Key Account Manager - Utilities

About Us

R&S Group is a fast-growing international industrial company headquartered in Switzerland, powering the future of energy with advanced transformer solutions.

We enable reliable and sustainable electricity supply for data centers, battery storage, photovoltaic and renewable-energy applications, industrial and infrastructure projects, and large-scale utility customers worldwide.

With more than 100 years of engineering excellence, we combine precision and quality with speed – expanding our global footprint and shaping the next generation of power distribution.

At R&S, we think and act like entrepreneurs with a clear ambition: to become a globally leading premium provider of power and distribution transformers across key markets. We move fast, take ownership and turn ambition into impact.

If you are ready to build, innovate and grow with a company on the rise, this is where it happens. We look forward to meeting you.

Position Summary

The Key Account Manager – Utilities is responsible for developing and managing strategic relationships with utility customers, including transmission system operators (TSOs), distribution system operators (DSOs) and municipal utilities.

The role covers the complete transformer portfolio, including oil-filled and dry-type distribution transformers as well as power transformers. The Key Account Manager identifies new business opportunities, develops strategic accounts, coordinates complex tenders and leads commercial negotiations from initial customer engagement through contract award and project execution.

This position offers the opportunity to play a key role in grid modernisation, capacity expansion, renewable-energy integration and security of supply, while directly contributing to the international growth of R&S Group.

The successful candidate brings substantial practical experience in the transformer or electrical power industry, combined with a strong understanding of utility customers, complex projects, tendering processes and transformer applications.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Account Management

• Develop and execute strategic account plans for assigned utility customers and markets.
• Establish strong relationships with decision-makers, technical departments, procurement teams and senior management.
• Act as the primary commercial contact between customers and R&S Group.
• Understand customers’ investment programmes, grid-development plans and future transformer requirements.
• Position R&S Group as a long-term strategic partner for grid modernisation, capacity expansion and security of supply.
• Coordinate customer engagement across R&S Group’s transformer factories and business units.

Business Development

• Identify and develop new business opportunities for distribution and power transformers.
• Build and maintain a qualified opportunity pipeline covering short-, medium- and long-term projects.
• Monitor utility investment plans, framework agreements, replacement programmes and public tenders.
• Develop new customers and strengthen R&S Group’s position within existing strategic accounts.
• Support market-entry initiatives and the development of new utility markets.
• Provide market intelligence on customer requirements, competitor activity, pricing and technology trends.

Tender and Proposal Management

• Lead the commercial preparation of utility tenders, framework agreements and complex project proposals.
• Coordinate technical, commercial and contractual inputs from engineering, factories, project management, legal, finance and supply-chain teams.
• Ensure that offers are technically compliant, commercially competitive and submitted on time.
• Manage customer clarifications, technical discussions and commercial negotiations.
• Evaluate commercial risks, contractual conditions, delivery requirements, warranties, guarantees, liquidated damages and payment terms.
• Maintain accurate records of opportunities, quotations, tender status and customer communication.

Sales and Commercial Performance

• Deliver agreed order intake, revenue, margin and market-share targets.
• Develop pricing and negotiation strategies in cooperation with sales management and the relevant factories.
• Lead contract negotiations while protecting profitability and effectively managing commercial risk.
• Prepare reliable sales forecasts and regularly report on pipeline development.
• Monitor hit rates and analyse won and lost opportunities.
• Support the contract handover to project management and remain involved during project execution when required.
• Identify opportunities for repeat business, spare units, service and lifecycle support.

Customer and Field Activities

• Conduct regular customer visits across the assigned territory.
• Participate in site meetings, technical workshops, transformer inspections and project reviews.
• Support customer discussions concerning transformer specifications, installation conditions, testing, commissioning and operational requirements.
• Coordinate customer factory visits, inspections and Factory Acceptance Tests (FAT).
• Represent R&S Group at utility conferences, exhibitions and relevant industry events.
• Use practical field and project experience to identify technical, commercial and project risks at an early stage.
• Support the resolution of customer issues during delivery, installation, commissioning and operation.

What You Bring – Must Have

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Business Administration or a comparable discipline.
• A minimum of seven years of relevant professional experience in the transformer, electrical-equipment, power-generation, transmission or distribution industry.
• At least five years of relevant customer-facing, commercial, engineering or project experience within the transformer or utility sector, including Key Account Management, project sales, business development, engineering or project management.
• Proven experience with distribution transformers, power transformers, substations or comparable high-value electrical equipment.
• Practical experience working directly with utilities, transmission system operators (TSOs), distribution system operators (DSOs) or EPC companies.
• Strong understanding of transformer specifications, testing, losses, efficiency, cooling, accessories and lifecycle considerations, with the ability to translate customer requirements into commercially viable solutions.
• Experience managing public tenders, framework agreements and complex technical proposals.
• Proven ability to negotiate high-value contracts, with a strong understanding of pricing, margins, payment terms, warranties, guarantees, liquidated damages and contractual risk.
• Ability to balance customer requirements, technical feasibility, commercial competitiveness and profitability.
• Fluency in English and in the local language of the assigned market.
• Willingness to travel regularly and spend significant time with customers and at project sites.

What You Bring – Nice to Have

• Familiarity with relevant IEC and IEEE standards and utility-specific technical requirements.
• Experience with transformer installation, testing, commissioning and operational requirements.
• An established professional network within the utility, transmission or distribution sector.
• Experience working across multiple factories, countries or business units.
• German, French, Italian or additional European language skills.
• Experience with CRM systems and structured opportunity-management processes.
• Personal Competencies
• Strategic and commercially driven mindset
• Strong ownership and entrepreneurial approach
• Ability to build trusted senior-level customer relationships
• Confidence navigating complex, long-cycle sales environments
• Strong cross-functional collaboration in an international organisation

What Success Looks Like

• Success in this role will be measured through profitable order intake, strategic account growth, development of a qualified opportunity pipeline, tender success, new customer acquisition, forecast accuracy and the development of sustainable long-term customer relationships.

Reporting Line

• The Key Account Manager – Utilities reports to the Head of Verticals and Key Accounts

What We Offer

• A strategic commercial role within a fast-growing international transformer organisation.
• Responsibility for major utility customers and critical grid-infrastructure projects.
• A broad portfolio covering both distribution and power transformer solutions.
• Close cooperation with experienced engineering, manufacturing, sales and project-management teams.
• The opportunity to contribute directly to grid modernisation, electrification, renewable-energy integration and security of electricity supply.
• Significant responsibility for developing strategic customers, markets and business opportunities.
• An entrepreneurial international working environment where ownership, initiative and impact are valued.
• Opportunities for professional development and cross-functional collaboration across R&S Group.
• flexible working, bonus scheme, company car/car allowance, pension, development opportunities etc.