Business Development Operations Group Manager

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National Renewable Energy Laboratory

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Golden, CO, United States

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Posting Title
Business Development Operations Group Manager
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Location
CO - Golden
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Position Type
Regular
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Hours Per Week
40
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Working at NREL
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for energy systems research and development.
Join the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), where world-class scientists, engineers, and experts are accelerating energy innovation through breakthrough research and systems integration. From our mission to our collaborative culture, NREL stands out in the research community for its commitment to an affordable and secure energy future. Spanning foundational science to applied systems engineering and analysis, we focus on solving complex challenges to deliver advanced, secure, reliable, and cost-effective energy solutions. Our work helps strengthen U.S. industries, support job creation, and promote national economic growth.
At NREL, you’ll find a mission-driven environment supported by state-of-the-art facilities, multidisciplinary research teams, and strong collaborations with industry, academia, and other national laboratories. We offer robust professional development opportunities, and a competitive benefits package designed to support your career and well-being.
Learn about NREL’s critical objectives:
NREL's Mission and Vision
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Job Description
The Business Development (BD) Operations Group Manager will lead a dynamic team of Salesforce developers, administrators, business analysts, and process architects in delivering strategic technology solutions, built primarily on the Salesforce platform, for NREL’s Innovation and Partnerships Office (IPO). This role is pivotal in enhancing the efficiency of internal IPO operations, driving early-stage customer engagement, extracting insights to support decision making, and ensuring solutions align with enterprise goals and DOE/NREL policies. This leader will drive the design, development, and implementation of scalable, secure, and user-centric business systems, anchored by the Salesforce platform and integrated with other technologies. The successful candidate will bring a blend of technical expertise, team leadership, strategic insight, and a passion for innovation and operational excellence.
Specifically, the BD Ops Group Manager will guide the team through:
  • Design, development, and implementation of business solutions and continuous improvements; definition, implementation and exeution of governance methodology for IPO solutions;
  • Providing technical infrastructure and strategy expertise
  • Reporting and analytics to provide strategic insights to guide decision making and planning
They will seek to implement practices that enhance the quality of IPO’s technology solutions while improving the efficiency of internal IPO processes. In addition, the successful candidate will work to ensure IPO’s technology solutions and processes, leverage best practices and meet lab and DOE requirements for information security, backups, data management, and governance.
Job Duties:
Leadership & Team Development
  • Lead, mentor, and inspire a multi-disciplinary team, fostering a culture of continuous learning, agile delivery, and high performance.
  • Provide coaching, performance feedback, and professional development opportunities tailored to each team member.
Technology Strategy & Delivery
  • Oversee architecture, design, development, and support of complex, primarily Salesforce based Salesforce-based solutions and other integrated technologies.
  • Champion scalable and secure application development in alignment with enterprise and DOE standards, including change management, DevOps, testing, and release practices.
  • Apply systems development lifecycle methodologies (Agile, Scrum, or hybrid) to deliver impactful, timely, and user-adopted technology solutions.
Business Engagement & Stakeholder Collaboration
  • Partner with IPO offices including Technology Transfer, Proposal Operations, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and Strategic Partnerships to deliver solutions that align with NREL’s strategy and mission.
  • Guide the team in translating business needs into clear technical requirements and strategic roadmaps.
  • Drive governance practices to prioritize work, manage risk, and align initiatives with lab priorities.
Process Optimization & Innovation
  • Implement continuous improvement initiatives to streamline IPO processes and optimize the use of technology platforms.
  • Lead efforts in leveraging analytics and data to extract actionable insights supporting business development goals.
  • Ensure compliance with DOE and NREL policies related to information security, system controls, data management, and accessibility.
Cross-Functional Leadership
  • Serve as a liaison between IPO and enterprise functions (ITS, OCFO, Communications, etc.) to maximize collaboration and innovation across departments.
  • Build and maintain strong relationships with system owners and business leads to advocate for scalable and maintainable solutions.
Budget and Vendor Management
  • Develop and manage the operating and project budgets related to IPO systems.
  • Oversee vendor relationships, contract negotiations, and software/service evaluations for IPO systems and tools.
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Basic Qualifications
Previous management and budget adherence experience may be required. Degree in appropriate field is required. Demonstrated knowledge of legal and ethical management issues and practices. In-depth knowledge of the issues and best practices in the applicable field of expertise. Generally viewed as subject matter expert for group or work units. Excellent organization, project management, budgeting, interpersonal and communication skills. Proven problem-solving and negotiation skills. Demonstrated ability to make appropriate decisions regarding work activities and projects. Demonstrated ability to effectively lead and direct personnel with diverse skills, work styles and values.
  • Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.
Additional Required Qualifications
Required Education:
  • Relevant master’s degree and 10 or more years of staff/team management and proposal experience or equivalent relevant education/experience.
  • Or, relevant bachelor’s degree and 15 or more years of staff/management and proposal experience or equivalent relevant education/experience.
Required Knowledge, Skills, and Attributes:

  • Proven track record of managing high-performing technical teams including administrators, developers, and analysts.
  • Deep expertise in Salesforce platform architecture, development, and administration (Sales, Experience, and Marketing clouds).
  • Experience implementing governance frameworks, system integration strategies, and data security controls.
  • Advanced understanding and experience applying technology and process solutions to meet business objectives.
  • Strong stakeholder management skills with a demonstrated ability to lead through influence and drive change across an organization.
  • Familiarity with business development processes such as proposals, licensing, and CRM.
  • Strong interpersonal, conflict resolution, teaming, and communication skills.
Preferred Qualifications
  • Experience in R&D or federal lab environments, including knowledge of government security frameworks and compliance (e.g., FedRAMP, ATO).
  • Active Salesforce certifications
  • Understanding of cloud infrastructure, data architecture, and integration platforms (e.g., MuleSoft, AWS, Azure).
  • Exposure to Agile methodologies and tools (e.g., Jira, Confluence) with experience in leading agile delivery teams.
  • Experience managing enterprise software implementations and change management initiatives.
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Job Application Submission Window
The anticipated closing window for application submission is up to 30 days and may be extended as needed.
Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)
Job Profile: Group Manager II / Annual Salary Range: $117,200 - $211,000
NREL takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.
Benefits Summary
Benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; short*- and long-term disability insurance; pension benefits*; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance; personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; paid holidays; and tuition reimbursement*. NREL employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement. Limited-term positions are not eligible for long-term disability or tuition reimbursement.
  • Based on eligibility rules
Badging Requirement
NREL is subject to Department of Energy (DOE) access restrictions. All employees must also be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as required by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12), which includes a favorable background investigation.
Drug Free Workplace
NREL is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace in accordance with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act and complies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal drug.
If you are offered employment at NREL, you must pass a pre-employment drug test prior to commencing employment. Unless prohibited by state or local law, the pre-employment drug test will include marijuana. If you test positive on the pre-employment drug test, your offer of employment may be withdrawn.
Submission Guidelines
Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NREL you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.
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Equal Opportunity Employer
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard basis of age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.
Reasonable Accommodations
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