Senior Director, Business Development
Position Title
About the role
As the global quarterback for financial services initiatives, you will work closely with enterprise customers, cloud providers, technology partners, and internal teams to define strategy, unlock new markets, and deliver differentiated solutions at scale.
Responsibilities
- Lead Financial Services Ecosystem Strategy
- Define and execute a global ecosystem strategy across financial services, including capital markets, banking, payments, fintech, insurance, and risk & compliance.
- Identify priority markets, anchor customers, and strategic partners that drive ecosystem growth.
- Shape differentiated value propositions focused on performance, interconnection density, neutrality, resilience, and regulatory readiness.
- Drive Strategic Business Development
- Own executive-level relationships with selected global enterprise accounts.
- Lead high-impact customer and partner engagements, positioning Digital Realty as a trusted, long-term infrastructure partner.
- Translate customer needs into actionable go-to-market, product, and investment strategies.
- Build and Scale Financial Ecosystems
- Develop interconnected financial services hubs in key global metros by attracting exchanges, market data providers, cloud access points, fintechs, and analytics platforms.
- Work directly with customers to align platform capabilities with their business models, workloads, and growth ambitions.
- Build and strengthen alliances with leading technology and service providers across the financial services stack.
- Influence Product, Infrastructure & Investment Decisions
- Partner with Product and Engineering teams to deliver infrastructure capabilities tailored to financial services, including low-latency connectivity, exchange proximity, antenna access, and audit-ready designs.
- Collaborate with Acquisitions & Investments and New Market Development teams to support market entry, site selection, and strategic partnerships.
- Act as the voice of the customer to ensure mid- and long-term investments align with market demand.
- Serve as an executive sponsor for complex, high-value pursuits, including AI/ML and real-time risk workloads.
- Support enterprise sales teams in executive meetings and strategic negotiations.
- Help shape solution positioning and messaging for large, transformational opportunities.
Qualifications
- 12 + years of Senior-level experience in business development, partnerships, or strategic selling within the financial services technology ecosystem.
- A strong network of industry leaders, customers, and partners across financial services and adjacent technology markets.
- Proven ability to articulate complex value propositions and close high-impact, multi-stakeholder deals.
- Strategic mindset with the ability to operate globally and influence cross-functional teams.
- Excellent communication skills and comfort engaging at the executive and board level.
- Willingness to travel internationally as needed.
What You’ll Do
Lead Financial Services Ecosystem Strategy
Define and execute a global ecosystem strategy across financial services, including capital markets, banking, payments, fintech, insurance, and risk & compliance.
Identify priority markets, anchor customers, and strategic partners that drive ecosystem growth.
Shape differentiated value propositions focused on performance, interconnection density, neutrality, resilience, and regulatory readiness.
Drive Strategic Business Development
Own executive-level relationships with selected global enterprise accounts.
Lead high-impact customer and partner engagements, positioning Digital Realty as a trusted, long-term infrastructure partner.
Translate customer needs into actionable go-to-market, product, and investment strategies.
Build and Scale Financial Ecosystems
Develop interconnected financial services hubs in key global metros by attracting exchanges, market data providers, cloud access points, fintechs, and analytics platforms.
Work directly with customers to align platform capabilities with their business models, workloads, and growth ambitions.
Build and strengthen alliances with leading technology and service providers across the financial services stack.
Influence Product, Infrastructure & Investment Decisions
Partner with Product and Engineering teams to deliver infrastructure capabilities tailored to financial services, including low-latency connectivity, exchange proximity, antenna access, and audit-ready designs.
Collaborate with Acquisitions & Investments and New Market Development teams to support market entry, site selection, and strategic partnerships.
Act as the voice of the customer to ensure mid- and long-term investments align with market demand.
Serve as an executive sponsor for complex, high-value pursuits, including AI/ML and real-time risk workloads.
Support enterprise sales teams in executive meetings and strategic negotiations.
Help shape solution positioning and messaging for large, transformational opportunities.
Why This Role Matters
This is a rare opportunity to shape how financial services infrastructure evolves at a global scale. You’ll influence where markets develop, how ecosystems form, and how some of the world’s most demanding financial platforms operate—today and in the future.
How Success Is Measured
- A clearly defined and executed financial services ecosystem strategy
- Strong joint value propositions with strategic customers and partners
- Lighthouse customer wins that establish market leadership in priority use cases and geographies
Qualifications
- 12-18 Years significant work experience in business development, product marketing, or sales within the data center, cloud, or platforms industry
- A proven track record of delivering results and negotiating complex agreements in a multinational environment
- Strong understanding of industry trends, technologies, and stakeholder networks
- Degree required; MBA or university degree in a relevant field preferred
- Willingness to travel internationally as needed
What You’ll Need
- 12 + years of Senior-level experience in business development, partnerships, or strategic selling within the financial services technology ecosystem
- A strong network of industry leaders, customers, and partners across financial services and adjacent technology markets
- Proven ability to articulate complex value propositions and close high-impact, multi-stakeholder deals
- Strategic mindset with the ability to operate globally and influence cross-functional teams
- Excellent communication skills and comfort engaging at the executive and board level
- Willingness to travel internationally as needed
Pay
$220,000 to $250,000 per year
Schedule
N/A
Benefits
- Medical
- Dental
- Vision
- Life and AD&D insurance
- 401k match
- Disability benefits
- Wellness and education benefits
- Employee stock purchase plan
- Paid time off
- Holidays