Business Development Manager Commercial Construction - San Francisco - Cahill Contractors

Description

Business Development Manager Commercial Construction

Cahill Contractors is a majority family- and woman-owned general contractor that specializes in the construction of multi-family residential, education, community, religious, and other commercial projects. With offices in San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, Cahill works throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Now in its fourth generation of family leadership, Cahill has been building lasting relationships and quality structures with integrity since 1911. Cahill serves as a trusted partner to our clients, committed to their success from early in preconstruction through construction and beyond. Our employees take tremendous pride in their work and are consistently guided by Cahill's five core values: Safety, Integrity, Commitment, Collaboration, and Continuous Improvement. Cahill is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

The Business Development Manager is a senior leadership role responsible for driving sustained revenue growth through direct client and consultant engagement. This position requires a seasoned commercial construction professional with deep experience in estimating and project management, combined with a proven ability to independently originate, cultivate, and close work. The successful candidate will bring extensive, existing relationships within local markets, ideally with a focus on community projects, affordable and market-rate housing, senior housing, private schools, healthcare, public higher education, and hospitality markets and will be personally accountable for converting those relationships into awarded projects. This role is not focused on lead generation alone. The Business Development Manager must actively manage the full business development lifecyclefrom relationship strategy and opportunity positioning through proposal development, interview execution, and contract award.

Job duties include, but are not limited to the following:

Strategic Business Development

• Develop and execute market-specific business development strategies aligned with company growth objectives.
• Identify, pursue, and secure new project opportunities through direct engagement with owners, developers, and key consultants.
• Leverage existing relationships to create repeat and negotiated work opportunities.

Client & Consultant Relationship Management

• Establish, maintain, and deepen trusted relationships with clients, architects, engineers, and other industry partners.
• Serve as a primary point of contact for select strategic clients from initial pursuit through project award.
• Proactively position the company for upcoming opportunities by understanding client capital plans, funding cycles, and procurement strategies.

Opportunity Leadership & Closing

• Lead pursuits from initial identification through contract execution, including qualification, positioning, and win strategy development.
• Collaborate closely with estimating, preconstruction, and operations teams to develop competitive, compelling proposals.
• Participate actively in proposal writing, pricing strategy, and interview presentations, in conjunction with Cahill's strong existing marketing team.
• Take direct ownership of closing work (in partnership with senior Cahill leadership), not simply handing off leads to others.

Internal Collaboration & Market Intelligence

• Utilize hands-on experience in estimating and project management to ensure pursuits are realistic, well-scoped, and operationally sound.
• Provide market intelligence and client feedback to executive leadership to inform strategic planning.
• Mentor and collaborate with junior business development or marketing staff as appropriate

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum of 15 years of demonstrated success in commercial construction business development.
• Prior hands-on experience in estimating and project management for a commercial general contractor.
• Proven track record of independently generating, pursuing, and winning work.
• Extensive existing relationships with decision-makers in healthcare, public higher education, hospitality, affordable and market-rate housing, private school, and community project
• Deep understanding of delivery methods including CM at Risk, Design-Build, Design-Bid-Build, and negotiated GMP work.
• Strong financial, contractual, and construction knowledge enabling credible, executive-level client conversations.
• Exceptional communication, presentation, and negotiation skills.

Preferred Attributes:

• Strategic, relationship-driven mindset with a long-term view of client value.
• High level of personal accountability and follow-through.
• Ability to represent a family-owned firm with professionalism, discretion, and credibility.
• Strong alignment with values of safety, integrity, collaboration, commitment, continuous improvement and excellence.

What We Offer:

• Leadership role within a respected, multi-generational company.
• Opportunity to directly shape the company's growth trajectory.
• Competitive compensation package commensurate with experience and performance.
• Long-term career opportunity with a stable, values-driven organization.

Benefits:

• Full-time, direct-hire position located onsite at our office in San Francisco's Financial District.
• Cahill covers 100% of employee premiums for medical, dental, and vision (HMO and PPO options available).
• Multiple coverage options for spouse/partner and family.
• 401(k) with employer match.
• Opportunities for mentorship and professional development within a collaborative team.
• FSA, Wellness Stipend, Commuter Benefits and more.

Physical Requirements:

The physical requirements described herein are representative of those that must be met by the employee, with or without reasonable accommodation, to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee occasionally works in an office or hybrid setting. The employee is required to work in compliance with company safety policies, procedures, and applicable laws. This role will be regularly required to:

• Repetitively use hand motions for keyboard use and physical use of vision to read computer monitors and paper documents.
• Regularly use hands to operate standard office equipment (personal computer, phone, printer, etc.)
• See with close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and have the ability to adjust focus.
• Sit at a desk for prolonged periods of time working on a computer.
• Talk and hear at normal levels. The noise level in the office work environment is usually low to moderate.
• Must be able to lift up to 15 pounds at times.
• Must be able to lift up to 30 pounds occasionally.

The base salary for this exempt role is $175,000-$250,000, depending on experience. Cahill is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.