Job details
Job type full-time
Full job description
Taoti is looking for a director of business development (for a creative agency)
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About the job...*
Our clients have communications needsThey may need to change their reputation on ‘the hill,’ need a new website that communicates their value to members or need to develop leads for their sales teamTaoti has the expertise, creative prowess, and technological acumen to create amazing campaigns, ideas, and solutions that solve our client’s communications challengesWe need another veteran business development leader who can understand our clients’ complex needs and then articulate to them by making the case that we are the perfect partner to solve them.
Our business development process is typically extremely collaborativeDepending on the opportunity, you may work with our technology team to create a technical solution, engage our creative team to ideate spec creative, or team up with our marketing team to refine new brand messagingYour job is to advocate for how these ideas will help this client and then communicate our creative approach or strategy back to the client in a thoughtful and compelling fashion, convincing the client this a savvy method that meets their needs.
You will manage proposals from start to finish, writing and crafting big ideas, win themes, and supporting contentYou will be the face of the agency to clients, engaging and uncovering what they need, you will also bring together pitch teams, back brief them on the client and their needs, and then manage the pitch process so we ‘win it in the room.’
And no, this is not a commissioned position (taoti doesn`t actually have any commissioned positions)Everyone works on fixed salary here since it is so collaborative.
Even though we are 100% working remotely right now because of covid, please note, we are looking for a full time, in-house employee that would have less than a 45-minute commute to our office.
This role will report to the vice president of business development.
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Some boxes to check...*
You`re an excellent writer.
You have 7 - 10 years of business development experience.
You`re an excellent writer.
You have the bruises from bad pitches and scars from proposals that didn’t win.
You love winning new work and thrive in the pressure of winning.
You`re an excellent writer.
You understand the modern communicating environment.
You know the difference between a lead generation campaign and reputation management one — and most importantly why one campaign is better for a client than another.
You can convey the rationale for a particular communication strategy or creative concept to a client — and articulate it in a proposal or in a pitch.
You understand why a creative concept will work or won’t work and provide that feedback internally or to clients.
You`re an excellent writer.
You’re a little bit technical (particularly with regard to web development) and don’t scare easily when faced with jargon you don’t know.
You’re collaborativeYou’re not afraid to get out of your chair and go ask a dev about why a client would want solr and how you should position it in the proposal.
You have established relationships with influential clients, stakeholders, and influencers, with demonstrated ability to develop and foster new relationships.
You have the ability to make sound business decisions and use appropriate judgement.
You’ll provide strategic guidance and actively engage in supporting proposal efforts and mentoring other members on the team.
Did we mention that we`re looking for an excellent writer? our proposals make or break the opportunitySo putting together a compelling proposal is such an important part of the processIt has to be technically thorough, visually stunning, but most importantly, it has to tell a story and make the compelling case that demonstrates to the client how/why taoti is the right firm for the jobThe proposal gets us in the room, and once we`re in the room, we have one of the best win rates in the businessBut you gotta get us in the room, and a big part of that is the proposal that you put together! sure, you have access to the full team to contribute to the proposal (from devs who provide estimates to designers who can sexy-up the layoutBut the bones of the proposal are a big part of what you bring to the table(note: please be prepared to share some of your past proposals with us.)
Is there room for career growth?
That’s one of the best parts about this role, specifically at taotiIn a larger shop, the team structure hierarchy is usually large, layered, and not-so-flexibleOr at a smaller shop, you may have lots of flexibility, but not enough of a team to really benefit from true collaboration (or have enough upward mobility to keep you interested.) taoti is the goldilocks of creative agenciesWe have enough structure so that you understand what the team looks like and where you fit inBut we’re small and agile enough to let employees carve out new roles and niches where it makes sense to do soYour value and career trajectory is not defined by a line or box on an org chartOur teams and roles are constantly evolving as the team grows, so if you want to grow into a role that doesn’t exist, you can help create it! our growth rate alone (targeted at 50% this year) means that the team will keep growing, which means we’ll be hiring additional people across all departmentsAnd our hiring philosophy is all about hiring the next wave of employees that best supports the existing teamIn other words, we grow the team around what we already have—not according to some org chart or spreadsheetSo career paths are not rigid and finiteWe have a history of shaking things up, making rather bold hr moves, and adapting our hiring processes (as well as the roles of our existing employees) in a way that makes strategic sense for the employee and the companySo your career trajectory has far more to do with your own aptitude and initiative than it does with an org chart or who’s above youIn this particular role, you’re already coming into a new role that will start as just you, grow into a team, then maybe a department, eventually a division, etcWe don’t have to explain how the idea of being in on the ground floor of a growing agency’s public sector sales department has a lot of potential upside if you’re successful.
