Sr. Account Leader

Company Overview: Tata Electronics Private Limited (TEPL), a greenfield venture of the Tata Group, specializes in manufacturing precision components. As a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons Pvt. Ltd., Tata Electronics is establishing India’s first AI-enabled, state-of-the-art semiconductor foundry. This facility will produce chips for applications such as power management ICs, display drivers, microcontrollers (MCUs), and high-performance computing logic, catering to markets like automotive, computing and data storage, wireless communications, and artificial intelligence.

About Tata Group: The Tata Group operates in over 100 countries across six continents, with a mission to improve the quality of life of the communities we serve globally, through long-term stakeholder value creation based on leadership with trust.

Role Overview: We are seeking a highly skilled and strategic Senior Account Leader to grow our engagement with our largest customer. This role requires deep expertise in global Account management, contract manufacturing operations, and large-scale commercial negotiations within the consumer electronics industry.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Account Management & Relationship Building:

• Owns the commercial strategy for top global OEM customers, balancing customer satisfaction with company profitability.
• Serve as the primary liaison for our customers, developing long-term partnerships and ensuring alignment with business objectives.
• Develop and execute supplier engagement strategies, driving value across cost, quality, and supply chain efficiency.
• Collaborate with customers' internal teams, including engineering, procurement, and operations, to manage expectations and deliver business results.
• Influence executive decision-making through data-driven insights, risk assessments, and scenario planning.

Pricing, Contracts & Commercial Negotiations:

• Negotiates MSAs, pricing tables, quarterly resets, premiums for expedite/NRE, and long‑term contracting while safeguarding financial interests.
• Aligns revenue growth strategies with operational capabilities, supply chain constraints, and financial impact assessments.
• Develop and execute cost strategies that optimize pricing across the product lifecycle, from NPI (New Product Introduction) to mass production.
• Work closely with legal, finance, and operations teams to structure agreements that align with company objectives.

Profitability and Margin Expansion:

Maximizes account profitability by managing key EMS levers:

• Material cost reductions (PPV, sourcing initiatives, AVL consolidation)
• Labor/overhead optimization
• Yield improvement and Cost of Quality (COQ) reduction
• Pricing adjustments, should‑cost modeling, and value‑engineering (VAVE) programs

Ensures strong contribution margins in a high‑mix, high‑volume EMS environment through tight financial discipline and predictive account performance management.

Drive Operational Efficiency:

• Collaborate with internal and customer operations teams on ramp planning and operational efficiencies for product launches, driving efficiencies for customers while ensuring company profitability.
• Implement strategies to reduce total cost per unit (TCU), improve cycle time, and enhance factory automation.

Leadership and Decision Making:

• Uses data‑driven insights to make decisions impacting business performance, capital deployment, and ROI.
• Partners cross‑functionally with Sales, Operations, Supply Chain, and Finance to align operational outputs with P&L goals.
• Proactively identifies financial risks and opportunities, implementing corrective action plans to protect profitability.
• Leads quarterly business reviews (QBR) and financial reporting cycles to ensure transparency and accountability.

Strategic Financial Leadership

• Drives account-level financial strategy, ensuring profitability across NPI, ramp, mass production, and EOL life cycles typical in EMS models (materials, labor, overhead, supply chain, logistics, warranty reserves).
• Leads quarterly/annual operating plan (AOP) cycles, aligning customer demand, factory capacity, material cost trends, and long‑term commercial agreements with financial targets.

Leadership and Executive Communication:

• Provides executive‑level reporting on account financial health, including revenue, margins, working capital, and customer scorecards.
• Leads and mentors account managers/program managers on commercial management, financial discipline, and profitability strategies.
• Acts as the sponsor for critical customers, ensuring alignment of long‑term financial goals with customer partnership models.

Qualifications:

• Strong analytical and strategic thinking with a focus on cost management, risk mitigation, and operational efficiency.
• Demonstrated end‑to‑end P&L ownership for multi‑million‑dollar US Tier 1 EMS customer accounts, including revenue forecasting, cost modeling, pricing strategy, and margin optimization.
• Technical knowledge of mechanical and electrical component sourcing and supplier capability development.
• Data-driven, self-motivated, and results-oriented.
• Highly organized, detail-oriented, and capable of planning ahead.
• Ability to create and execute plans with clear deliverables, owners, and timelines.
• 15 years of experience in global supply chain, strategic account management, or procurement within consumer electronics or a high-volume manufacturing environment with US Tier 1 OEMs.
• Prior experience in a Senior Account Management, Global Supply Management, or Contract Manufacturing role at a Tier 1 EMS company.
• Expertise in contract manufacturing, supplier development, cost negotiations, and production ramp planning.
• Proven track record of managing high-value supplier relationships and large-scale supply chain agreements.
• Formal negotiation training (Harvard Negotiation Project, Karrass, or similar preferred).
• Experience with enterprise management systems (ERP, SAP, or equivalent).
• Excellent leadership communication and ability to influence executive decision-making.
• MBA or Master’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, or Engineering.
• Project Management Professional (PMP) from an accredited institution.
• Experience setting up and managing a new manufacturing site (Greenfield site) or factory ramp.