Business Development Manager

Deadline: September 30, 2026
District/Organization: Nature Playscapes
Position/Type: Other, full time
Salary: $54,000

Position Details

About Nature Playscapes

At Nature Playscapes we create inspiring outdoor spaces where children learn, explore, and develop through playful connections with nature. We are a Michigan-based design-build company specializing in nature play environments, outdoor classrooms, and custom learning spaces for communities across Michigan. Our clients include municipal parks departments, school districts, and early childhood education centers. Every project is built to align with stringent safety and accessibility standards while delivering engaging, one-of-a-kind experiences. We’re a small, entrepreneurial company experiencing strong growth and making a lasting impact across the state.

The Opportunity

This is a rare opportunity to join a growing company in a pivotal, ground-floor role and help shape our next chapter of growth. As our first dedicated Business Development Manager, you’ll be responsible for building the relationships, opportunities, and project pipeline that drive our success. You’ll identify and cultivate new opportunities, connect with key decision-makers, and develop compelling proposals that transform ideas into built projects. While business development experience is valuable, we’re equally interested in candidates who understand our customers and mission. We’ll provide the training, industry knowledge, and support needed to become an expert in nature play environments, playground safety standards, and our consultative approach to project development.

What You’ll Do

Success in this role comes from identifying opportunities early, cultivating the vision of our clients, and guiding projects from initial concept through proposal and award.

• Monitor, identify, and respond to Requests for Proposals (RFPs) from municipalities, school districts, and public agencies. Research where organizations publish opportunities and track capital improvement plans, bond initiatives, and master plans to identify projects before they reach the bidding stage.

• Develop and maintain relationships with landscape architects, planners, and other industry partners who regularly encounter nature play opportunities and benefit from our specialized expertise.

• Represent Nature Playscapes at industry conferences, trade shows, and networking events. Consistently follow up on leads and cultivate relationships that may take years to develop into projects.

• Reconnect with past clients to generate referrals, secure testimonials, and uncover future opportunities.

• Collaborate in the visioning, design, and proposal development process for projects ranging from $50,000 to more than $500,000, helping deliver solutions that meet client goals while achieving target profitability.

• Establish the foundational systems that support business development, including a comprehensive contact database of Michigan municipalities, school systems, and key stakeholders, along with organized tracking of all active opportunities and pursuits.

What We’re Looking For

We’re more interested in hiring someone who understands our customers, industry, and mission and can be taught our sales process than someone with extensive sales experience but little connection to our world.

Strong candidates may come from backgrounds such as:

• Parks and recreation or conservation professional (municipal, schools, nonprofit, university, or nature center settings, etc.)

• Early childhood education, administration, or program leadership

• Landscape architecture, planning, construction, or a related design-build field

Beyond industry experience, we’re looking for someone who is:

• Detail-oriented and organized. RFP responses frequently range from 40 to 150 pages and require careful review, coordination, and documentation.

• Self-motivated and persistent. Our projects typically have sales cycles of 3 to 18 months, requiring consistent follow-through and relationship management.

• Comfortable building relationships. You’ll spend significant time meeting with stakeholders, listening to needs, and earning trust over time.

• Willing to travel throughout Michigan. Regular client and site visits are expected, along with training and bi-weekly meetings at our Portage headquarters. Hybrid candidates must be able to work independently and effectively remotely.

• Driven by performance and growth. This role offers significant uncapped earning potential for someone motivated to create and capture new opportunities.

Compensation

Your base salary provides stability, but it is designed to be only a portion of your total earnings. We expect successful candidates to substantially exceed their base salary through performance-based compensation, and there is no cap on earning potential. The more value you create for the business, the more you share in that success.

Compensation Type
Detail

Base Salary
$54,000-60,000/year based on qualifications and experience

Commission
Uncapped commission earned on projects you help secure

Profit Sharing
Company profit sharing in addition to base salary and commissions

Total Comp Goal
Once fully ramped, our expectation is that successful performance in this role will generate total annual compensation of $100,000 , with significant opportunity to exceed that through uncapped commissions and profit sharing.

Because your earnings are tied directly to the opportunities you create and the projects you help win, there is no predetermined ceiling on income potential. As the company grows, your opportunity to share in that success grows with it.

Why Work for Us?

Nature Playscapes is a small, growing company where your work has a direct impact on the communities we serve and the future of the business. You will have the opportunity to help shape our growth and contribute to projects that create meaningful outdoor learning and play experiences across Michigan and build future stewards of our environment.

We believe great work comes from talented and passionate people who are supported and given the flexibility to succeed. That’s why we offer:

• An optional 4-day work week to support work-life balance and focused productivity

• Paid time-off (PTO) and paid holidays so you can rest, recharge, and spend time with family, friends and nature

• Direct access to leadership and the opportunity to influence company strategy and growth

• Comprehensive training in our industry, safety standards, and products

• The chance to make a tangible impact by helping create outdoor spaces that benefit communities, ecology and intergenerational wellness

If you’re looking for a role where you can build something meaningful, grow professionally, and be rewarded for the value you create, we’d love to talk with you.

How to Apply

Send a resume and cover letter to Connect@NaturePlayscapes.com . Tell us about your experience with parks and recreation, conservation, education, or landscape architecture. Sales experience is a plus, but it’s not what we’re hiring for first; true passion for our mission results in organic sales. Please apply by September 30, 2026.

E-mail: connect@natureplayscapes.com