Automotive Strategic Accounts & Business Development Manager

Automotive Strategic Accounts & Business Development Manager

Location: Sterling Heights, Michigan

Compensation: $90,000–$120,000 annually (commensurate with proven experience)

Schedule: Day shift, 8-hour workday with a flexible start between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m.

A day in this role

You start your morning reviewing overnight quote requests in customer portals like Ford Supplier Portal, GM SupplyPower, eSupplier Connect, and ZF SupplyOn. Over coffee, you sync with Finance to confirm that new forecasts align to the company’s 5-year strategic plan. By mid-morning, you’re with the General Manager and Plant Manager finalizing a capture strategy for a key OEM program. After lunch, you’re compiling a formal quotation—pulling data from PLEX and collaborating with cross-functional partners for precise, on-time submission. You finish the day by checking in with existing customers, benchmarking competitors, and preparing a plan to expand into an emerging market segment.

What you’ll drive

• Win net-new business that ladders up to the corporate 5-year strategic plan.
• Build and sustain strong relationships with customers and direct suppliers.
• Organize all inputs for assigned projects/quotes, enabling data-driven recommendations by leadership.
• Navigate and maintain customer-specific ERP/portal systems to manage and respond to RFQs.
• Assemble, validate, and submit compliant quotation packages in line with corporate quoting procedures.
• Coordinate local and regional sales initiatives to meet growth targets.
• Partner with Finance to ensure sales assumptions align with long-range plans.
• Collaborate closely with the General Manager, Plant Manager, and broader leadership to win new business, retain customers, and swiftly resolve issues.
• Lead special projects as assigned.
• Benchmark capabilities and financial performance against competitors.
• Track market shifts, emerging sectors, new product introductions, and competitive movements.
• Work cross-functionally to gather the right inputs for both new and existing programs.

What you bring

• Proficiency with PLEX; Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Teams, and Outlook; Ford Supplier Portal; GM SupplyPower; eSupplier Connect; and ZF SupplyOn.
• Ability to read engineering drawings/CAD data at a high level.
• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Organization Development, or a related discipline—or equivalent training/experience.
• Comfort with typical office work, including regular walking, sitting, and using standard office equipment.

Skills that set you apart

• Advanced analytical skills for solving unusual, complex problems.
• Excellent written and verbal communication.
• Strong interpersonal effectiveness and collaboration.
• Exceptional planning and organizational discipline.
• Fluency with spreadsheets and word processing.
• 1–7 years of prior sales experience.
• CAR’s training and PLEX training.

Compliance

A successful candidate will be subject to a background check and must receive satisfactory results of the same, as a condition of joining the team.

By applying for this role, you confirm that all information submitted is accurate and complete. You further acknowledge that providing false or fraudulent information during the application process is cause for denial of an offer, revocation of any existing offer, or other adverse action, up to and including termination after the start of your commencement of work.