Business Development - Critical Industries

About the job

Make it rain. Make Snow. Make Earth Habitable.

Rainmaker builds and deploys audacious technologies that work with nature to create an abundant, habitable planet. We are modernizing proven cloud-seeding science with weather-resistant UAS, radar and satellite observations, numerical weather prediction, novel sensing and validation systems, and sustainable seeding technologies. We are building an integrated system to make more freshwater available to farms, ecosystems, and communities.

Our ambition is bold, but we pursue it with humility. We take on difficult problems in the real world with technical rigor, grit, integrity, and an openness to learning and course-correcting. We are hiring individuals with evidence of exceptional ability. If you want to build systems that endure, restore and deliver the future we were promised, we want to hear from you.

Rainmaker is pioneering a modern cloud seeding system to solve water scarcity. We develop and incorporate radar validation, weather-resistant UAS, and numerical weather modeling to make water abundant.

As Rainmaker's Director of Industrial Partnerships, you will drive the commercial adoption of precipitation enhancement services across critical industries whose operations depend on reliable water and snowpack-fed resources. Your focus will be on identifying, developing, and partnering with operators in mining, oil & gas, hydroelectric power, and large-scale industrial water users across the Western United States and other water-stressed regions. You will translate Rainmaker's proven seeding technology into compelling value propositions for industrial operators and build a pipeline of revenue-generating partnerships with companies whose production, uptime, and license to operate are directly tied to water availability.

What You'll Do

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• Identify and qualify prospects across mining, oil & gas, hydroelectric, and other large industrial sectors whose operations, production volumes, or capital planning are materially impacted by precipitation, reservoir levels, and basin water yield.

• Develop and manage a pipeline of industrial partnership opportunities from initial outreach through contract execution, tracking prospects across multiple verticals and geographies.

• Design and propose commercial deal structures including service contracts, outcome-based pricing tied to precipitation or basin yield, cost-sharing arrangements across co-located operators, and consortium funding models.

• Engage industrial operators, utilities, independent power producers, and large-scale water users as both customers and co-investors in precipitation enhancement programs.

• Coordinate with Rainmaker's Government Affairs team to identify public-private partnership opportunities where industrial investment can complement state or federal watershed, reservoir, and water security funding.

• Build coalitions of industrial operators, utilities, water districts, and basin stakeholders who collectively benefit from increased precipitation — creating multi-party funding structures for seeding programs within shared watersheds.

• Pursue strategic partnerships with industry associations, trade groups, and ESG-focused stakeholders to raise awareness for Rainmaker and cloud seeding as a water security and sustainability tool for resource-intensive industries.

• Organize and facilitate site visits, demonstrations, and technical briefings for prospective industrial partners and investors at Rainmaker project sites.

Qualifications

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• 5+ years of experience in commercial business development, sales, or partnership development serving mining, oil & gas, power generation, heavy industry, or large-scale industrial infrastructure customers.

• Demonstrated track record of sourcing, structuring, and closing complex B2B or B2G deals, ideally involving industrial operations, energy infrastructure, environmental services, or resource management.

• Strong understanding of how water and precipitation drive industrial operations — including reservoir management for hydropower, water-intensive extraction and processing, cooling and process water requirements, and the regulatory frameworks governing industrial water use.

• Familiarity with Western water economics, water rights, basin hydrology, drought dynamics, and the institutional landscape of water management (districts, conservancies, state engineers) is strongly preferred.

• Comfort working in a fast-paced, cross-functional startup environment where you will need to operate both strategically and tactically.

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degrees in business, economics, engineering, water resources, environmental science, or related fields are a plus.

• Willingness and ability to travel approximately 50% to industrial sites, operator headquarters, and conferences.

If you are passionate about shaping state-level policy in water resources and are eager to contribute to sustainable solutions, join Rainmaker’s Business Development team. Together, we’ll help ensure a more resilient water future for communities and environments across the United States.

No recruiting agencies.

Supporting the Rainmakers behind the mission

Making earth more habitable is ambitious work and we want the people doing it to feel supported:

• A stake in what we build: Meaningful stock options and the opportunity to help shape Rainmaker as an early member of the team.

• Support for your health: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance for you and your family.

• An investment in your future: A 401(k) with employer matching to help you build long-term savings.

• Time to recharge: Unlimited PTO for rest, exploration, and the people and pursuits that matter to you plus a generous paid holiday schedule.

• Time for a growing family: Paid parental leave for both parents to welcome a child and spend time together.

• Lunch together: Daily lunch provided at our El Segundo headquarters, giving Rainmakers a chance to share a meal and connect with teammates.

• Help making the move: Relocation assistance for eligible roles to support your transition to Rainmaker.

Rainmaker Is An Equal Opportunity Employer

Employment decisions are made without regard to any characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local law.

Rainmaker provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities and for other protected reasons as required by law. If you need accommodation to participate in the application or interview process, contact hiring@makerain.com. Requests for accommodation will be handled confidentially to the extent reasonably possible.

Data Privacy

California applicants can review our California Applicant Privacy Notice. The notice explains the personal information we collect, how we use it, how long we retain it, and the privacy rights that may be available.

E-Verify

Rainmaker participates in E-Verify for U.S. Employees. To learn more, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit http://e-verify.govE-verify.gov http://E-verify.gov.