Principal Business Development Manager – Air & Water OEM

At GE Appliances, a Haier company, we come together to make “good things, for life.” As the fastest-growing appliance company in the U.S., we’re powered by creators, thinkers and makers who believe that anything is possible and that there’s always a better way. We believe in the power of our people and in giving them the freedom to explore, discover and build good things, together.

The GE Appliances philosophy, backed by three simple commitments defines the way we work, invent, create, do business, and serve our communities: we come together , we always look for a better way , and we create possibilities .

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States at the time of hire and must be able to maintain such authorization without current or future employer or school sponsorship. GE Appliances will not sponsor employment-based visas for this position now or in the future.

Interested in joining us on our journey?

As GE Appliances’ Principal Business Development Manager – A&W OEM, you will lead the identification, prioritization, and advancement of OEM growth opportunities across manufacturers, plumbing/HVAC distributors, contractor roll-up groups, and other strategic channel partners. You will serve as a key commercial subject matter expert for the A&W OEM space, shaping account and segment pursuit strategies, evaluating opportunity fit, and translating external market needs into actionable business requirements and cross-functional execution plans. In this role, you will influence commercial priorities and operational readiness by partnering closely with product, engineering, operations, quality, supply chain, service, and finance teams, as well as Haier engineering, manufacturing, and product management teams in China. This is a highly autonomous individual contributor role with direct impact on OEM pipeline quality, profitable revenue growth, customer acquisition strategy, and the development of scalable OEM commercial processes and operating discipline.

Position

Principal Business Development Manager – Air & Water OEM

Location

USA, Louisville, KY

How You'll Create Possibilities

OEM Growth Strategy, Portfolio Prioritization & Pipeline Leadership (30%)

• •Develop and execute OEM growth strategies for assigned customer and channel segments, including target-account prioritization, whitespace identification, and pursuit planning.
• •Identify and prioritize manufacturers, plumbing/HVAC distributors, contractor organizations, strategic sourcing customers, and adjacent channel partners with OEM, private label, or branded program needs.
• •Build, manage, and continuously refine a qualified opportunity pipeline using market mapping, relationship development, proactive outreach, industry events, and referrals.
• •Establish account-entry and expansion strategies, including stakeholder mapping, customer need assessment, opportunity screening criteria, and pursuit sequencing.
• •Own pipeline visibility, opportunity governance, and forecast discipline for active pursuits, ensuring leadership has clear insight into conversion outlook, timing, and commercial risk.

Opportunity Leadership, Solution Shaping & Commercial Execution (30%)

• •Lead complex OEM opportunities from initial engagement through discovery, business case development, solution definition, proposal coordination, commercial alignment, negotiation support, and transition to launch.
• •Assess customer requirements, competitive alternatives, volume potential, margin profile, supply implications, technical feasibility, and execution risks to determine opportunity attractiveness and viability.
• •Partner with internal stakeholders to define commercially sound and operationally executable OEM solutions aligned to customer requirements and enterprise capabilities.
• •Influence pricing assumptions, scope alignment, launch expectations, and agreement structure by coordinating inputs across commercial, operational, and technical teams.
• •Drive resolution of key barriers to conversion by clarifying tradeoffs, surfacing decision points, and aligning stakeholders on recommended path forward.
• •Track win/loss themes, opportunity conversion patterns, and recurring commercial obstacles to improve future pursuit quality and close effectiveness.

Market Insight, Business Planning & OEM Capability Development (20%)

• •Monitor market activity, sourcing trends, customer demand signals, channel shifts, and competitor positions to identify actionable OEM growth opportunities and emerging risks.
• •Synthesize customer and market feedback into business cases, segment recommendations, and opportunity prioritization guidance for internal stakeholders.
• •Contribute to commercial planning by recommending pursuit focus areas, target segments, customer strategies, and capability needs that support OEM growth objectives.
• •Identify common market pain points, unmet needs, and recurring deal barriers to inform process improvements, offer refinement, and longer-term OEM channel development.

Cross-Functional Leadership, Global Alignment & Launch Readiness (20%)

• •Serve as the commercial lead across cross-functional teams to connect customer requirements with product, engineering, operations, quality, supply chain, service, and global manufacturing capabilities.
• •Partner with Haier teams in China and U.S.-based stakeholders to align on technical requirements, timing, manufacturing considerations, and launch readiness expectations.
• •Communicate customer requirements, decision timelines, pricing needs, competitive threats, and program risks to the appropriate stakeholders to support timely decisions and execution alignment.
• •Lead structured handoff and launch-readiness coordination for awarded business to support an effective transition from pursuit to execution.
• •Contribute to the development of scalable OEM tools, commercial processes, qualification frameworks, and operating practices that improve opportunity selection, execution consistency, and functional performance.

Other related duties as assigned:

• •Support trade shows, customer meetings, and internal business reviews.
• •Contribute to reporting, opportunity tracking, and commercial documentation.
• •Provide informal guidance and commercial context to cross-functional partners supporting OEM pursuits.
• •Perform other related duties as assigned.

What You'll Bring to Our Team

Qualifications, Education, and Experiential Background

• •Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Engineering, Supply Chain, or a related field; equivalent experience may substitute for educational requirement.
• •7+ years of relevant experience in OEM sales, B2B technical sales, business development, national account sales, channel development, or related commercial roles in manufacturing or industrial environments.
• •Demonstrated experience leading complex opportunities through a structured commercial process from prospect development and qualification through proposal development, negotiation support, and launch transition.
• •Experience evaluating customer needs, commercial tradeoffs, technical constraints, and execution risks to shape practical, profitable business opportunities.
• •Experience influencing cross-functional stakeholders across product, engineering, operations, supply chain, quality, service, and finance in support of commercial outcomes.
• •Experience working with customers in HVAC, plumbing, water heating, water treatment, building products, distribution, or related manufacturing sectors.

Preferred Qualifications/Education/Experience

• •Experience selling to or working with OEM manufacturers, plumbing/HVAC distributors, contractor roll-ups, consolidators, national service platforms, or strategic sourcing teams.
• •Existing network in plumbing, HVAC, water heating, water treatment, building products, contractor services, distribution, or OEM channels.
• •Experience supporting private label, OEM supply, branded program, or cross-border manufacturing partnership