Business Development Manager - School Bus

Microvast; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 95,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Microvast is seeking a Business Development Manager to lead partnerships with school bus OEMs, dealers, fleet operators, and electrification partners in the United States. The role builds relationships with OEMs and ecosystem partners to advance Microvast’s school bus electrification strategy, including battery systems and integrated platforms.

The ideal candidate has strong knowledge of the NA school bus market, OEM decision-making processes, and existing relationships with major school bus

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in a relevant field.
• 5+ years in BD, sales, program management, or strategic partnerships in commercial vehicles/school buses/EV powertrain.
• Direct experience with school bus OEMs, dealers, or fleet operators preferred.
• Strong knowledge of the North American school bus market and OEM sourcing processes.
• Existing relationships with school bus OEMs, dealers, or fleet decision-makers preferred.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain relationships with school bus OEMs, dealers, body builders, and strategic commercial vehicle partners in North America.
• Identify and pursue opportunities for Microvast battery systems and electric powertrain solutions with school bus manufacturers.
• Collaborate with engineering, purchasing, product planning, sales, and leadership teams to support partnerships.
• Support commercial discussions, pricing strategy, contracts, and long-term partnerships.
• Track OEM electrification roadmaps, platform plans, and dealer networks.

Skills

Relationship building

Negotiation

Cross-functional coordination

Proposal development

Public speaking

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business, engineering, transportation, automotive, or related field

Job description

Microvast is seeking a Business Development Manager - School Bus OEMs & Electrification Partnerships to lead business development activities with school bus manufacturers, dealers, fleet operators, school districts, and electrification partners in the United States.

This role is responsible for building and managing relationships with school bus OEMs and key ecosystem partners to support Microvast’s school bus electrification strategy, including battery systems, electric powertrain solutions, and integrated electrification platforms.

The ideal candidate has strong knowledge of the North American school bus industry, understands OEM decision-making processes, and has existing relationships with companies such as Blue Bird, IC Bus, Thomas Built Buses, New Flyer / NFI, Collins, Lion Electric, GreenPower, school bus dealers, and major fleet operators.

Position Summary

Microvast is seeking a Business Development Manager - School Bus OEMs & Electrification Partnerships to lead business development activities with school bus manufacturers, dealers, fleet operators, school districts, and electrification partners in the United States.

This role is responsible for building and managing relationships with school bus OEMs and key ecosystem partners to support Microvast’s school bus electrification strategy, including battery systems, electric powertrain solutions, and integrated electrification platforms.

The ideal candidate has strong knowledge of the North American school bus industry, understands OEM decision-making processes, and has existing relationships with companies such as Blue Bird, IC Bus, Thomas Built Buses, New Flyer / NFI, Collins, Lion Electric, GreenPower, school bus dealers, and major fleet operators.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain relationships with school bus OEMs, dealers, body builders, and strategic commercial vehicle partners in the North American market.
• Identify and pursue opportunities for Microvast battery systems and electric powertrain solutions to be adopted by school bus manufacturers.
• Build relationships with engineering, purchasing, product planning, sales, executive leadership, and aftersales teams at target OEMs.
• Support commercial discussions, technical alignment, pricing strategy, contract negotiation, and long-term partnership development.
• Track OEM electrification roadmaps, platform plans, sourcing needs, and competitive supplier relationships.

School Bus Market Development

• Develop a deep understanding of the U.S. school bus market, including Type A, Type C, and Type D buses.
• Identify opportunities with school districts, fleet operators, contractors, state agencies, and clean transportation programs.
• Support Microvast’s strategy to reduce electric school bus cost and accelerate adoption without overdependence on government subsidies.
• Analyze market trends, competitor products, pricing, funding programs, procurement cycles, and dealer networks.
• Help develop go-to-market strategies for Microvast’s school bus battery and powertrain products.

Customer & Partner Management

• Serve as a key commercial interface between Microvast and school bus OEMs, dealers, and strategic partners.
• Coordinate with internal engineering, product, legal, finance, manufacturing, and service teams to support customer requirements.
• Prepare business proposals, presentations, term sheets, RFQ responses, and executive briefing materials.
• Support customer visits, technical workshops, trade shows, industry conferences, and product demonstrations.
• Maintain accurate pipeline tracking, customer contact records, opportunity status, and forecast updates.

Product & Strategy Support

• Provide market feedback to guide Microvast’s school bus battery and powertrain product roadmap.
• Work with technical teams to understand customer requirements for battery capacity, voltage, safety, charging, cooling, warranty, and integration.
• Support development of commercial models, including battery supply, powertrain supply, licensing, joint development, and strategic partnership structures.
• Benchmark competitors and identify Microvast’s advantages in cost, safety, performance, serviceability, and long-term reliability.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, engineering, transportation, automotive, or a related field.
• Minimum 5 years of business development, sales, program management, or strategic partnership experience in commercial vehicles, school buses, buses, EV powertrain, batteries, or automotive supply.
• Direct experience working with school bus OEMs, dealers, or fleet operators is strongly preferred.
• Strong understanding of the North American school bus market, OEM sourcing process, and commercial vehicle electrification.
• Existing relationships with school bus OEMs, dealers, or fleet decision-makers are highly preferred.
• Ability to communicate effectively with both business and technical stakeholders.
• Experience preparing proposals, business cases, pricing models, customer presentations, and partnership plans.
• Strong negotiation, relationship management, and cross-functional coordination skills.
• Willingness to travel frequently for customer meetings, OEM visits, trade shows, and industry events.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with electric school buses, battery electric commercial vehicles, EV powertrains, or charging infrastructure.
• Knowledge of battery systems, BMS, high-voltage safety, thermal management, charging systems, electric motors, inverters, and vehicle integration.
• Understanding of U.S. school bus procurement, dealer sales models, state funding programs, EPA Clean School Bus Program, and fleet replacement cycles.
• Experience working with OEMs such as Blue Bird, IC Bus, Thomas Built Buses, Collins, Lion Electric, GreenPower, New Flyer / NFI, or similar commercial vehicle manufacturers.
• Experience with government-funded transportation programs, Buy America / domestic content requirements, or public fleet procurement is a plus.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a relationship-driven business development professional who already knows the school bus OEM ecosystem and can open doors quickly. This person understands how school bus manufacturers evaluate new suppliers, how dealers and school districts influence purchasing decisions, and how to position Microvast as a cost-effective and reliable electrification partner.

The candidate should be comfortable working in an entrepreneurial environment, building a new business line, and communicating directly with senior executives, engineers, purchasing teams, and fleet customers.

Compensation

Competitive base salary, performance-based bonus, and benefits package. Compensation will be based on experience, industry relationships, and business development track record.