Sales manager - utility

Be part of a growing, successful company in an exciting and challenging field. Border States is 100% employee-owned, which means you’re empowered to make decisions, find solutions and receive rewards for your hard work.

This position will be located in: Nashville, TN or Clarksville, TN, or Cookeville, TN, or Hendersonville, TN, or Lebanon, TN, or Murfreesboro, TN, or Jacksonville, AR

Application Deadline: November 6, 2026

Please note that the position may be filled before or after the listed application deadline. Applications will only be accepted while the posting remains active.

Job Summary

The Sales Manager - Utility creates, communicates, and implements a strategic sales and marketing plan that provides significant competitive differentiation, bottom and top-line growth, and long-term sustainability. Provides coaching & development to Branch Managers and Account Managers. Develops strong professional relationships with high-level influencers and decision-makers at key and target customers. Establishes strong relationships with key manufacturers and their representatives.

Responsibilities

Essential Functions

• Builds strong relationships with key vendors and suppliers to achieve growth objectives.
• Builds relationships with key customers within the segment.
• Drives a culture across the area that builds momentum for the segment and overall business.
• Works across the entire area and each branch to grow business in the segment and the company.
• Works to gain a complete understanding of a customer’s industry; understands the issues and opportunities they face and their key success factors.
• Builds, communicates, and implements a segment strategy to support customers’ needs through services and solutions that provide for their overall profitability and success; the strategy should offer competitive differentiation and advantages over competition while contributing bottom-line results.
• Defines and supports sales training programs that enable staff to achieve their full potential and support company objectives.
• Works closely with strategic manufacturing partners to facilitate close working relationships with regional and local sales teams.
• Directly responsible for the gross margin growth, gross margin %, and market share within the segment.
• Identifies, monitors, and communicates key performance metrics to the organization.
• Creates and monitors measurements to ensure the annual budget is achieved.
• Defines and oversees incentive compensation programs that motivate the sales team to achieve company and segment objectives.
• Works closely with IT in customizing and implementing customer technology.
• Manages co-op and AD (Affiliated Distributors) marketing programs.
• Monitors customer, market, and competitive activity and provides feedback to company leadership team and other company functions.
• Works closely with the marketing function to establish successful supplier relationships and partner programs.
• Achieves financial objectives by preparing an annual budget; scheduling expenditures; analyzing variances; and initiating corrective actions.
• Drives the use of TCCM documentation and use of formal customer business reviews.
• Develops executive relationships with top customers in the area.
• Delivers bottom-line results, while supporting and inspiring other stakeholders in the business (fellow associates, suppliers, or customers).

Non-essential Functions

• Maintains professional and technical knowledge by attending educational workshops; reviewing professional publications; establishing personal networks; and participating in professional societies.
• Encourages participation in professional leadership and training courses and events.
• Encourages industry participation on advisory boards or supplier councils.
• Provides opportunities to network and be exposed to new ideas in the industry at sanctioned functions.
• Performs other duties as assigned by supervisor or other designate.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in marketing or related field.
• 10 years of electrical industry experience.
• 5 years of sales management experience.
• Experience in coaching and managing processes, marketing plans, market research, statistical analysis, developing budgets, financial planning, and strategy.
• Proven leadership skills.
• Firm grasp of database management software and Excel.
• Competent in reviewing and interpreting basic financials.

Skills and Abilities

• Self-motivated and customer-focused.
• Effective presentation skills in front of diverse audiences.
• Strong written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to work under pressure.
• Analytical ability and sound judgment.
• Ability to attain targets.
• Ability to develop their team.
• Ability to mine and interpret data, analytically led and strategically driven.
• Embodies the highest standard of integrity and ethics.
• Adds energy to the organization and supports and encourages all associates.
• Positive can-do attitude with contagious optimism.
• Open-minded to new ideas, effective at introducing and implementing change.
• Ability to develop solid business and personal relationships at all levels within an organization.
• Strategic planning, ability to communicate and implement plan across the entire organization.
• Long-range vision, willing to sacrifice short-term wins for long-term gains.

