Corporate Development Manager

At Nova Sky Stories, we empower artists and producers to bring awe and wonder to live audiences around the world. As the global leader in drone entertainment, we’ve been redefining live shows for over a decade—merging cutting-edge drone technology with imaginative artistry.

With a veteran team of engineers and creatives, we design and operate lightweight, small, precise, and safe drones that perform in the most demanding environments—urban centers, extreme temperatures, and high winds. The result? Sky Stories that inspire, captivate, and transform the sky into a canvas of imagination.

Headquartered in the U.S. with teams across Europe and the UAE, Nova Sky Stories works with the world’s leading brands, venues, and events.
📱 Follow us: @NovaSkyStories

About this role:

Nova Sky Stories is seeking a Corporate Development Manager to help accelerate our next phase of global growth. Working closely with executive leadership, you'll identify new business opportunities, cultivate strategic partnerships, evaluate expansion into new markets, and help turn ambitious ideas into reality.

This is an ideal opportunity for someone with a background in consulting, business development, strategy, or finance who wants to move beyond presentations and analysis into execution. You'll work across commercial, creative, finance, and operations teams to help shape the future of live entertainment while contributing directly to the company's growth strategy.

Working closely with executive leadership, you'll identify new business opportunities, cultivate strategic partnerships, evaluate expansion into new markets, and help turn ambitious ideas into reality. You'll help grow Nova's presence across theme parks, brand activations, cultural events, live entertainment, sports, destination attractions, festivals, and other large-scale experiential experiences, building relationships that bring unforgettable Sky Stories to audiences around the world.

You'll be part of a small, high-impact team where every project matters and every day looks a little different. If you enjoy solving complex business challenges, building relationships, and rolling up your sleeves to make things happen, you'll thrive at Nova.

As a Corporate Development Manager, you’ll be responsible for:

• Identify, develop, and grow strategic partnerships across theme parks, brand activations, cultural events, live entertainment, sports, destination attractions, festivals, and emerging experiential markets.
• Research and evaluate new markets, customer segments, and commercial opportunities that support Nova's global expansion strategy and long-term growth.
• Partner with executive leadership on high-priority commercial opportunities, client engagements, and strategic negotiations.
• Build business cases, financial models, and market analyses to support investment and expansion decisions.
• Coordinate cross-functional initiatives across commercial, creative, finance, operations, and legal teams to ensure strategic projects move from concept to execution.
• Represent Nova at industry events, conferences, customer meetings, and international business development opportunities.
• Track industry trends, competitive activity, and emerging technologies to identify new avenues for growth.
• Take ownership of special projects and strategic initiatives that help scale the business globally.

You’ll need to have:

• 3–6 years of experience in business development, management consulting, corporate strategy, investment banking, private equity, or a high-growth technology company.
• Experience developing strategic partnerships, evaluating growth opportunities, or supporting commercial initiatives.
• Strong financial modeling, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Exceptional communication and presentation skills with the ability to influence stakeholders across all levels of an organization.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment where priorities evolve quickly.
• Willingness to travel domestically and internationally (up to 50%).

It’s a plus if you have:

• Experience in live entertainment, theme parks, experiential marketing, brand activations, cultural events, sports, media, tourism, or destination attractions.
• Experience working within a capital-intensive or hardware-focused business.
• Exposure to international business expansion or global partnerships.
• MBA or advanced business degree.
• Passion for emerging technology, innovation, and creating unforgettable audience experiences.

Salary Range: $100,000–$150,000 USD

At Nova Sky Stories, we're building something that has never existed before—and we want our team members to share in that journey. In addition to competitive compensation, we offer:

• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• 401(k) with company matching
• Flexible PTO and paid sick leave
• Paid parental leave
• Company-paid holidays
• Equity opportunities for eligible employees

Compensation will be determined based on factors such as experience, skills, qualifications, and geographic location.

If you're ready to play a key role in supporting the operational backbone of a company redefining storytelling in the sky, we’d love to hear from you. Apply now to help keep Nova Sky Stories flying high.