Commercial Lead

About the Role A fast-moving, seed-stage robotics company building rugged, multi-mission Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) for hazardous environments — including emergency response, industrial operations, and defense — is hiring its first Commercial Lead . This is a foundational GTM hire working directly alongside the CEO to accelerate sales, land strategic partnerships, and shape how the company scales across private industry, municipal agencies, and defense customers. If you thrive in zero-to-one commercial environments, are energized by complex multi-stakeholder deals, and want meaningful ownership over go-to-market strategy at a technically differentiated hardware company, this role is for you. Visa sponsorship is available. What You'll Do Co-own top- and mid-funnel sales motions with the CEO, driving pipeline from outreach through close. Lead discovery, outreach, and field demos across industrial, municipal, and defense customers. Manage early accounts and support pilots, deployments, and renewals; convert early wins into multi-site, multi-year agreements. Build and manage relationships with municipal fire & police departments, distribution partners, and defense integrators. Use tools such as Clay, Hunter, and Apollo to build, enrich, and source leads. Track all touchpoints, follow-ups, and stakeholder progress in CRM (HubSpot/Notion). Write proposals for RFPs, RFIs, and government grants; research government and end-user needs by engaging with program managers. Identify champions, influencers, and decision-makers across complex organizations. Conduct market research and develop tailored value propositions based on buyer priorities and technical fit. Improve GTM workflows: CRM structure, sales playbooks, partner documentation, and pricing models. Collaborate cross-functionally with engineering, product, and ops to translate customer needs into product priorities. Coordinate logistics for trade shows, pilots, and field demo events. Contribute to product-market fit iterations and segment prioritization. Partner with the CEO on long-term GTM strategy and direction. What We're Looking For Must-haves: 5+ years of B2B enterprise sales experience driving go-to-market initiatives for complex solutions in robotics, industrial hardware, or closely related sectors. Proven track record selling to private industry, municipal agencies, and/or defense programs, with experience managing long, multi-pilot sales cycles. Experience leading pilots, field trials, and deployments; comfortable navigating procurement and contracting processes to close multi-stakeholder deals. Ability to build, manage, and scale partnerships and channel programs — including alliances, integrators, and strategic partners. Strong pluses: Proficiency with CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot) and ability to design and optimize workflows, pipelines, and sales collateral. Strong cross-functional collaboration skills; comfortable translating customer needs into product priorities alongside engineering and product teams. Experience writing or contributing to government RFP/RFI responses or grant applications. Background at or familiarity with defense primes, government integrators, or industrial robotics companies. Compensation & Benefits Base salary: $90,000 – $140,000 USD annually, depending on experience. Early-stage equity participation. Visa sponsorship available. Location This role is on-site in Austin, Texas . Candidates should be based in or willing to relocate to Austin. Regular field travel for customer demos, pilots, and trade shows is expected.