Business Development Manager - Defence

From mission critical to critical care, Hydrix creates products that transform.

Hydrix (ASX: HYD) is an entrepreneurial ASX listed company based in Melbourne, consisting of Hydrix Services: a product design and engineering design services group, Hydrix Medical: cardiovascular medical device distribution and Hydrix Ventures: investment in strategic product development start-ups with potential for growth.

Hydrix Services is a product development and engineering services company specialising in complex, regulated, and mission‑critical systems across medical devices, defence and industrial applications.

We partner with startups, SMEs, and established organisations to design, develop, and industrialise high‑impact products — combining deep engineering capability with disciplined development processes and strong delivery culture.

The Business Development Manager is responsible for building and converting new business opportunities across the Australian Defence sector, with a primary focus on selling complex engineering and product development services. This is a hands‑on, consultative role suited to an individual with strong technical credibility who can bridge engineering, commercial, and executive stakeholders. The role balances near‑term revenue generation with longer‑cycle opportunity development. The position is ideal for someone who is ready to help drive business growth by owning meaningful accounts, opportunities, and stakeholder relationships, with a clear pathway to senior leadership.

• Build and manage senior‑level client relationships within the defence sector. Own these relationships from early engagement through to contract execution, by gaining a clear understanding of their technical needs, business needs and commercial constraints.
• Build and manage a pipeline of defence and national‑security‑adjacent engineering programmes for Hydrix’s development services, through inbound/outbound sales and marketing efforts and travelling to client forums, industry events and conferences.
• Lead consultative sales discussions focused on capability, risk reduction, and long‑term value, not commodity pricing.
• Work closely with internal delivery teams to define and execute win strategies.
• Maintain and update company CRM data to ensure key customer /client information on leads, prospects, qualified opportunities and client profiles are available and current.
• Report on the progress of business development opportunities, conversion strategies and their conversion status.
• Support relationship development with defence primes and SMEs.
• Act as a trusted technical / commercial advisor to clients during the sales cycle.
• Position Hydrix as a credible Australian engineering partner, including sovereign capability narratives where relevant.
• Communicate Hydrix’s differentiated value in sovereign engineering services provided.
• Translate client technical challenges into clear scope and value propositions.
• Participate in discussions involving engineers, CTOs, Chief Engineers, program managers, and procurement stakeholders.
• Work closely with internal engineering and program management teams to shape client engagements, assess opportunity fit, define project win strategies and shape high quality proposals.
• No formal security clearance required.

• Support relationship development with defence primes and SMEs.
• Act as a trusted technical / commercial advisor to clients during the sales cycle.
• Position Hydrix as a credible Australian engineering partner, including sovereign capability narratives where relevant.
• Communicate Hydrix’s differentiated value in sovereign engineering services provided.
• Translate client technical challenges into clear scope and value propositions.
• Participate in discussions involving engineers, CTOs, Chief Engineers, program managers, and procurement stakeholders.
• Work closely with internal engineering and program management teams to shape client engagements, assess opportunity fit, define project win strategies and shape high quality proposals.
• No formal security clearance required.

• Engineering degree.
• 7–15 years overall experience in a regulated environment such as defence, aerospace, or industrial systems.
• A strong technical foundation, and
• Progression into business development roles.
• Exposure to defence SMEs, defence primes, or government‑adjacent organisations in Australia.
• Demonstrated experience selling complex engineering / development services (not commoditised products).
• Ability to cultivate key relationships (prioritisation of short- and long‑term relationships).
• Proven ability to engage credibly with senior technical and executive stakeholders.
• Strong consultative selling skills and comfort operating in ambiguous, early‑stage opportunity environments.
• High degree of personal integrity, discretion, and reliability.
• Team player able to work collaboratively to find win‑win solutions for Hydrix and clients.
• Experience selling into regulated environments such as defence, aerospace, or industrial systems.
• Experience within a product development consultancy, engineering services firm, or regulated technology services provider similar to Hydrix Services.
• Understanding of Australian industry, innovation, and sovereign capability considerations.
• Background engaging with startups, scale‑ups and well established firms.

• Experience selling into regulated environments such as defence, aerospace, or industrial systems.
• Experience within a product development consultancy, engineering services firm, or regulated technology services provider similar to Hydrix Services.
• Understanding of Australian industry, innovation, and sovereign capability considerations.
• Background engaging with startups, scale‑ups and well established firms.