The Manager of Business Development, Certification and Educational Programs plays a key role in expanding AAAE’s portfolio of professional development services across the U.S. airport industry. Reporting to the Director of Business Development, AAAE Services, this individual is responsible for driving revenue growth by promoting AAAE’s certificated and non-certificated educational offerings, with a special focus on instructor-led courses hosted onsite at airports.

This role involves both new business acquisition and the expansion of engagement with existing AAAE members, requiring close collaboration with airport professionals to understand their workforce development goals and align them with AAAE’s learning solutions. Along with this, the manager will have defined sales targets and be eligible for performance-based incentives. Success in the position depends on persistence, strong organizational skills, and the ability to build and maintain trusted relationships with airport leaders and key stakeholders.

Primary duties and responsibilities:

• Develop and maintain relationships with new and existing airport members to understand their unique professional development goals and recommend sustainable, scalable solutions aligned with AAAE’s certification and educational programs.
• Coordination with internal teams and external partners is essential to delivering impactful learning experiences and expanding the reach of AAAE’s certification and educational programs.
• Provide input on future content strategy by sharing customer insights and advising on evolving training needs
• Coordinate with internal teams and external partners to deliver impactful learning experiences and expanding the reach of AAAE’s certification and educational programs.
• Coordinate and facilitate meetings between airport stakeholders and internal AAAE teams to ensure member needs and expectations are met effectively.
• Assist in the preparation of proposals, quotes, presentations, and reports related to AAAE’s certificated and non-certificated educational offerings.
• Monitor and stay informed on regulatory changes or industry trends that may impact the relevance, delivery, or development of AAAE’s educational programs. 
• Represent AAAE at industry meetings, trade shows, and conferences to increase awareness of AAAE’s educational offerings and expand outreach.
• Support line-of-business (LOB) owners with business development initiatives that strengthen member engagement and program growth.
• Provide insights and recommendations to AAAE Services leadership on emerging trends and evolving workforce development needs within the airport environment.
• Identify adjacent markets and new opportunities to expand AAAE’s portfolio of certification and educational services.
• Perform other related duties and assignments as required to support AAAE’s mission and member success.

Education, prior work experience, and specialized skills and knowledge:

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• 3-5 years of relevant experience in sales, business development, or the aviation industry.
• General interest in and knowledge of airport operations and aviation issues.
• Familiarity with TSA 49 CFR 1542 and FAA 14 CFR Part 139 regulations is helpful but not required.
• Awareness of the relationship between airport operators and airport tenants is a plus.
• Ability to build strong, professional relationships with airport staff and stakeholders.
• Strong written, verbal, and presentation skills.
• Confident in making phone calls and speaking with members by phone.
• Excellent organizational and time-management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities in a fast-paced environment with minimal supervision.
• Proficiency in preparing accurate proposals, reports, and summaries for both internal and external stakeholders.
• Proven ability to work both independently and collaboratively within a small, high-performing team.
• Creative thinker with initiative and a solutions-oriented mindset.
• Willingness to contribute to broader team efforts beyond immediate role responsibilities when needed.
• Comfortable representing AAAE at industry events, airport meetings, and conferences.
• Ability to regularly travel to conferences, in-person meetings, and airport-hosted courses.

Typical physical demands/work environment:

To successfully perform the essential functions of this job, with or without reasonable accommodation, an employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to grasp objects; reach with hands/arms; balance, stoop, kneel, or crouch; speak or listen; lift and/or carry up to 25 pounds; use close, distance, color, peripheral, depth perception, and focused vision. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is not exposed to weather conditions and the noise level is moderate.

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About American Association Of Airport Executives

The American Association of Airport Executives, a not-for-profit organization, is the largest professional organization for airport executives in the world, representing thousands of airport management personnel at public-use airports. AAAE’s primary goal is to assist airport executives in fulfilling their responsibilities to the airports and communities they serve. AAAE was founded in 1928. Since that time, AAAE has been successful at gathering airport management professionals throughout the country to a central area to discuss current aviation issues. This includes lobbying Congress for funds that would improve funding issues for airport improvement projects on behalf of airport management, creating perpetual relationships with federal agencies affecting the airport management community, and bridging gaps between federal agencies and airport management professions. Since 1954, AAAE has been training and certifying airport management professionals with proficiency evaluations similar to other professional organizations. The Accredited Airport Executive (A.A.E.) and Certified Member (C.M.) credentials are highly sought out by airport management executives throughout the wor...ld and are used as benchmarks to promote and appoint senior airport management professionals throughout North America and the Caribbean. AAAE trains thousands of airport employees each year through international, national, regional and on-site workshops and conferences. The Association also provides training through an in-house satellite-based training network, Digicast, which is a unique training service because it brings training directly to employee desktops. AAAE is the only provider of such satellite-based training for airports in the world. Additionally, AAAE has a reputation for adapting and responding to airport issues. The Association proactively creates learning environments that increase the retention of information among its attendees. AAAE also fosters a rich networking environment for its attendees that is designed to increase the sharing of information between airport professionals, regardless of airport hub size or level of airport activity.

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