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Palo Alto

Director of Business Development

Key Responsibilities

1. Own North America Business Growth

• Own business development, pipeline, and revenue growth across Autonomous Mobility, Robotics, 3D Mapping, and Smart Infrastructure in North America.

• Develop and execute regional growth strategies across priority markets, applications, and customer segments.

• Define market priorities, strategic accounts, sales targets, and resource allocation to support sustainable growth.

• Identify emerging applications and market opportunities where LiDAR and 3D sensing can create meaningful customer value.

2. Win Strategic Customers and New Business

• Identify, develop, and convert high-value new business opportunities and strategic accounts.

• Build strong multi-level relationships across engineering, product, procurement, business leadership, and executive stakeholders.

• Lead complex sales cycles from initial customer engagement and technical evaluation through proof of concept, pilot deployment, commercial negotiation, and production business.

• Personally lead strategic pursuits, key customer engagements, and major commercial negotiations.

• Expand existing strategic accounts while continuously developing new customers, applications, and revenue opportunities.

• Position Hesai early in customer development cycles to influence product selection, system architecture, technical requirements, and sourcing decisions.

3. Lead and Develop the North America Team

• Lead, coach, and develop the North America business development and sales team.

• Establish clear account ownership, performance expectations, sales goals, and accountability.

• Conduct regular pipeline, account, and opportunity reviews to improve prioritization, execution, and deal progression.

• Support team members in navigating complex customer situations, technical evaluations, and commercial negotiations.

• Build a high-performance, customer-focused culture with strong ownership, urgency, and execution discipline.

4. Build and Manage a High-Quality Pipeline

• Build a strong pipeline through direct prospecting, strategic networking, industry relationships, channel partners, inbound opportunities, conferences, tradeshows, and marketing activities.

• Establish disciplined opportunity qualification and prioritize resources toward the highest-potential customers and programs.

• Develop clear account strategies, stakeholder maps, pursuit plans, and next-step ownership for strategic opportunities.

• Own regional pipeline management, revenue forecasting, and short- and long-term business projections.

5. Drive Cross-Functional Execution

Partner closely with Product Management, Engineering, Application Engineering, Sales Operations, Marketing, and global business teams, including teams at Hesai’s China headquarters, to support customer evaluations and commercial opportunities.

• Coordinate internal resources for customer demonstrations, system integrations, proof-of-concept projects, pilot deployments, and production programs.

• Translate customer requirements, competitive intelligence, and market trends into actionable input for product and business strategy.

• Ensure critical customer commitments, technical requirements, and commercial priorities are clearly communicated and executed across internal teams.

• Act as an effective bridge between North American customers and internal teams in China, ensuring alignment on customer priorities, business opportunities, and execution.

6. Strengthen Market Presence and Strategy

• Build and maintain a strong network across the Autonomous Mobility, Robotics, 3D Mapping, and Smart Infrastructure ecosystems.

• Represent Hesai at key industry conferences, tradeshows, customer events, and strategic meetings.

• Monitor market trends, technology developments, competitor activities, customer investment priorities, and emerging applications.

• Identify new market segments, use cases, partnerships, and business models that can drive future growth.

7. Drive Commercial and Operational Discipline

• Lead strategic pricing, commercial terms, and contract negotiations.

• Apply strong commercial judgment to pricing, business models, customer investment decisions, and long-term account potential.

• Ensure opportunities, customer activities, forecasts, and key next steps are accurately maintained in Hesai’s CRM.

• Maintain strong reporting and forecasting discipline to support business planning, operations, and finance

Desired Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in business development, sales, strategic accounts, or related customer-facing commercial roles within advanced technology markets, including significant experience as an individual contributor with direct quota and revenue ownership.

• 3+ years of experience leading and developing a business development or sales team, with demonstrated success in setting goals, driving accountability, and improving team performance.

• Proven track record of achieving or exceeding revenue, pipeline, and business growth targets.

• Demonstrated ability to build new business from the ground up, open strategic accounts, and personally lead complex, high-value commercial opportunities.

• Strong customer network and relevant experience within one or more of the following areas:

• Autonomous Mobility, including autonomous vehicles, robotaxis, autonomous shuttles, delivery vehicles, and off-road autonomous platforms

• Robotics and Automation, including warehouse, logistics, manufacturing, service, and mobile robotics

• 3D Mapping and Geospatial Technologies, including mobile mapping, surveying, digital twins, and spatial intelligence

• Smart Infrastructure, including intelligent transportation, airports, traffic systems, security, and infrastructure automation

• Experience selling LiDAR, cameras, 3D sensing systems, sensors, robotics components, opto-mechatronic products, semiconductors, or other technically complex B2B technologies strongly preferred.

• Strong understanding of complex technical sales cycles, including product evaluation, proof of concept, pilot deployment, commercial negotiation, and production ramp.

• Strong leadership skills with the ability to operate effectively as a player-coach, developing the team while remaining personally involved in strategic accounts and key deals.

• Strong hunter mentality with high energy, initiative, persistence, urgency, and personal ownership.

• Excellent communication, presentation, negotiation, and executive relationship-building skills.

• Highly proactive, organized, and disciplined in pipeline management, forecasting, prioritization, and customer follow-up.

• Strong commercial judgment and analytical skills, with the ability to understand customer requirements, identify barriers, and develop commercially viable solutions.

• Ability to understand complex technical products and communicate effectively with both engineering teams and senior business decision-makers.

• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, international environment and collaborating effectively across teams in North America, Europe, and China. Experience working closely with China-based headquarters or cross-border teams is strongly preferred.

• Willingness and ability to travel approximately 30–50%, primarily across North America, with periodic international travel including visits to Hesai’s headquarters in China.

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, or a related field required; advanced degree preferred.

What Success Looks Like

Success in this role will be measured by the ability to:

• Build and maintain a strong pipeline across Autonomous Mobility, Robotics, 3D Mapping, and Smart Infrastructure.

• Open new strategic customer relationships and create meaningful new business opportunities.

• Convert customer engagement into design wins, production programs, and measurable revenue growth.

• Expand Hesai’s position within priority customers, applications, and markets.

• Build strong relationships with key technical, commercial, and executive decision-makers.

• Develop and lead a high-performing North America business development team.

• Consistently drive opportunities forward with speed, ownership, and strong commercial discipline.