The Opportunity
Design Centered Co. (DCC) is at an inflection point. The firm has established a strong delivery reputation, a growing project portfolio, and a recognized brand. The next chapter requires building a dedicated client development function to match the firm’s delivery capacity with sustained commercial momentum.
This is a foundational role. DCC is bringing in its first dedicated client development professional to build and own the commercial function of the firm. The Partner, Client Development will not be joining an existing sales organization with defined processes and established pipelines. They will be architecting one.
This position is designed for a commercially experienced professional who is motivated by the prospect of building something, not simply executing within an existing structure. The Partner, Client Development will be responsible for identifying and pursuing new client relationships, positioning DCC’s services in target markets, and closing engagements that align with the firm’s capabilities and margin requirements.
What You Will Do
Business Development and Pipeline
- Build and manage a qualified pipeline of prospective clients in DCC’s primary markets: federal and provincial government, the nonprofit and social sector, and enterprise.
- Lead outreach, relationship development, and opportunity qualification from first contact through to proposal and close.
- Represent DCC at industry events, procurement forums, and sector-specific networks to develop DCC’s market presence and surface new opportunities.
- Develop a deep understanding of DCC’s service offerings and the ICD framework, and translate that understanding into compelling client conversations.
Proposal and Conversion
- Lead the scoping and commercial structuring of client proposals, working closely with the Managing Partner and delivery leads to ensure proposals are accurately resourced and margin-positive.
- Own the proposal process end to end: from client discovery and needs definition through to submission, presentation, and negotiation.
- Maintain a disciplined approach to opportunity qualification, avoiding engagements that do not align with DCC’s delivery capacity or commercial model.
Client Relationship Stewardship
- Develop strong working relationships with clients from the point of sale through project onboarding, ensuring a clean handoff to the delivery team.
- Identify expansion opportunities within existing accounts and work with delivery leads to surface and convert them.
- Serve as a senior relationship owner for strategic accounts as the firm’s client base grows.
Firm Building
- Contribute to DCC’s external profile through thought leadership, speaking engagements, and sector presence.
- Participate in firm strategy conversations, bringing commercial intelligence and market perspective to leadership discussions.
What We Are Looking For
Experience
- Seven or more years of experience in business development, account management, or sales in a professional services, consulting, or solutions environment.
- Demonstrated track record of closing engagements in the $250K to $1M+ range, ideally within government, public sector, or enterprise markets.
- Experience operating in long-cycle sales environments where relationship development, trust-building, and proposal quality determine outcomes.
- Familiarity with the procurement landscape in the Canadian public sector is a meaningful asset.
Capabilities
- Commercially disciplined: able to qualify opportunities rigorously and walk away from engagements that do not fit.
- Strong communicator with the ability to translate complex service offerings into clear, compelling value propositions for senior client stakeholders.
- Comfortable working in an environment where processes are being built rather than inherited.
- Collaborative by nature, with the judgment to work closely with delivery teams without overcommitting on scope or timelines.
- Self-directed and organized, with the ability to manage a pipeline and sustain outreach activity without close oversight.
Character
- Motivated by building, not just closing. The right candidate is energized by the prospect of creating a client development function, not simply filling a sales quota.
- Intellectually curious about design, digital transformation, and the sectors DCC serves.
- Comfortable operating in ambiguity during a period of organizational growth.
- Committed to bringing in the right work, not just any work.
Compensation and Benefits
Total compensation is structured to reward individual commercial performance and firm-wide profitability equally.
Base Salary: Competitive base reflecting the seniority and scope of the role.
Gross Margin Commission: Commission calculated as a percentage of gross project margin on closed engagements.
Bonus: Annual performance bonus tied to firm-wide EBITDA achievement, graduated based on performance.
Benefits: Extended health and dental coverage, professional development investment, and the tools required to perform at the highest level.
Submit your Application
In your cover letter, tell us why you want to work in a boutique agency environment at Design Centered Co. (DCC) and also what makes you passionate about pitching DCC to government and public sector organization across Canada.
Design Centered Co. (DCC) is an award-winning Ottawa-based consultancy specializing in Experience Design, Service Design, and Digital Transformation. Named one of Ottawa’s Fastest Growing Companies, DCC serves government agencies, nonprofits, and enterprise clients across Canada, helping organizations build solutions that address root causes rather than symptoms.
DCC’s work is grounded in the Impact Centered Design (ICD) framework, a proprietary methodology developed to close the gap between the solutions that get built and the solutions the world actually needs. The firm’s clients range from federal government institutions to social sector organizations and funded technology companies.
We bring value by delivering solutions that are impact driven, human-centered, and evidenced based within the policy, technology, and ecosystem context in which our clients operate.
We work across public, private, and social sectors and are guided by Impact Centered Design as our core methodology.