Business Development Manager
Posted Jun 16, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026
Likely interview questions for this role
Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.
About your past
Tell me about a new market you opened up for a product. How did you find the first customers?
What they are checking: Whether they have a real hunter track record of creating business from nothing rather than managing existing accounts.
Tell me about a time you spent months on a deal that did not close. What kept you going and what did you change?
What they are checking: Whether they have the persistence the posting asks for and learn from losses rather than just moving on.
Tell me about a time you worked without much structure or direction. How did you set your own priorities?
What they are checking: Whether they thrive with an entrepreneurial level of independence or need a defined path.
What would you do
How do you decide which opportunities to pursue when a long sales cycle means you only learn the outcome a year later?
What they are checking: Whether they qualify opportunities with discipline instead of spreading effort across everything.
Engineering says the product a customer wants will take two years. The customer needs it in one. What do you do?
What they are checking: Whether they can find a workable path between customer urgency and real engineering limits.
How would you measure your own success in the first year, before major revenue shows up?
What they are checking: Whether they understand leading indicators like design wins and qualified pipeline in a long-cycle business.
About the work
What do you understand about how data centers are designed and what drives their purchasing decisions?
What they are checking: Whether they know the data center space well enough to talk credibly with engineers and buyers there.
ITW Formex makes insulation and electrical component materials. Where do you see opportunities for that kind of product in data centers?
What they are checking: Whether they can connect a component supplier's capabilities to real needs in power and cooling equipment.
Walk me through how you would build a go-to-market plan for a new data center product line.
What they are checking: Whether they can structure targeting, channels, pricing and milestones rather than just chasing leads.
How do you gather market requirements from customers and non-customers, and how do you turn that into a product specification?
What they are checking: Whether they can translate field conversations into requirements that engineering can actually build.
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Practice this out loudThe full job description
As published by Illinois Tool Works.