Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships

Job Description

Job Description

Together We Build – Partnership, Innovation, Excellence, and Safety

At Kelso Industries, 4,000+ employees across 40+ companies work together to deliver exceptional HVAC, mechanical, plumbing, refrigeration, and electrical solutions nationwide. Join us to grow your career, make an impact, and be part of a team where innovation, excellence, and safety come first.

Recruiter Notice: We respectfully ask external recruiters and staffing agencies not to submit candidates. We only accept direct applications.

We are hiring a  Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships to build and maintain essential relationships with key national customers, especially in the Data Center/Mission Critical space, and work with our various Kelso Operating Companies to deliver solutions.

You will report directly to the COO and operate as a senior member of the Operations Leadership Team. This is a new position that you will help define and build — working with key customers, you will seek to understand their needs, propose solutions and coordinate delivery and execution among the various Operating Companies that make up the Kelso family.

What You'll Do

Develop and Maintain Key Customer Relationships, especially with large-scale Data Center and other Mission Critical players.

• Create and maintain a list of decision-makers for key customers and cultivate relationships with them in order to understand their pain points
• Formulate solutions to their problems using the combined resources of the Kelso platform (including mechanical, electrical, plumbing, building automation, prefabrication, engineered solutions, retrofits, and service/preventive maintenance)
• Create strategies to increase Direct-to-Owner work with these customers
• Establish and maintain executive relationships with facility owners, developers, general contractors, construction managers, program managers, and multi-site end users
• Represent Kelso at the national level with strategic accounts, industry associations, and major market events

Orchestrate the hand-off

• Match qualified opportunities to the operating company or companies best positioned to win and deliver them, based on geography, trade capability, capacity, and client fit
• Partner with operating company presidents and their preconstruction and estimating teams to transition pursuits cleanly, with full context and warm introductions
• Stay engaged throughout, acting as an executive sponsor and relationship owner
• Build multi-opco solutions where a single client need spans trades or regions

Build the function

• Establish CRM discipline, pipeline reporting, and pursuit governance across the platform
• Define what a qualified opportunity looks like and hold the standard
• Provide market intelligence to executive leadership on demand trends, competitive positioning, and end-market shifts
• Partner with Kelso Leadership to identify where strategic acquisitions could accelerate access to a market or capability
• Recruit, develop, and lead a business development team as the function scales
• Act as a mentor and Subject Matter Expert to various Business Development personnel within Kelso Operating Companies

What You Bring

Required

• 12+ years in business development, sales, or preconstruction leadership within MEP, specialty trade, general contracting, or industrial services
• Demonstrated, existing relationships with key players in the Data Center space and the ability to cultivate new ones
• Demonstrated record of sourcing and influencing large, complex construction or facilities opportunities — the kind measured in tens and hundreds of millions, not thousands
• Executive-level relationships with owners, developers, GCs, or multi-site end users, and the credibility to open doors at that level
• Working fluency in MEP scopes, construction delivery methods, and the preconstruction process — enough to qualify an opportunity accurately and speak credibly with a client's technical team
• Experience operating in a decentralized or multi-entity organization, with the influence skills to get results from people who don't report to you
• Willingness to travel 50%
• Access to a major hub airport or willingness to relocate to Salt Lake City

Preferred

Experience in a private equity–backed platform, roll-up, or multi-brand operating environment

Familiarity with design-build and design-assist delivery

Experience selling recurring service and maintenance agreements alongside capital projects

Prior experience building a business development function rather than inheriting one

Who Succeeds Here

The right person is a hunter who is genuinely comfortable handing the ball off. You will source opportunities that are often closed and delivered by someone else, and you will be measured on the platform's win, not your own. If you need to own the signature, this is the wrong seat. If you want to build a national demand engine across a $2B+ platform and solve critical needs for major customers, this role is for you.

Our Core Values

Partnership — Partnerships drive success. True partnerships are mutually beneficial. We act like owners and build enduring relationships with customers, suppliers, team members, and shareholders.

Innovation — Innovation changes the game. We stay agile, look for the better way, and experiment without fear of failure.

Excellence — Excellence is intentional. We lead the pack by being extraordinary in our work, our service, and our continuous improvement.

Safety — Safety is foundational. Safety is personal. Safety comes first — physical and psychological alike.

Why Join Kelso Industries?  

Join us and be part of a team dedicated to creating efficient, sustainable, and high-performance environments that make a lasting impact across the industrial, commercial, and institutional sectors.  

Here you will experience:   

Growth Opportunities: Develop new skills, take on exciting challenges, and advance your career in meaningful ways.  

Company Culture: You'll thrive in an environment that supports your growth, values your contributions, and makes work fulfilling and enjoyable. 

Impact: Your work directly contributes to meaningful outcomes, allowing you to see the difference you make and feel a sense of purpose every day. 

Competitive Compensation & Benefits: You'll be rewarded fairly for your contributions while enjoying perks that enhance your financial security, health, and overall well-being. 

Kelso Industries celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We do not discriminate in any aspect of employment based on race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, age, veteran status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local employment discrimination laws where Kelso does business