Manager, Growth & Development: Fabrication

Our Opportunity

GPJ is looking to add to our Growth & Development team This position will focus on identifying, pursuing, and closing new fabrication projects and client accounts within trade show and experiential marketing.

This role is hybrid, requiring you to report on-site to one of the following office locations a minimum of 2 days/week: Nashville, Detroit, or Las Vegas.

Your Role

You have extensive fabrication and event production exposure with a deep understanding of the experiential marketing landscape. You will focus on driving new business growth, developing and selling tailored fabrication solutions, and collaborating closely with the head of fabrication, growth & development leadership, and business leaders to scale our fabrication offerings.

You will play a key role in expanding our fabrication services across a diverse range of sectors in experiential, focused on Trade Show and/or Experiential programs, but including Sports Marketing, Custom Activations, Permanent Installations, Sponsor Booths, Pop-up Activations, Scenic / Theatrical productions, Outdoor Events, and Modular Fabrication as well opportunities beyond our traditional business such as retail branding, OOH, etc.

Key Responsibilities:

Business Development & Growth Strategy

• Lead Generation: Identify and nurture new business opportunities within the fabrication space, aligned to the company business strategy and focusing on Experiential Trade Show programs and individual projects from Fortune 500 brands.
• New Offerings Development: Work with the head of fabrication and leadership team to create and refine new fabrication service offerings, adapting them to market trends and client needs.
• Growth & Development Execution: Develop and execute sales strategies to achieve revenue targets, including prospecting, qualifying leads, developing proposals, and closing deals. Proactively identify new areas of opportunity based on our current and future capabilities.
• Relationship Management: Cultivate strong, long-term relationships with both new and existing clients. Serve as the primary point of contact for all fabrication-related inquiries and sales efforts.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate closely with fabrication, production, finance and other disciplines to ensure that client expectations are aligned with operational capabilities and that all projects are executed smoothly and aligned to revenue goals, using project management techniques.
• Attend key industry events and strategic opportunities to foster relationships and leads

Strategic Market Positioning

• Value Proposition: Effectively communicate the unique value proposition of our fabrication services, emphasizing our ability to deliver highly creative, scalable, high-quality, technically complex solutions and cost effective - when needed.
• Client Needs Assessment: Actively listen to and assess client needs, providing customized solutions that align with their business objectives and event/project goals.
• Competitive Analysis: Stay up-to-date with industry trends, competitor offerings, and emerging technologies, leveraging this information to position our services ahead of the competition. Partner with GPJ marketing to highlight offering and key successes.
• Provide insight into market trends from experience and pricing POV to agency leadership

Project Leadership & Coordination

• Internal Partnerships: Work closely with the fabrication team, creative teams, and project managers to develop innovative solutions, ensuring that client expectations are met and exceeded.
• Proposal & Presentation Development: Prepare compelling proposals, presentations, and sales materials that showcase the quality, creativity, and technical expertise of our fabrication team.
• Client Presentations: Lead client presentations and negotiations, demonstrating deep knowledge of fabrication techniques and production processes. Tap into specific agency resources as needed to support the presentation.

Market Expansion & Revenue Growth

• Pipeline Management: Maintain an active sales pipeline, ensuring that all opportunities are tracked and moved forward through the sales process using the Salesforce tool.
• Revenue Targets: Drive toward meeting and exceeding revenue and sales goals through proactive outreach and strategic targeting of high-potential clients.
• Marketing Alignment: Collaborate with marketing and business development teams to align sales efforts with broader agency marketing strategies.

Your Skills

• Industry Expertise: Deep knowledge of the experiential marketing landscape, including technical fabrication capabilities and production workflows.
• Proven Sales Track Record: Demonstrated success in generating new business, developing and executing sales strategies, and achieving revenue targets.
• Client-Facing Skills: Ability to build and maintain strong relationships with high-level clients, key stakeholders, and internal teams.
• Communication: Strong presentation, negotiation, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Project Management: Ability to utilize project management techniques to ensure proposed projects move along the sales process through to effective close of the sale. Includes managing multiple pursuits, at varying stages.
• Problem-Solving: Ability to quickly identify client needs and design tailored solutions that address those needs in a timely and effective manner.
• Collaborative Mindset: Comfort working in cross-functional teams, with the ability to work collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders, including creative, production, fabrication, account and other business leaders.
• Software: Familiarity with project management software and CRM systems.
• Project Scale: Experience working on large-scale, high-profile events or projects.
• Relationship Building: A network of industry contacts within the experiential, live event, or fabrication industries.
• Sustainability: Knowledge of sustainable or eco-friendly fabrication practices and solutions.

Your Competencies

Collaborative Mentor

Collaboration with key internal teams (Strategy, Creative, Account Management, Production, Operations, Finance/Procurement) on approach to all new business initiatives. Assesses and seizes profitable businesses opportunities; takes calculated risks to achieve business goals. Mentorship of G&D team members across GPJ to provide coaching on prospect identification, lead/opportunity conversion, winning approach and process from initial RFI to pitch presentation.

Entrepreneurial Relationship Builder

Strong understanding of GPJ's competitive position by considering industry trends, existing and potential clients, and strengths / weaknesses compared to competitors to identify areas of growth for GPJ. Working closely with the Marketing, Strategy and Creative leads to develop a compelling positioning and proposition for GPJ against key target prospects. Establishes and cultivates strong, ongoing relationships with prospective clients.

Presentation Skills

Dynamic, competent presentation skills (GPJ vision/mission, services/capabilities, case studies, proposed approach for client if applicable) in a pitch presentation. Deep understanding client business/marketing requirements and "ask", as demonstrated in the response and presentation. Listening, then leading.

Your Experience

Experience & Education

A minimum of 5 years of sales experience, focusing on the fabrication and/or production of exhibits, semi-permanent & permanent installations, specifically within the context of experiential marketing or live event production.

Travel & Mobility

Ability to travel 25%

Ability to work irregular hours in addition to normal business hours, to include nights, weekends and holidays as needed

Your Impact

In your role, you will have influence and responsibility over:

• Experiential Trade Show
• Booths Pop-up Activations
• Modular Fabrication Solutions
• Highly Custom Activations
• High-end Graphics

Who We Are

GPJ is the world leader in experiential marketing. Our 29 global offices are filled with fearless people dreaming up ideas that are transforming industries and bringing the most respected brands to life in powerfully, exciting ways. We are a part of the Project Worldwide family. An independent, employee-owned global network of complementary, wholly owned agencies.

You read that "employee-owned" part, right? You heard us correctly. You work hard, she works hard, we all work hard… we all succeed and reap the rewards. We have an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) – providing our employees with an ownership interest. We thought you would want to know that. In fact, there is a lot more you would want to know about us, like our FTO policy (no more "accruing" time off), our employer matching 401(k) plan (no vesting period), our "no employee contribution" healthcare option. But we are getting ahead of ourselves here, let's talk about this exciting opportunity first and we can fill you in on our perks & benefits later.

GPJ is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation and gender identity), national origin, citizenship, disability, protected veteran status, or any other protected class. In addition to federal law requirements, GPJ complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training. GPJ expressly prohibits any form of workplace harassment based on any protected class.