Solaris Technical Salesperson - West Coast

CAF Power & Automation; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 110,000 - 185,000; Full time

Job summary

CAF Power & Automation is seeking a Solaris Technical Salesperson for the West Coast. This hybrid role supports technical sales, tender leadership, and early project support within the public transit market.

Qualified candidates will have 3-8 years of experience in technical sales and a strong understanding of vehicle systems. The position requires significant travel and offers a salary range of $110,000 to $185,000 annually.

Qualifications

• 3–8 years in technical sales or application engineering.
• Experience with tenders or RFP processes is a strong plus.
• Early-career candidates with technical and commercial potential encouraged.

Responsibilities

• Lead technical sales and customer engagement activities.
• Act as Tender Captain for selected opportunities.
• Support early-stage tender shaping and project execution.
• Coordinate with internal stakeholders and manage expectations.
• Ensure customer satisfaction and alignment with internal capabilities.

Skills

Technical sales experience

Automotive knowledge

Strong communication skills

Presentation skills

Understanding of vehicle systems

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in mechanical, electrical, or automotive engineering

Job description

Company: CAF USA

Location: Washington DC, US

Solaris Technical Salesperson - West Coast

Solaris Bus & Coach is one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of city buses and a recognized pioneer in zero-emission public transport solutions. As part of the CAF Group, a global leader in sustainable mobility, Solaris combines the agility of a high-growth business with the stability and scale of an international industrial group. With over 25,000 vehicles delivered to 850+ cities across more than 30 countries, Solaris has built a strong reputation for innovation, quality, and reliability in electric and hydrogen bus technologies.

Solaris is now strategically expanding into North America as a key pillar of CAF’s growth strategy in zero-emission mobility. The company has already achieved major milestones in the region, including its first U.S. contracts in Seattle and San Francisco, a landmark trolleybus contract in Vancouver, and participation in Washington state pooled procurements. These successes are rapidly establishing Solaris as a credible and growing player in the North American transit market.

Overview

About the Role: We are looking for a technically strong and commercially driven Technical Salesperson to support our expansion across the West Coast public transit market. This is a hybrid role combining technical sales, tender leadership, and early project support. You will be responsible for supporting customer discussions, shaping opportunities, and leading selected tenders end-to-end (Tender Captain responsibilities) and supporting early-stage contract execution. The role is ideal for a candidate who wants to grow into a full commercial leader role over time, combining engineering understanding with direct sales exposure.

Key Responsibilities

• 1. Technical Sales & Customer Engagement
  • Lead and support direct customer interactions with transit agencies, combining technical expertise with commercial messaging
  • Conduct product presentations, technical workshops, site visits, depot walkthroughs, and roadshows
  • Translate customer needs into technical solutions, aligning requirements with product capabilities
  • Clearly communicate value proposition (range, reliability, lifecycle cost, performance)
  • Build relationships with both technical and procurement stakeholders
• 2. Tender Leadership (Tender Captain Responsibilities)
  • Act as Tender Captain for selected opportunities, owning bid success end-to-end
  • Lead 3–4 tenders in parallel, including initial qualification, bid strategy definition, coordination of internal stakeholders (engineering, pricing, legal, aftersales)
  • Serve as primary interface with the customer during the tender process
  • Manage RfP clarification (Q&A), negotiations, and final offer alignment
  • Make or recommend key trade-offs, prepare and contribute to tender content, ensure compliance and quality submissions, support internal strategy and review meetings
• 3. Early-stage Tender Shaping Activities
  • Support early-stage tender shaping before RFP release
  • Engage with agencies to understand upcoming procurement plans and influence specifications toward product strengths
  • Identify technical risks, dealbreakers, and required adaptations early
  • Contribute to prioritization of opportunities together with Sales leadership
• 4. Early Contract & Project Support
  • Support transition from bid to contract execution
  • Act as technical point of contact during early contract clarification, kick‑off discussions with the customer
  • Ensure alignment between offer commitments and delivery capabilities
  • Support handover to project and aftersales teams
• 5. Cross-Functional Coordination
  • Act as link between Sales, Engineering, and Operations
  • Coordinate with supply chain, after‑sales, and service teams
  • Ensure customer expectations are feasible, deliverable, and internally aligned

Travel Requirements

• 50–70% travel, primarily across California, Oregon, Washington
• Frequent in‑person meetings with transit agencies, customer meetings, workshops, demonstrations, roadshows, tender discussions
• Initial onboarding (1–2 months) in Poland HQ to gain deep product and process knowledge

Qualifications

Experience

• 3–8 years in technical sales, application engineering, or product engineering
• Experience in automotive, commercial vehicles, or heavy equipment (preferred)
• Experience with tenders / RFP processes is a strong plus
• Early‑career candidates with strong technical and commercial potential encouraged

Technical Skills

• Solid understanding of vehicle systems (electric drivetrains, batteries, charging preferred), mechanical and/or electrical engineering fundamentals
• Ability to work with technical specifications, engineering documentation, and system descriptions

Commercial & Interpersonal Skills

• Strong communication and presentation skills (client‑facing)
• Ability to combine technical depth with sales mindset
• Comfortable interacting with customers and building relationships
• Structured and detail‑oriented, especially under tender timelines

Mindset & Growth Potential

• Ambitious and willing to grow into full sales / commercial ownership role
• Proactive, hands‑on, comfortable working in a developing organization
• Able to manage multiple parallel workstreams (customers, tenders, internal coordination)
• Strong ownership mindset

Education

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, automotive engineering or similar

Other Requirements and/or Aspects to be Assessed

This position does not support immigration sponsorship.

We prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, veteran status or any other legally protected status.

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

The wage range for this role takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs. The disclosed range estimate has not been adjusted for the applicable geographic differential associated with the location at which the position may be filled. A reasonable estimate of the current range is $110,000 to $185,000 annually, depending on home location.