Position: Sales Director - Automotive Electronics

Location: Bengaluru

Role Overview:

The Sales Director will be responsible for driving strategic business growth, customer acquisition, revenue, and profitability across the Automotive Electronics business.

The ideal candidate will have a strong track record of selling automotive electronics systems and sub-systems directly to Automotive OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers, with demonstrated experience in products such as Electronic Control Units (ECUs), automotive electronics clusters, instrument clusters, display systems, infotainment systems, telematics, communication/connectivity systems, ADAS electronics, body electronics, and other vehicle electronic systems.

The role will involve developing senior-level relationships with Automotive OEMs, identifying new business opportunities, leading RFQ/RFI/RFP engagements, managing commercial negotiations, and converting opportunities into long-term business relationships.

The incumbent will own the complete sales lifecycle—from market development, opportunity identification and customer engagement through RFQ management, commercial negotiation, business award, and strategic account growth.

The role requires close collaboration with Engineering, Program Management, Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, and other internal functions to ensure successful customer acquisition and sustainable business growth.

The position requires extensive interaction with Automotive OEMs and Tier-1 customers and involves frequent travel across India and internationally, as required.

Key Responsibilities

1. Business Development & Sales

Drive order intake, revenue, profitability, and market share growth for the Automotive Electronics business.
Develop and execute strategic sales and business development plans aligned with organizational objectives.
Identify and acquire new Automotive OEM and Tier-1 customers.
Build and manage a strong sales pipeline to achieve annual revenue and order booking targets.
Develop account growth strategies for key customers and maximize wallet share.
Identify new vehicle electronics opportunities across passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, EVs, and emerging mobility platforms.
Lead RFQ/RFI/RFP pursuits from opportunity identification and qualification through proposal submission, negotiation, and business award.
Develop and execute customer-specific capture strategies for high-value opportunities.

2. Automotive Electronics Product Sales

Drive sales of automotive electronics systems and sub-systems to OEMs and Tier-1 customers.
Leverage existing relationships and networks across Automotive OEM purchasing, engineering, sourcing, and senior management functions.
Demonstrate strong understanding of products such as:
Electronic Control Units (ECUs)
Instrument Clusters / Digital Clusters
Display Systems
Infotainment Systems
Telematics and Connectivity Systems
Communication Systems
ADAS Electronics
Body Control Electronics
Gateway and Vehicle Networking Systems
Battery Management Systems (BMS)
Power Electronics
EV Electronics
Understand customer technology roadmaps and identify opportunities to position the company's products, engineering capabilities, manufacturing capabilities, and system integration solutions.
Work closely with technical teams to develop customer-specific solutions and value propositions.

3. Strategic Account Management

Establish and maintain CXO and senior-management relationships with Automotive OEMs and Tier-1 customers.
Develop long-term strategic partnerships with key accounts.
Understand customer product, platform, technology, sourcing, and localization strategies.
Develop strategic account plans and identify opportunities for cross-selling and up-selling.
Increase wallet share within existing accounts.
Proactively manage customer expectations and ensure high levels of customer satisfaction.
Act as the senior commercial interface between the organization and strategic customers.

4. Market Development

Monitor Automotive Electronics market trends, OEM sourcing strategies, technology developments, and competitive activity.
Identify emerging opportunities in:
Electric Vehicles (EV)
ADAS
Connected Vehicles
Infotainment
Digital Cockpit
Displays
Telematics
Vehicle Connectivity
Power Electronics
Battery Management Systems
Body Electronics
Vehicle Networking
Develop market-entry and market-penetration strategies for new customers and product segments.
Build business cases for new markets, products, customers, and geographies.
Maintain strong industry intelligence regarding OEM platforms, upcoming vehicle programs, sourcing decisions, and technology roadmaps.

