Vice President of Global Sales

Reporting to: CEOScope: Global commercial leadership for a new business venture within the company

The opportunity: Our client is seeking a Vice President of Global Sales to define and lead the commercial strategy for a new optical connectivity business within a larger organization. This executive role will lead the company's entry into optical communications and data center markets, bringing advanced silicon photonics, optical technologies, and new laser technologies to market. The successful candidate will combine strategic leadership with direct customer engagement, building relationships with hyperscalers, AI infrastructure providers, major technology companies, and optical component manufacturers. The role offers significant ownership of the commercial strategy, customer development, and sales organization for this growth initiative.

Key responsibilities: Own the global sales and go-to-market strategy for the optical connectivity business, defining priority markets, customer opportunities, and the long-term commercial direction. Build and maintain executive-level relationships with hyperscalers, AI and compute infrastructure companies, major technology platforms, and optical communications customers. Drive customer engagement, business development, design wins, and commercial engagements for new laser and optical technologies. Develop a strategic sales pipeline and define sales metrics, revenue targets, and commercial milestones to guide and measure growth. Translate technical differentiation in optical performance, power efficiency, reliability, and scalability into customer value, working closely with engineering, product, and executive leadership. Establish strategic partnerships with key customers and industry partners across the optical communications and high-speed networking ecosystem. Work closely with the business leader to establish commercial objectives, growth plans, and priorities for the new venture. Lead a lean commercial team initially, taking a hands-on role in customer development while building and scaling the organization as the business grows. Technology and target markets The business is focused on advanced silicon photonics and optical connectivity for AI and hyperscale data centers and high-speed networking, including applications in near-packaged optics (NPO) and co-packaged optics (CPO).High-power optical and laser sources, including integrated lasers and External Laser Small Form Factor Pluggable Source (ELSFP) solutions. The Small Form Factor Pluggable (SFP) optical transceiver ecosystem and related high-speed optical communications applications. Data center and AI networking infrastructure serving hyperscalers, AI infrastructure providers, and major technology end customers. Additional market development opportunities in automotive and industrial applications.

Candidate profile: A recognized industry expert within optical communications and photonics, with proven leadership in strategic sales and market development. Experience selling complex semiconductor, photonics, optical connectivity, or data center technologies into hyperscalers, AI infrastructure companies, and/or major technology platforms. Strong existing relationships across data center, networking, and optical communications customers, with the credibility to engage senior technical and commercial decision-makers. A track record of launching and scaling new business opportunities, developing strategic sales pipelines, and securing design wins and commercial engagements. The ability to connect laser and silicon photonics capabilities with customer needs and commercial value, working effectively with engineering, product, and executive teams. An entrepreneurial approach and comfort operating in a start-up environment within a larger organization, with the ability to establish direction as the business takes shape. Executive presence and the ability to influence customers, industry partners, and internal stakeholders. The ability to contribute directly within a lean initial team and build and lead a larger commercial organization over time. Growth opportunity This high-profile, disruptive growth initiative offers the opportunity to shape a business from an early stage, with the potential to generate hundreds of millions of dollars in future revenue and expected production volumes in the millions of units annually as it scales. Starting with a lean team, the Vice President will build the customer base, strategic partnerships, and global commercial organization to support that growth.