEO engages with every team member. Together, we create an environment where smart, driven people can do their best work and support one another in the process. 

We’re equally committed to inclusion and belonging. Ovative fosters a workplace where everyone can participate and thrive—regardless of ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/, gender expression, or other protected class status. Our benefits and policies reflect that commitment, from inclusive medical leave coverage for same-sex spouses to equitable care and support for all families. 

Benefits: 

We strive to hire and retain the best talent by offering fair, competitive compensation, a meaningful bonus program, and excellent health coverage. When the company performs well, we all benefit. 

Some tangible benefits and amenities we enjoy:

• Access to all office spaces in MSP, NYC, and CHI  

• Frequent, paid travel to our Minneapolis headquarters for company events, team events, and in-person collaboration with teams

• Generous paid vacation policy  

• 401k match program  

• Top-notch health insurance options, inclusive of same sex partners 

• Family formation benefits including reimbursement options for fertility, pregnancy, and parenting needs 

• Monthly stipend for your mobile phone and data plan  

• Sabbatical program  

• Charitable giving via our time and a financial match program  

• Shenanigan’s Day  

Additional information can be found at Ovative's Career Page.

The details of the benefits are covered by applicable plan documents for group benefits and by company policies where a plan document does not apply.

Working at Ovative won’t be easy—but if you like challenging, hard work, driving results, and being surrounded by the best talent, it has the potential to be the most rewarding job you’ll ever have. If you think you can make us better, we want to hear from you! 

Application Details and Process:

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States for any employer on a full-time basis, without current or future need for visa sponsorship. Ovative is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa for this position. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification documentation upon hire.

Open Until Filled or Otherwise Withdrawn:

We encourage interested candidates to apply early. The position will remain open for at least 10 business days from the first day of posting. After this time, if the position has not been filled, the posting will remain open until the position is filled, or until the posting is otherwise closed or withdrawn for business reasons.