Physical Requirements

Frequency at which you would carry/lift in a typical day:

• Occasionally 0 – 33% Frequently 34 – 66% Continuously: 67 – 100%

Lift from Waist:

• < than 10 lbs. - Not at all
• 10 to 25 lbs. - Not at all
• 26 to 50 lbs. - Not at all
• 51 to 75 lbs. - Not at all
• 75 to 100 lbs. - Not at all
• 100+ lbs. - Not at all

Lift from Floor:

• < than 10 lbs. - Frequently
• 10 to 25 lbs. - Frequently
• 26 to 50 lbs. - Occasionally
• 51 to 75 lbs. - Not at all
• 75 to 100 lbs. - Not at all
• 100+ lbs. - Not at all

Carried for Distance:

• < than 10 lbs. - Not at all
• 10 to 25 lbs. - Not at all
• 26 to 50 lbs. - Not at all
• 51 to 75 lbs. - Not at all
• 75 to 100 lbs. - Not at all
• 100+ lbs. - Not at all

Physical Activity

Frequency at which you would do the following in a typical day:

• Sitting (a continuous period of being seated) - Continuously
• Standing (for sustained periods of time) - Frequently
• Walking (moving about on foot to accomplish tasks) - Frequently
• Bending/stooping (downward and forward) - Occasionally
• Crawling (moving about on hands and knees or hands and feet) - Not at all
• Climbing/Walking Stairs (ascending or descending) - Frequently
• Reaching (extending arms in any direction) - Frequently
• Crouching/squatting (bending the body downward and forward by bending leg and spine) - Occasionally
• Kneeling (bending legs at knee to come to rest on knee(s)) - Occasionally
• Balancing (maintaining body equilibrium to prevent falling) - Occasionally
• Repetitive motion (substantial movement (motions) or the wrists, hands, and/or fingers) - Continuously
• Pivoting (movement in any direction with one foot, keeping the other in contact with the floor) - Occasionally
• Pushing/Pulling (using upper extremities to press against or draw or tug) - Occasionally
• Grasping (Applying pressure to an object with the fingers and palm) - Continuously
• Fingering (picking, pinching, typing; working with primarily fingers and not whole hand) - Continuously
• Talking (expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word) - Frequently
• Driving (the control and operation of a motor vehicle) - Frequently
• Desk work (work usually performed at a desk) - Continuously
• Use of a computer - Continuously
• Use of a telephone - Continuously
• Hearing (Perceiving the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels) - Continuously
• Exposure (to adverse weather & temperature conditions) - Occasionally
• Travel (travel needed to perform job duties) - Frequently

Additional Information

This job description is a summary of the job duties and responsibilities and is not intended to cover all possible job duties and is subject to change at the employer’s discretion. Employees must be able to perform the essential job duties and satisfy job requirements either with or without a reasonable accommodation.

Our History

Border States is a leader in the electrical supply distribution industry with approximately 130 locations in 31 states. Our employee-owners are second to none in delivering top-notch customer service and in demonstrating extra-ordinary people skills. We are one of the largest independent electrical distributors in the United States providing products and services to the construction, industrial and utility industries. Border States has a competitive benefit package and is a 100 percent employee-owned company. Employee-ownership is a significant part of our culture and our success stems from the dedication of our employee-owners. We practice open-book management and our employee-owners are empowered with clearly defined levels of authority to be innovative and decisive, allowing us to respond quickly to the needs of customers. Employee-owners understand their roles in the success of the company and care about customers’ needs, which drives our focus on adding value to everything we do. We recognize that not all customers are the same and each has specific requirements. Our employee-owners understand these diverse needs and have the commitment, resourcefulness and flexibility to outperform all others.

Values

As a Border States employee-owner, you’re responsible for living our mission, service philosophy and service standards.

Our Purpose

We believe unstoppable businesses shouldn't go it alone. We are owners - of relationships, of outcomes, of every moment these unstoppable businesses need to deliver.

Service Philosophy

We earn customer loyalty and confidence by caring about their needs and adding value to everything we do.

Service Standards

Border States employee-owners are competent, accurate, responsive, and engaged.

Your career

Join an experienced team at one of the largest electrical distributors in the United States. What are you waiting for?

Border States has a competitive benefits package which includes but is not limited to: Health, Dental and Vision Benefits, Accident, Critical Illness, Hospital Indemnity, FSA & HSA, Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), Disability Benefits, 401(k) Retirement Plan, Life Insurance, Employee Assistance Program, Paid Holidays, Paid Volunteer Time, Personal Leave time and more! Border States provides bonuses to their employee-owners upon the achievement of branch and company goals.

Equal Opportunity For All

It’s not just the law. It’s something we’ve believed in since our founding. We value the diversity of all of our employee-owners and will always be an equal opportunity employer.

Drug Free/Smoke Free workplace

Employment may be contingent on the offered candidate successfully passing one or more of the following pre-employment screenings: Criminal background check (required for all positions), Motor Vehicle Record (MVR) check (required for positions involving driving), Drug testing. The MVR check and drug testing vary by role and will be communicated to the offered candidate during the onboarding process and as applicable.