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What’s the corporate culture like?*
“fun but focused,” as one taoti put it, is a great way to sum up our cultureWe’re a fun and casual shopThe kind of place where you can wear whatever, come and go as you please, and have autonomy over your own day for the most partBut we take the work seriously and believe deep in the mission to make meaningful and measurable impacts for our clientsAll the perks and shenanigans and borderline irreverent tone are fun, but to really fit in here, you need to be about the work.
We believe in something we call our “qist culture.” qualityInnovationServiceAnd teamworkWe are always striving to improve these four areas (to the extent that we have a fund of a quarter million dollars per year that anyone can spend from in the interest of going above and beyond towards any of these four values.
We also believe in total transparency and open communication across teams and across ranksInstead of chain-of-command, we want everyone to have and share their own voiceEvery other thursday, the ceo holds ‘cafeclutch’ just so he can hear ideas and feedback directly from the team instead of through the filter of management.
Want to see what life at taoti looks like? check out our instagram or ‘about us’ videoThere’s even a 360 tour of the office.
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What about benefits?*
3 weeks pto for startersYou gain more with tenureAnd if you’re really big in to pto, you can even trade back some salary for more.
Telework options (which work like pto… you accrue days with each paycheckTele days increase with tenure as wellBy your fourth year, we don’t even count them any more.)
100% company-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance(50% for qualifying dependents.) and we have good insurance.
Paid family leave for men and women (including pto plus short and long term disability options.)
3% retirement plan matching (plus access to a financial advisor).
Home buyer help (including a $1200 closing credit)
Mobile phone reimbursement
You can opt for a company-supplied pc or mac laptopOr if you want to use your own, we’ll reimburse you for it.
Charitable contribution matching
Tax-free metro benefits
A sincere respect for work/life balance
Money and time off allocated for professional development (also increases with tenure)
A diverse team hailing from over 15 countries last time we checked
A very hip/cool/funky/quirky office space on barracks row, in the heart of capitol hillJust 2 blocks from the metro! (with the office space doubling in size next year as we build a new building in the parking lot next door to our building.)
Fun perks like a roof deck, wine/beer always on tap, regular company boat outings (boat is walking distance from the office), chill work environment, etc.
No real dress code (within reason, as long as you can be an adult about getting dressed for work)
Annual global retreat (where we bring the whole team together for fun, games, and teamwork)
Of course, the above is a quick listSee the handbook for all the gory details.
A bit more about taoti…
Established in 1996, taoti creative is an independent, full-service creative agency located on capitol hill in washington, dcWe are privately owned and have no corporate overloads.) we do stuff like web development, social media management, branding, experiential marketing, video, ar/vr, etcOur mission is to ‘move the needle’ for our clientsWe leverage technology, creativity, and innovation to generate meaningful and measurable results for our clients—that’s what drives usSpeaking of clients, they’re about 60% non-profits, 20% commercial, and 20% federal governmentSome of our customers include world bank, usaid, dc water, discovery education, american chemical society, jane goodall foundation, and dozens of ‘national association of _____________,’ etcThe best way to talk about our work is to simply show it to you: https://taoti.com/our-work/Our full time team of about 70 employees is about 65% in-house and 35% remoteWe hail from over 15 countriesAnd for the last four years in a row, we’ve made the inc5000 list of fastest growing companies in the united statesThere’s of course plenty of additional information on our websiteIf you’ve not done so already, be sure to check out our culture video: https://vimeo.com/289302105Or if you’re feeling virtual, here’s guided tour of the office in 360 video! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7kkzdmsgtm (warning: not suitable for printers.)
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Our commitment to diversity and inclusion...*
Great ideas happen when diverse perspectives come togetherThose perspectives are taoti’s secret sauceSo building a diverse team and culture where everyone has a voice and is included in the process is not just the right thing to doIt’s good for businessWe’d love your own perspective to add to our mix! we`re eager for new, diverse voices to join the team and sincerely hope people from every walk of life will apply!
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Next steps…*
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Pretty please, no recruiters._*
Job type: full-time
Work location: multiple locations
