Sr Manager- Business Development USA

First Solar reserves the right to offer you a role most applicable to your experience and skillset.

Basic Job Functions:

This position is a cross-functional role that integrates several independent teams and functions while seeking to recognize cross functional synergies between them. The position requires a strategic development perspective, a markets origination focus to drive the organization's performance across the growing US market, with a specific focus on hyperscalers and US government agencies. This role is key to engaging, developing, and coordinating activities with these key buyers of power, while navigating strategic allocation to enable their projects with First Solar modules.

The Sr. Manager is responsible for driving the development of growth and customer relationships across First Solar's US regions. The Sr. Manager will drive implementation through preparation and opening of assigned new markets or segments, and evolving this network via new sales, account management and other business development activities as required. They will define go to market strategy, including identification of market entry points, key anchor customers/opportunities. Candidate will be responsible for developing and sustaining market value proposition, balancing corporate and customer needs for success. The Sr. Manager will also drive execution of the strategy and direct engagement of the identified customers, assisted by the Business Development team, including strategies to unlock value across customers.

This position requires analyzing challenging situations and driving clarity while maintaining complex alignment across the approval process. Key aspects of this role will center on driving strategic value alignment, partner development, commercial contract execution, managing cross functional relationships and the ability to obtain executive management support and approvals.

Education/Experience:

• An undergraduate degree is required; MBA or Masters of Engineering (or equivalent) a plus.
• 10+ years of work experience in business development, economic development, sales, engineering, project management or other relevant business / technical experience.
• Minimum of 7+ years of experience in the energy, technology, government, and/or utility sectors.
• Ability to travel to multiple geographies is required.

Required Skills/Competencies:

Leadership Skills:

• Demonstrated experience navigating complex situations across C-suite audiences in a fast changing internal and external environment.
• Demonstrated experience in successfully engaging new customers.
• Expertise in identifying, implementing, originating, negotiating and executing commercial contracts.
• Proven ability to provide best in class account management to various key customer stakeholders.
• Proven experience leading cross-functional high performing teams, with demonstrated results.

Analytical Skills:

• Demonstrated strengths in the core product management analytics:
  
  
  
  • Market/Customer Segment Analysis
  • Competitive Analysis
  • Positioning Analysis
  • Economic Value Analysis
  • Business Case Analysis
  
  
• Understanding of US power and utility markets structures and decision-making. Analytical skills to assess the impacts of regulatory changes.
• Detail-oriented and productive when leading cross functional project timelines, including sales contracting, project delivery administration, developing memoranda of understanding (MOUs), letters of interest (LOIs), and so on.

Customer/Market Engagement Skills

• Demonstrated expertise in engaging targeted customers to:
  
  
  
  • Acquire and validate key success factors and solution needs
  • Identify market hypothesis/gaps/opportunities for success
  • Establish long-term commercial partnerships
  • Negotiate and close commercial agreements
  • Navigate issues and their potential impacts to revenue
  
  

Communication Skills:

• Excellent written, oral, and executive level communication skills.
• Demonstrated excellence in defining/aligning organizational priorities with multiple internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated excellence in communication of status to objectives; up, down, laterally and diagonally across the organization.

Essential Responsibilities:

• Act as a trusted advisor to the head of strategic accounts; market segmentation, origination strategies and collaboration with executive leadership.
• Functional responsibility to drive development and alignment of the global business plan and strategy for identified market segments, specifically hyperscalers and government agencies.
• Structure and implement a multi-year, multi-segment Market Strategy that includes an integrated segmentation strategy and product application/solution roadmap.
  
  
  
  • Quarterback the annual planning process, provide updates in regular review meetings, and document/manage approvals for the plan.
  • Host recurring meetings with key stakeholders to align strategies, identify constraints, and implement action plans.
  
  
• Drive customer intimacy and grow deep relationships across multiple levels and customer accounts by ensuring:
  
  
  
  • Strong engagement across multiple business units within each identified customer (i.e., chief sustainability officer, VP government affairs, head of energy, procurement, strategy, etc.).
  • Close collaboration between all account managers and subject matter experts engaging with the customer.
  • Responsibility for supplier qualification and development/maintenance of overarching framework agreements.
  
  
• Provides cross-functional and executive reporting of key business metrics and corrective action plans to achieve key performance metrics.
• Other duties as assigned.
• Job description subject to change at any time.

Reporting Relationships:

• Reports to Head of Strategic Accounts.
• May have direct reports.

Travel:

• 10% - 20%

Estimated Salary Range:

• $138,200 - $175,000 Annually

US Physical Requirements:

All positions in our office require interaction with people and technology while either standing or sitting. To best service our customers, internal and external, all associates must be able to communicate face-to-face and on the phone with or without reasonable accommodation. First Solar is committed to compliance with its obligations under all applicable state and federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. In keeping with this commitment, it attempts to reasonably accommodate applicants and employees in accordance with the requirements of the disability discrimination laws. It also invites individuals with disabilities to participate in a good faith, interactive process to identify reasonable accommodations that can be made without imposing an undue hardship.

Potential candidates will meet the education and experience requirements provided on the above job description and excel in completing the listed responsibilities for this role. All candidates receiving an offer of employment must successfully complete a background check and any other tests that may be required.

Equal Opportunity Employer Statement: First Solar is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values and respects the importance of a diverse and inclusive workforce. It is the policy of the company to recruit, hire, train and promote persons in all job titles without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a driving force in the success of our company.