Culligan International

Commercial Business Development Manager, Northeast Region

Culligan International$120K — $140K *
US-AnywhereRemote in New Jersey, US
Real Estate & Construction
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5-10+ years in business development or specification sales,particularly within A&D
  • Experience in commercial construction or building products industry
  • Familiarity with engaging architects, designers, and engineers
  • Proficiency in operating autonomously in uncertain environments
  • Excellent communication and presentation skills, particularly for educational sessions
  • Experience with managing or collaborating with rep agency networks preferred
  • Willingness to travel extensively across the region

Responsibilities

  • Educate architects, designers, and engineers on Zip's technology and applications
  • Drive early specification activity with key design firms
  • Build and maintain relationships to increase project adoption
  • Develop and deliver educational programs like CEUs and lunch-and-learns
  • Create and implement innovative strategies for market building and specifier engagement
  • Collaborate with rep agencies and Territory Sales Managers for aligned spec efforts
  • Support the development of new project pipelines and conversion of specifications into real projects

Benefits

  • Competitive health, dental, and vision insurance
  • Paid time off for vacation and personal days
  • Life and disability benefits for financial security
  • 401(k) retirement plan with employer contributions
  • Opportunities for bonuses based on performance
Full Job Description
Position Summary

Key Responsibilities:

This role is primarily responsible for building the Zip category across North America through education, specification influence, and market development.

At this stage of the business, success is less about closing existing demand and more about creating it - by educating the A&D community, influencing design decisions early, and generating long-term project pull-through.

This is a highly proactive, hunter-style role that requires operating in an early-stage environment, building relationships from scratch, and developing new tools and approaches along the way.

Primary Objectives
  • Educating a market that largely doesn't yet know the category
  • Driving early specification with architects and designers
  • Creating pull-through demand into real projects
  • Acting as a market builder, not just a seller

1. Specification Strategy & Influence
  • Drive specification activity early in the design cycle
  • Build relationships with key specifiers to increase adoption in project designs
  • Identify priority firms, verticals, and markets to focus specification efforts
  • Track project influence from design through to installation (pull-through visibility)

2. Market Education & Category Building (Core Focus)
  • Lead efforts to educate architects, designers, and engineers (A&D) on Zip's technology and applications
  • Deliver CEUs, lunch-and-learns, and in-office presentations
  • Drive demo unit placements within specifier offices to build familiarity and preference
  • Build relationships with industry associations and design communities
  • Develop and refine education content, presentations, and engagement strategies, often building materials from scratch
  • Position Zip as a thought leader and premium solution in the category

3. Specification Strategy & Influence3. Market Development & Pioneering Approach
  • Act as a proactive market builder, expanding existing opportunities while developing new relationships and areas of growth
  • Operate effectively within an evolving business environment, leveraging existing structure while contributing to ongoing development and refinement
  • Build, test, and refine new approaches to:
    • Specifier engagement
    • Education programs
    • Demo strategies
  • Create and share repeatable playbooks and tools that can scale across regions

4. Rep Agency & Territory Alignment
  • Partner with manufacturer rep agencies to scale A&D coverage and specification activity
  • Train and support reps on how to lead with education and specification selling
  • Collaborate with Territory Sales Managers (TSMs) to align on spec activity, project pipeline, and sales execution where it drives the greatest impact
  • Help define best practices for spec-driven selling across markets

5. Project Development & Pipeline Creation
  • Support engagement with developers, owners, and project stakeholders
  • Help convert specification activity into real project opportunities
  • Maintain a balance between:
    • Long-cycle specification influence
    • Near-term project wins

6. Industry Presence & Brand Building
  • Represent Zip at trade shows, industry events, and design forums
  • Expand Zip's presence within A&D and commercial real estate communities
  • Contribute to case studies and proof points where applicable
  • Reinforce Zip's positioning as a design-forward, premium brand

Measures of Success
  • Increased awareness and engagement within the A&D community
  • Growth in CEUs, lunch-and-learns, and demo unit placements
  • Stronger specifier relationships and repeat engagement
  • Measurable increase in projects influenced at the design stage
  • Clear pull-through from spec to installed projects
  • Development of scalable tools, playbooks, and best practices
  • Proven ability to open new markets and accounts from zero

Qualifications
  • 5-10+ years of experience in:
    • Business development, specification sales, or A&D engagement
    • Commercial construction, building products, or related industries
  • Experience working with architects, designers, engineers, or specifiers
  • Proven ability to operate in a highly self-directed, ambiguous environment
  • Strong communication and presentation skills (especially in educational settings)
  • Experience working with or managing rep agency networks preferred
  • Comfortable with travel across the region

Target Salary Range: $ 120,000- 140,000 year plus bonus. Exact pay will be based on factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, level, geographic location, and business and organizational needs. Full-time positions are eligible for competitive benefits, including: paid time off, health, dental, vision, life, disability benefits and 401(k).

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About Culligan International

Culligan International is a provider of water treatment solutions for residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The company was founded in 1936 and is headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois. Culligan operates in over 90 countries and has a network of over 800 dealers. The company's products include water softeners, filtration systems, and bottled water delivery. Culligan is owned by private equity firm Advent International.
Learn more about Culligan International
Size
1,000 employees
Industry

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