Business Development Leader - Software & PLC Solutions

If you are a sales professional looking for an opportunity to grow, Emerson has an exciting opportunity for you! As a Business Development Manager, you will be responsible for accelerating growth across Emerson’s industrial software and PLC portfolio in North America. The role will shape and execute market development plans, build a strong opportunity pipeline, and expand adoption through direct customer engagement and collaboration with sales teams, channel partners, OEMs, system integrators, and technology partners.

In This Role, Your Responsibilities Will Be:

• Develop and execute the North America business development strategy for industrial software, visualization, edge, and PLC-related solutions, aligned with broader PSS and global priorities.
• Identify priority industries, applications, territories, and partner routes to market that can deliver sustainable orders growth and increased market penetration.
• Create and advance strategic opportunities by engaging customers early, shaping solution value propositions, and coordinating the resources required to progress opportunities through the sales cycle.
• Build and maintain a healthy, visible pipeline; support disciplined CRM practices, opportunity reviews, forecasting, and performance tracking for assigned growth initiatives.
• Partner with regional sales teams and channel leadership to establish account plans, campaigns, and enablement activities that improve coverage and sales effectiveness.
• Develop executive-level relationships with key customers, distributors, OEMs, system integrators, and ecosystem partners.
• Expand software-led and solution-oriented selling by connecting industrial software capabilities with PLC, control, edge, and automation opportunities.
• Work with Marketing to develop differentiated positioning, demand-generation programs, customer proof points, and sales tools for priority market segments.
• Collaborate with Product Management, Engineering, R&D, Quality, and Support to communicate market needs, influence product direction, and improve the end-to-end customer experience.
• Monitor customer needs, competitor activity, technology trends, and market dynamics; convert insights into clear recommendations and business cases.
• Represent the portfolio at customer meetings, partner events, industry forums, and internal leadership reviews.
• Present business performance, pipeline health, market insights, risks, and strategic recommendations to leadership.

Who You Are:

You are sales leadership serving as a strategic partner to build, grow, and maintain profitable and long-lasting relationships with key accounts. You anticipate customer needs and deliver results that make the customer feel at ease. You readily distinguish between what’s relevant and what’s unimportant to make sense of complex situations. You drive alignment across multiple stakeholders and find creative solutions to complex issues. You convey clear performance expectations and follow up consistently while delegating in a way that empowers ownership.

For This Role, You Will Need:

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Business, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• At least 8 years of experience in industrial automation, controls, industrial software, or a related technology market, with demonstrated success in business development, sales, product management, or solution commercialization.
• Working knowledge of PLCs and industrial software ecosystems, including one or more of the following: HMI/SCADA, edge computing, data connectivity, visualization, industrial applications, or digital transformation solutions.
• Demonstrated ability to develop markets, build opportunity pipelines, and advance complex customer or partner engagements.
• Experience working across direct sales, channel partners, OEMs, system integrators, or technology ecosystems.
• Strong communication, presentation, negotiation, and executive engagement skills.
• Ability to operate effectively across functions, business units, geographies, and cultures.
• Willingness and ability to travel regularly within North America.

Preferred Qualifications That Set You Apart:

• MBA or advanced technical degree.
• Experience commercializing industrial software or recurring-revenue offers.
• Experience with North American industrial markets and channel-led go-to-market models.
• Familiarity with Emerson automation technologies, customer industries, and partner ecosystem.
• Experience developing value propositions, market-entry plans, partner programs, or strategic business cases.

Our compensation philosophy is simple: we pay a competitive base salary, within the local market in which we operate, and reward performance during our annual merit review process. The salary range for this role is $105,000 - $160,000 annually, commensurate with the skills, talent, capabilities, and experience each candidate brings to a role.

Our Culture & Commitment to You:

At Emerson, we prioritize a workplace where every employee is valued, respected, and empowered to grow. We foster an environment that encourages innovation, collaboration, and diverse perspectives-because we know that great ideas come from great teams. Our commitment to ongoing career development and growing an inclusive culture ensures you have the support to thrive. Whether through mentorship, training, or leadership opportunities, we invest in your success so you can make a lasting impact. We believe diverse teams, working together are key to driving growth and delivering business results.

We recognize the importance of employee wellbeing. We prioritize providing flexible, competitive benefits plans to meet you and your family’s physical, mental, financial, and social needs. We provide a variety of medical insurance plans, with dental and vision coverage, Employee Assistance Program, 401(k), tuition reimbursement, employee resource groups, recognition, and much more. Our culture offers flexible time off plans, including paid parental leave (maternal and paternal), vacation and holiday leave.