Company Overview
Dateline Exports is an established export company specializing in the supply of construction materials for overseas projects in the western Pacific Islands area, specifically Guam, American Samoa, Marshall Islands, and Federated States of Micronesia. With over 35 years of experience, Dateline has been a responsive and trusted partner, providing construction materials for military and private development projects, along with the value-added logistics services.
Position Overview
This role is primarily technical sales leader for electrical equipment into Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan, Rota, Tinian), the Federated States of Micronesia (Pohnpei, Chuuk, Yap, Kosrae), Palau, the Marshall Islands (Majuro, Ebeye, Kwajalein), American Samoa, and Japan.
The Switchgear and Power Equipment Sales Lead is responsible for building, pricing, and overall sales of electrical equipment using Schneider Electric (Square D) Q2C software, or other vendors' pricing as needed per project. This role also provides leadership for a small team consisting of a project coordinator and potentially additional support as needed, and works closely with an external sales agent in Guam and the CNMI.
This is a full-time, exempt, salaried position based primarily in our Wilsonville, OR office.
Primary Responsibilities
Inside Electrical Equipment Sales & Technical Quoting
- Serve as the primary technical sales contact for all assigned Pacific and Japanese territories.
- Field inquiries from contractors and customers within the existing customer base, as well as new customers as they are identified.
- Lead a small team consisting of one estimator and one project coordinator to ensure all quoting and project coordination tasks are completed accurately and on schedule.
- Use Schneider Electric software to build, price, and quote electrical equipment including: Panelboards; Switchboards; Low and Medium Voltage Switchgear; Transformers; UPS's.
- Work with other electrical gear suppliers, in addition to Schneider Electric, as needed to price and quote supplemental electrical equipment.
- Collaborate closely with the estimator, who is responsible for preparing all quotes, ensuring they have the technical details and support needed to produce accurate pricing.
- Ensure accuracy competitiveness, and compliance with project specifications and regional requirements.
Customer Relations & Business Development
- Build and maintain strong relationships with customers across all assigned territories, either directly or through the local sales agent in Guam when applicable.
- Understand customer needs, project requirements, and regional market conditions.
- Call design engineers, consultants, and specifying authorities to provide technical guidance, support design development, and promote the use of our products in project specifications.
- Explore new product lines and business opportunities based on customer needs and market shifts.
- Provide technical support and guidance to customers and the Guam/CNMI sales agent.
- Resolve customer issues, claims, and errors, including making discretionary financial decisions when appropriate.
- Review and approve invoices.
- Ensure alignment between sales strategy, the estimator’s quoting efforts, and the project coordinator’s execution activities to maintain a seamless customer experience.
Territory Coordination & Travel
- Work closely with the sales agent in Guam and the CNMI to support opportunities, pricing, and project execution.
- Maintain regular communication with customers and partners across all Pacific island markets and Japan.
- Travel is required to maintain customer and design engineer relationships. Estimated visits to Guam and Okinawa, Japan 2-3 times per year.
Vendor Relations
- Maintain and update a preferred vendor list for electrical materials and equipment.
- Evaluate vendors based on pricing, quality, and capability.
- When applicable, negotiate pricing and address product or service concerns.
- Establish and monitor vendor performance standards.
- Coordinate with the estimator to ensure vendor pricing is accurately captured and reflected in quotations.
Leadership Responsibilities
- Provide day-to-day direction, coaching, and support to the project coordinator and any future team members (one estimator and one project coordinator).
- Participate in hiring decisions when team expansion is needed.
- Establish workflow standards, best practices, and detail-oriented team culture.
- Monitor workload distribution and ensure the estimator and project coordinator have clear priorities aligned with territory needs and customer deadlines.
Support Team Coordination
Coordinate with a support team member or members who will handle Order Management & Project Execution. (We are listing the support team’s responsibilities below so applicants can see where the areas of responsibility lie, and how the support team contributes to this role's overall sales efforts.)
- Manage purchasing, submittal preparation, and coordination with the shipping department. (Project Coordinator)
- Oversee project timelines, documentation, and delivery schedules. (Project Coordinator and Logistics Department)
- Ensure accuracy and completeness of submittals, quotes, and order files. (Project Coordinator)
- Communicate order status to customers, internal teams, and the Guam/CNMI sales agent. (Project Coordinator and Logistics)
- Ensure the estimator and project coordinator remain synchronized with sales objectives, quoting timelines, and customer expectations.
Required Skills & Experience
- Minimum 10 years of experience in the electrical gear technical sales.
- Strong customer service, written communication, and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to plan, organize, and prioritize workload for both self and assistant.
- Experience working with international or remote customers is a plus.
Computer & Technical Skills
- Proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, Outlook).
- Experience with Schneider Electric SE Advantage software or similar electrical quotation software preferred.
- Familiarity with web-based quoting, purchasing and accounting ERP Systems.
Work Environment Considerations
- This position is based primarily in our Wilsonville, OR office and requires occasional travel to our Salem and Gresham locations, as well as periodic travel to Guam and Okinawa, Japan. Following the successful completion of initial training, employees may work remotely one day per week.
- Work environment is an open office.
- Work requires the use of telephone, computers, and keyboards.
- Work requires the use of email for direct communication with customers, vendors, and others.
- The work pace is considered fast and varied.
- Work requires occasional but regular meetings with other staff members locally and on Microsoft Teams for members located remotely.
- Work may involve repetitive motion in the use of keyboards and other electronic systems.
Company-Provided Benefits
- Annual discretionary bonus based on company profits
- Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance
- Vacation and Paid Time Off
- Long Term Disability
- 401(k) after completion of first year
- Company events such as holiday parties, barbeques, etc.
Pay: $110,000.00 - $130,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Flexible spending account
- Health insurance
- Health savings account
- Paid time off
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
