Director of Business Development – DACH

Rain

Director of Business Development spearheading Rainmaker's DACH expansion in cloud seeding. Build relationships and strategies within Germany, Austria, and Switzerland for innovative water solutions.

Posted 6/26/2026full-timeZurich • 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLead💰 CHF 120,000 - CHF 240,000 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Build Rainmaker’s go-to-market and account strategy for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, owning every deal from qualification to signature
Build trusted relationships at federal, state, cantonal, and local levels, including water and agriculture ministries, meteorological services (MeteoSwiss, DWD, GeoSphere Austria), hail defense associations, agricultural insurers, ski resorts, and alpine hydropower operators
Map the EU and national funding landscape with our Brussels advisors, spanning research, agriculture, and climate adaptation instruments, and make the call on which are worth our time
Coordinate with Rainmaker’s international teams to establish the Swiss hub and direct the region’s regulatory and legal workstreams, including entity formation and UAV airspace access with national aviation authorities under EASA frameworks
Hire and lead the team that follows you, and build the playbooks the rest of Europe reuses
Represent Rainmaker in ministerial meetings, industry forums, and media across the region

Requirements

What you’ll need

10+ years across business development, government affairs, commercial sales, or strategy, with material experience in both public-sector and fast-growing commercial settings
Professional fluency in German and English. French or Italian is a strong plus given the linguistic range of the Swiss hub
Strong existing industry and trade association relationships across one or more of Rainmaker’s adjacent sectors: water, agriculture, insurance, energy, environment, airspace or infrastructure
Track record of building something from zero: first deals, first regulatory clearances, first contracts in a new market or category
Comfortable operating at both strategic and operational altitude. You can write the market entry thesis on Monday and run the negotiation on Friday
Proven public communicator: panels, high-level roundtables, and on-record national media
High tolerance for ambiguity and willingness to travel frequently across the region, to Brussels, and to the U.S.

Benefits

Comp & perks

Annual base salary of CHF 120,000–160,000 with an annual performance bonus tied to company and individual objectives
Total target compensation is CHF 190,000–240,000
Equity participation and benefits included
Final structure will follow Swiss employment law and market practice, including any applicable 13th-month salary arrangement.

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

business developmentgovernment affairscommercial salesstrategyregulatory clearancesmarket entry thesisnegotiation

Soft Skills

relationship buildingpublic communicationleadershipstrategic thinkingoperational managementtolerance for ambiguity