Overview
Business Development Manager East Africa Jobs in Nairobi County, Kenya at Optoma
Title: Business Development Manager East Africa
Company: Optoma
Location: Nairobi County, Kenya
About Optoma
Optoma Europe Ltd is part of the Optoma Group, which operates regional headquarters in Europe, the USA, and Asia Pacific. With well-established channels across three continents, we bring people together through pioneering visual solutions for customers and partners worldwide.
Our EMEA headquarters is based in Hemel Hempstead, UK, with team members located across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) to provide localised expertise and support.
As a global leader in award-winning projection and digital display technologies, Optoma provides solutions to home, office, education, and commercial spaces. Established in 1997, Optoma Europe Ltd now employs around 140 staff across the EMEA region.
A passionate, customer-focused brand, Optoma products captivate, inspire, and connect people for a better experience.
About the role
Optoma is the #1 DLP brand in EMEA. This is Optoma’s first Business Development hire in East Africa — a strategic role designed to identify, develop, and unlock new market segments, partnerships, and long-cycle opportunities that a traditional sales role cannot pursue alone. The BDM will build the market architecture for Optoma’s 3–5-year East Africa growth.
This is a high-impact, high-autonomy role for a driven BDM professional who thrives in a first-mover, entrepreneurial environment. You will report to the Territory Manager META.
Key Responsibilities
- Map and develop new market segments for Optoma in East Africa: smart classrooms, govt digital infrastructure, hospitality AV, corporate workspace, and healthcare.
- Identify, evaluate, and establish strategic partnerships with system integrators, AV consultants, architects, and specification-influencers.
- Lead relationship development with large institutional buyers: ministries of education, municipal governments, international development organisations, and NGOs.
- Drive Optoma product specification into long-cycle projects — government tenders, World Bank/USAID-funded programmes, and large private-sector deployments.
- Develop and execute go-to-market plans for new verticals and geographies beyond Kenya (Ethiopia, DRC, Angola, Senegal).
- Represent Optoma at industry conferences, education summits, and government AV/ICT forums across East Africa.
- Hand off qualified, specification-led opportunities into an active sales pipeline.
- Report market insights, opportunity mapping, and pipeline to META Territory Manager with quarterly BDM review.
About You
Key Skills & Experience:
- Experience in business development, strategic sales, or market development in IT, AV, or technology sectors.
- Demonstrated success opening new market segments or territories in East or sub-Saharan Africa.
- Experience engaging with ministries, government agencies, or large institutional procurement bodies.
- Strong network of contacts in East African education, government, or NGO/international org sectors.
- Understanding of AV/display technology: projectors, IFPs, LED displays, and integrated AV systems.
- Experience influencing product specification in large, long-cycle procurement projects.
- Excellent stakeholder management and C-suite communication skills.
- English required; Swahili and/or French a strong advantage (for francophone market access).
- Comfortable working independently with a long-horizon, high-autonomy mandate.
- Experience with World Bank, USAID, EU or similar development-funded programmes a significant advantage.
We are an equal opportunities employer committed to promoting diversity and ensuring that all employees and applicants are treated with respect, dignity and fairness. We welcome applications from all and as such if you require any reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process, please inform us and we will do our best to accommodate your needs.
