Director, Business Development – Power & Utilities

Location: Somerset, NJ / Mid-Atlantic Region

Job Type: Full-time

Schedule: Monday through Friday; hybrid and client-facing

Travel: Approximately 30–50% for client meetings, account development, industry events, and other business needs

CARIAN is a purpose-driven, woman-owned consulting and advisory firm dedicated exclusively to the power sector. We partner with leading electric and gas utilities to provide strategic advisory and disciplined execution across program management, business intelligence, and field execution oversight. Guided by integrity, trust, excellence, and accountability, our team helps deliver complex capital programs and build the resilient energy infrastructure that communities depend on.

CARIAN is seeking a Director, Business Development – Power & Utilities to lead strategic account development and new business growth across the electric and gas utility market.

This is a senior, client-facing role within CARIAN's commercial organization, working directly with executive leadership and service-line leaders to expand existing relationships, establish new utility accounts, and strengthen CARIAN's business-development capabilities.

The Director will own a focused portfolio of strategic utility accounts and be responsible for developing account strategies, building senior relationships, identifying client needs and opportunities, navigating procurement pathways, coordinating internal resources, and maintaining momentum from initial introduction through first engagement and account expansion.

Strong candidates may come from utility business development, strategic accounts, engineering or professional services, or from senior utility roles where they developed strong industry relationships and the commercial judgment to apply those relationships to business growth.

• Own and execute business-development strategies for a focused portfolio of priority electric and gas utility accounts
• Expand existing client relationships across additional business units, operating companies, geographies, and service lines
• Develop new relationships with senior utility executives, operating leaders, program leaders, procurement organizations, and other key decision makers
• Build and maintain account plans covering organizational structure, client priorities, capital programs, relationships, procurement pathways, opportunities, competitors, and next actions
• Develop clear pathways from initial relationship to first engagement and from initial engagement to broader account growth
• Maintain consistent follow-through across long-cycle utility relationships and opportunities

• Proactively identify client needs and opportunities rather than relying solely on published RFPs
• Work with CARIAN's executive and service-line leaders to connect client challenges with relevant capabilities across program management, PMO and project controls, field services, advisory, energy efficiency, digital solutions, and related utility services
• Coordinate executive introductions, client meetings, follow-up activity, and pursuit strategy
• Identify appropriate MSA, procurement, contracting, and task-order pathways
• Support go/no-go decisions and commercial strategy for priority pursuits
  
  Help convert successful initial engagements into larger, recurring client relationships
• Help establish and continuously improve CARIAN's account-management, pipeline, CRM, and business-development cadence
• Maintain clear visibility into qualified opportunities, relationship activity, next actions, timing, and account status
• Provide leadership with relevant market intelligence regarding client priorities, capital programs, procurement activity, competitive positioning,…