Director of Sales/Client Development

Position Overview

Cygnus Compliance Consulting is seeking a senior business development executive with deep relationships across banking, fintech, and financial services. The successful candidate will leverage an established network of compliance, risk, AML, sanctions, fraud, and financial crime leaders to generate and close new business opportunities. Experience selling AI-powered and SaaS-based compliance solutions is highly desirable. This role will drive growth for both Cygnus Compliance Consulting services and Open Compliance Suite (OCS), our next-generation AI compliance platform.

Key Responsibilities

• Build and leverage relationships with senior executives across financial institutions to originate, develop, and close new business opportunities.
• Lead the full sales lifecycle, including prospecting, solution positioning, proposals, negotiations, contract execution, forecasting, and pipeline management.
• Develop and execute sales and go-to-market strategies to drive growth for Cygnus Compliance Consulting and Open Compliance Suite (OCS) across banks, fintechs, and other regulated financial institutions.
• Identify and pursue new market opportunities, strategic partnerships, RFPs, and geographic expansion initiatives while consistently achieving revenue targets.
• Serve as a trusted advisor on AML, sanctions, fraud, model risk management, and broader regulatory compliance challenges.
• Develop compelling value propositions and positioning for AI-powered compliance and SaaS solutions, aligned with client needs and regulatory requirements.
• Partner with marketing, consulting, product, and delivery teams to support demand generation, client success, and the development of new products and services.
• Drive customer acquisition, retention, and expansion opportunities across existing and prospective client accounts.
• Monitor industry trends, regulatory developments, and competitive dynamics to identify emerging opportunities and refine growth strategies.
• Represent Cygnus and OCS at industry conferences, regulatory forums, and executive networking events to strengthen market presence and brand credibility.

Reporting & Metrics

• Establish and manage sales OKRs/KPIs, dashboards, and forecasting processes to drive predictable revenue growth and operational excellence.
• Deliver executive-level reporting and insights on pipeline health, sales performance, forecast accuracy, risks, and growth opportunities.
• Leverage CRM, customer, and market data to optimize sales strategy, pricing, product positioning, customer acquisition, and retention.
• Partner with finance and executive leadership on revenue planning, budgeting, and board-level reporting.
• Foster a data-driven sales culture focused on accountability, continuous improvement, and measurable business outcomes.

Required Experience & Qualifications

• 10 years of experience in financial services, financial crime, AML, compliance, risk management, or related advisory environments.
• Strong expertise in AML, sanctions, fraud, transaction monitoring, model risk management, and financial crime compliance programs.
• Experience with leading financial crime platforms such as NICE Actimize, Oracle Mantas, Fircosoft, FIS/PRIME, or similar solutions.
• Direct experience selling AI-powered, SaaS-based compliance or regulatory technology solutions to financial institutions.
• Established network of senior executives and decision-makers across compliance, risk, AML, sanctions, and financial crime functions.
• Proven track record of originating, closing, and expanding complex consulting and technology engagements while consistently exceeding revenue targets.
• Strong consultative selling, negotiation, relationship management, and executive communication skills.
• Entrepreneurial, results-oriented mindset with the ability to operate independently in a high-growth environment.
• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• Willingness to travel up to 50%.

Why Join Us?

• Disrupt the Status Quo: We are moving the industry away from rigid, expensive legacy systems (Actimize, Oracle, SAS, FircoSoft) toward a modular, transparent AI future.
• Be an architect for Growth: You aren't just a "cog in the machine." You are the architect of our market expansion, with a direct line to product leadership.
• Founder Mindset: This role includes a significant ESOP allocation, ensuring you share in the financial success of the company you help build.
• AI assisted Tech Stack: OCS is powered by our AI assistant Delphi and designed for the speed of modern international banking.