Senior Business Development Manager

Location: Chicago, IL

Office: 3 days/week in South Loop office

Reports to: Chief Business Officer

Salary Range: $106,000-$120,700 base + commission & equity

About Tavern Research

Tavern Research is a political tech startup building tools and insights to help our customers win elections and make better, evidence-based decisions. We specialize in scaling expert human work, such as content generation and survey research to support thoughtful, data-driven civic engagement. We're a venture-backed, mission driven, fast-moving, and mostly technical team focused on supporting campaigns and organizations working to strengthen democratic participation. Everything else is on our website. If you still have questions, let us know when you apply!

About You

You’re excited to help organizations solve real problems and drive meaningful outcomes. You’re comfortable owning outbound pipeline development and running sales cycles for defined-scope engagements, while partnering closely with senior stakeholders on more complex opportunities.

You may have experience in political campaigns or advocacy, or you’re eager to quickly build that understanding and apply it in a fast-moving environment.

You are a Tavern employee, which means you tinker, experiment, and continuously improve how you work. You are curious about new tools and technology, actively refine your process, and adapt quickly as markets shift.

About the role

The Senior Business Development Manager is responsible for building and converting pipeline, owning smaller deal cycles end-to-end, and strengthening the operational foundation of Tavern’s sales function.

This role sits at the center of our commercial engine, ensuring Principals can focus on high-impact strategy while pipeline and deal execution continue to move forward. You will generate and qualify opportunities, run defined-scope deals independently, and partner closely with Principals on larger, more complex engagements. Your work ensures that senior team members can stay focused on high-impact strategy while deals continue to move forward efficiently.

You will be expected to learn from every interaction and continuously improve how you source, position, and close work.

Responsibilities

Sales Execution

• Own the full sales cycle for defined-scope engagements, from prospecting through close
• Partner with Principals on larger or more complex opportunities, ensuring clean handoffs and strong coordination
• Conduct consultative discovery and translate client needs into the right Tavern solution
• Develop fluency in Tavern’s methodology to confidently address client questions
• Consistently meet or exceed pipeline and revenue targets
• Identify expansion opportunities and partner with Principals to execute

Pipeline Development

• Build relationships across campaigns, PACs, agencies, and advocacy organizations
• Generate high-quality pipeline through outbound outreach, networking, and industry engagement
• Cultivate partners and consultants to drive warm introductions
• Qualify inbound leads and convert interest into opportunities
• Represent Tavern at industry events and within the political tech ecosystem

Sales Operations & Collaboration

• Serve as a key connector between Principals and active pipeline, ensuring visibility, momentum, and strong communication
• Maintain accurate CRM records and sales forecasts
• Participate in pipeline reviews and revenue planning
• Support proposal development, RFP responses, and contract preparation
• Coordinate contract execution and approvals with the CBO
• Capture client feedback to inform product and positioning
• Ensure smooth handoff to Client Delivery after close

Qualifications

• 3 to 5 years of experience in political campaigns, advocacy organizations, political tech, or related B2B sales environments
• Strong understanding of the political ecosystem and a desire to support Democratic campaigns and organizations
• Experience generating pipeline and managing sales cycles for defined-scope or mid-complexity deals
• Strong communication skills with the ability to engage senior stakeholders
• Ability to quickly learn and explain technical concepts
• Highly self-directed with strong organizational discipline
• Comfortable operating in a fast-moving, early-stage environment

Preferred experience: Track record of hitting pipeline or revenue targets in a consultative environment, experience in polling, paid media, campaign operations, or digital advertising

Benefits

• Premium health insurance
• Unlimited PTO
• Office closed for all federal holidays
• 401k match
• Equity

Tavern Research is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.