5. Commercial Management

Lead pricing strategy, commercial proposals, negotiations, and business closure.
Own commercial discussions with customer procurement and sourcing teams.
Ensure business proposals meet targeted revenue and profitability objectives.
Evaluate commercial risks and develop appropriate mitigation strategies.
Support contract negotiations and commercial agreements in collaboration with Legal, Finance, and senior management.
Ensure appropriate commercial governance throughout the sales cycle.

6. Sales Strategy, Forecasting & Business Planning

Develop annual and long-term sales and business development strategies.
Prepare revenue, order booking, pipeline, and customer forecasts.
Develop customer account plans, opportunity plans, and business capture plans.
Monitor sales funnel performance and conversion ratios.
Present periodic sales reviews, pipeline updates, business forecasts, and strategic account updates to executive leadership.
Ensure high forecasting accuracy and achievement of annual business targets.

7. Cross-Functional Leadership

Work closely with Engineering, Product Development, Program Management, Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, and Operations teams.
Coordinate internal teams during RFQ, product development, prototype, validation, NPI, production ramp-up, and mass production phases.
Ensure customer commitments relating to quality, cost, delivery, technology, and commercial objectives are effectively managed.
Support escalation management and resolution of critical customer issues.

8. Customer & Industry Engagement

Represent the organization at Automotive OEM meetings, technology forums, industry conferences, trade shows, and customer events.
Build strong relationships within the Automotive Electronics ecosystem.
Track industry developments and communicate relevant market intelligence internally.
Develop relationships across OEM Purchasing, Sourcing, Engineering, R&D, Program Management, and senior leadership teams.

9. CRM & Sales Excellence

Maintain accurate customer, opportunity, quotation, pipeline, and forecast information in the CRM system.
Ensure disciplined CRM usage and timely reporting.
Establish effective sales processes, opportunity qualification, pipeline reviews, and sales governance.
Track sales performance metrics and continuously improve sales effectiveness.

Qualifications

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Engineering – Electronics, Electrical, Instrumentation, Mechanical, Automotive, or related discipline is mandatory.
MBA / Postgraduate qualification in Sales, Marketing, Business Administration, or related discipline is preferred.

Experience

15+ years of overall experience in Sales, Business Development, Key Account Management, or related commercial functions within the Automotive Electronics industry.
Strong experience in selling automotive electronics systems/sub-systems to Automotive OEMs and/or Tier-1 customers.
Candidates should have demonstrated sales experience in one or more of the following:
ECUs
Instrument / Digital Clusters
Display Systems
Infotainment
Telematics
Communication / Connectivity Systems
ADAS Electronics
Body Electronics
Gateway / Vehicle Networking
BMS
EV Electronics
Power Electronics
Strong understanding of Automotive OEM sourcing, procurement, RFQ, nomination, and business award processes.
Proven track record of acquiring new customers and securing significant automotive electronics business.
Experience managing strategic OEM accounts and complex, long-cycle sales engagements.
Demonstrated experience handling large-value commercial negotiations and business opportunities.
Experience in working with both technical and commercial stakeholders within Automotive OEMs.

Skills & Knowledge

Strong understanding of Automotive Electronics products, systems, and architectures.
Strong OEM and Tier-1 customer network in India.
Deep understanding of Automotive OEM procurement and sourcing processes.
Strong consultative and solution-selling capability.
Expertise in strategic selling, opportunity qualification, pursuit management, and business capture.
Strong commercial, negotiation, and contract-management skills.
Ability to understand customer technology roadmaps and translate them into business opportunities.
Strong business acumen with an understanding of revenue, margins, costing, and profitability.
Excellent executive presentation and communication skills.
Strong relationship-building and stakeholder-management capabilities.
Experience with CRM platforms such as Zoho, Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, or equivalent.

Leadership Competencies

Strategic thinking and business acumen.
Strong customer and market orientation.
Executive stakeholder management.
Strong negotiation and influencing skills.
Cross-functional leadership.
Results orientation and strong execution capability.
Ability to operate independently and build new business.
Strong commercial judgment.
High levels of integrity and professionalism.
Ability to engage effectively with CXO-level stakeholders.