Business Development Associate

Business Development Associate — Cleveland, Ohio

About the Company

We connect entrepreneurs, investors, and business leaders in Cleveland. We help founders get the capital, advice, and partnerships they need to grow. Our team works fast and values real relationships and closed deals.

About the Role

You'll be the connector between founders and investors. You'll build relationships, attend meetings, and learn how deals actually work—not from theory, but by doing the work yourself.

This is a hands-on job with real growth potential. You'll see high-level conversations, strategy sessions, and the full deal process from start to finish.

What You'll Do

• Introduce founders to investors and business leaders.
• Attend networking events, pitch meetings, and strategy sessions to find new opportunities.
• Build and update a contact database using CRM tools.
• Research market trends, companies, and founders to spot good deals.
• Follow up with contacts regularly to keep relationships alive and move deals forward.
• Watch deal negotiations and due diligence so you learn how they work.
• Help the team with tasks related to deal flow and relationship management.

What You Need

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• Able to start conversations and build real relationships with all kinds of people.
• Strong at staying organized with many contacts, follow-ups, and deadlines.
• Genuine interest in business, investing, and startups.
• Able to work on your own, take initiative, and get results with little supervision.
• Willing to work flexible hours, including some evenings and weekends for events.
• Reliable transportation to attend meetings around Cleveland.

Nice to Have

• Sales, hospitality, sports, or small business experience.
• Business development, recruiting, client relations, or investor relations background.
• Professional or personal network in business or investing.
• Experience with Salesforce, HubSpot, or other CRM software.
• Internship or work experience in venture capital, private equity, or startups.

What We Offer

• Real mentorship from entrepreneurs and investors who are building companies.
• Performance-based pay with bonus upside—your earnings grow with results.
• Flexible work environment focused on what you deliver, not strict schedules.
• Direct access to pitch meetings and high-level business conversations.
• Hands-on learning about deal flow, negotiation, and business development from day one.
• Build a professional network that helps your whole career.

Compensation

This role is performance-based with significant upside potential. Base pay and bonuses will be discussed in interviews and tailored to your experience and contributions. We pay for impact.

How to Apply

Send a brief message (no more than 250 words) that includes:

• Why this role interests you and what appeals to you about business development.
• One real example of something entrepreneurial or business-focused you've done and what you learned.

Thoughtful answers that show genuine interest stand out.

Equal Opportunity

We are an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applications from all backgrounds, races, colors, religions, sexes, national origins, ages, disability statuses, sexual orientations, gender identities, veteran statuses, and other protected characteristics. Diverse perspectives make us stronger.