Job Description
Job Overview
The Vice President, Sales is responsible for driving profitable revenue growth and expanding FreightCar America's strategic market position across assigned customer accounts and market segments. This role serves as the executive commercial leader for customer relationships, responsible for identifying, developing, and securing new business opportunities while maximizing long-term customer value.
Success in this position requires a highly consultative and strategic sales approach centered on understanding each customer's business objectives, operational challenges, and growth initiatives. The Vice President, Sales develops trusted executive relationships, influences customer decision-making through insight and technical expertise, and delivers differentiated value propositions that position FreightCar America as the preferred long-term partner.
This individual owns the entire commercial lifecycle—from market development and opportunity identification through strategy development, proposal execution, negotiation, contract award, and long-term account growth.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities (Other duties may be assigned)
- Lead profitable sales growth for FreightCar America's complete product portfolio within assigned accounts and territories.
- Proactively identify, qualify, and develop new business opportunities through strategic customer engagement, market intelligence, and consultative selling.
- Build deep, multi-level relationships across customer organizations, including executive leadership, operations, engineering, procurement, finance, and other key decision-makers and influencers.
- Develop comprehensive stakeholder engagement strategies that strengthen customer partnerships and increase FreightCar America's influence throughout the buying process.
- Gain a thorough understanding of each customer's strategic objectives, operational challenges, capital investment priorities, and long-term fleet requirements to identify opportunities where FreightCar America can create measurable value.
- Lead opportunity strategy from early business development through contract award, ensuring disciplined opportunity management and execution.
- Develop compelling, value-based commercial solutions that clearly demonstrate the operational, financial, and lifecycle advantages of FreightCar America's products and services.
- Influence customer purchasing decisions by effectively communicating total value, technical differentiation, lifecycle economics, and return on investment rather than competing solely on price.
- Develop and execute strategic account plans that expand market share, increase customer loyalty, and achieve long-term revenue and profitability objectives.
- Continuously analyze customer business trends, market dynamics, competitive activity, and industry developments to anticipate future opportunities and risks.
- Collaborate closely with Engineering, Product Management, Operations, Supply Chain, Finance, and Executive Leadership to develop customer-focused solutions that align technical capabilities with customer requirements.
- Provide market intelligence and customer insights that support product innovation, portfolio development, pricing strategy, and long-term commercial planning.
- Lead commercial negotiations while balancing customer satisfaction with FreightCar America's profitability and strategic objectives.
- Serve as the executive advocate for assigned customers while maintaining alignment with company goals and financial expectations.
Responsibilities
- Achieve annual sales, revenue, margin, and market share objectives.
- Maintain accurate opportunity pipelines, forecasts, and account strategies using Salesforce CRM.
- Travel up to 50% to support customer engagement, strategic business development, industry events, and operational initiatives.
Qualifications
An employee in this position should have the following education/certifications, work experience, and skill set:
Education/Certification:
- Bachelor's Degree in Business, Engineering, Marketing, Finance, or a related technical discipline from an accredited university.
- Working knowledge of AAR rules, regulations, and freight rail industry standards preferred.
Work Experience:
- Minimum of 10 years of progressive commercial leadership experience in strategic sales, business development, product management, or executive account management within an industrial, manufacturing, transportation, or capital equipment environment.
- Demonstrated success identifying and winning complex, high-value sales opportunities through strategic customer engagement.
- Experience leading executive-level negotiations and managing long sales cycles involving multiple stakeholders and decision-makers.
- Proven history of growing market share while maintaining disciplined pricing and profitability.
S Skills and Knowledge:
- Demonstrated ability to discover, develop, and convert new business opportunities into long-term customer partnerships.
- Exceptional executive relationship-building skills with the ability to establish trust and credibility across all levels of customer organizations.
- Strong consultative selling capabilities focused on uncovering customer needs, solving complex business challenges, and delivering differentiated value.
- Expertise in stakeholder analysis, organizational mapping, and influencing complex buying decisions.
- Strategic thinker capable of translating market intelligence and customer insights into actionable commercial strategies.
- Proven ability to communicate compelling value propositions that emphasize total cost of ownership, operational performance, and long-term customer value.
- Executive presence with outstanding communication, presentation, negotiation, and influencing skills.
- Strong financial and commercial acumen, including pricing strategy, contract negotiations, profitability management, and business case development.
- Deep understanding of freight rail markets, railroad operations, leasing companies, shippers, and railcar manufacturing is highly preferred.
- Ability to thrive in a dynamic, competitive environment while effectively managing multiple strategic priorities.
- Strong analytical and market assessment skills with the ability to anticipate customer needs and emerging industry trends.
- High degree of personal accountability, resilience, integrity, and a results-oriented mindset.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and Salesforce CRM.
DISCLAIMER: This is not necessarily an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, skills, efforts, requirements or working conditions associated with the job. While this is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current job, management reserves the right to revise the job or to require that other or different tasks be performed as assigned.
FreightCar America provides equal employment opportunity to all individuals regardless of their race, color, creed, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by state, federal, or local law.