Senior Director, Business Development (San Jose)

Company DescriptionWD is building the infrastructure behind the AI-driven data economy.As AI scales, so does data. Every interaction, every model, every system generates data that must be stored, managed, and made accessible over time. That’s where we come in.We combine deep engineering expertise with global-scale manufacturing to deliver the storage systems that make AI possible, powering hyperscale data centers, cloud platforms, and enterprise infrastructure worldwide.This isn’t theoretical work. It’s real systems, at real scale, people solving some of the hardest challenges in technology today.We’re looking for people who want to build, solve, and operate at that level.Join us and let’s shape the future of data.Job DescriptionWe are looking for a seasoned Senior Director of Business Development to lead our growth strategy in the AI and data infrastructure space. This is a high-visibility, strategic role that sits at the intersection of technology and commerce, responsible for identifying, developing, and closing new business opportunities while shaping the company's long-term market positioning in one of the fastest-evolving sectors in technology.Essential Duties and Responsibilities: As Senior Director, you will own the end-to-end business development motion for AI-driven markets. You will develop and execute go-to-market strategies targeting hyperscale’s, cloud providers, AI infrastructure companies, and enterprise customers building out large-scale storage and compute environments. You will stay ahead of market trends from the growth of AI training clusters and inference workloads to evolving data center architectures and translate those insights into actionable customer acquisition strategies.You will work closely with product, engineering, and marketing teams to ensure our HDD roadmap and value proposition are aligned with where the market is heading. You will champion the voice of the customer internally, helping shape product direction based on what top-tier prospects and partners need. A core part of this role is building and maintaining executive-level relationships with key accounts and ecosystem partners.Internally, you will set alignment across the Sales and Marketing organization on customer segmentation, market prioritization, and messaging, ensuring the team is rowing in the same direction as the industry evolves.What We’re Looking ForThe ideal candidate brings a rare combination of technical depth and commercial acumen. You should have a strong grasp of storage and data infrastructure, including HDD technology, system architecture, and how storage fits into broader AI and cloud computing stacks. You understand how hyperscalers and AI companies think about capacity planning, TCO, and infrastructure scaling, and you can speak fluently with both engineers and C-suite executives.On the business side, you have a proven track record of building and executing BD strategies that have resulted in meaningful revenue growth. You know how to build pipeline from scratch, navigate long enterprise sales cycles, and close complex deals. You are comfortable operating with ambiguity and thrive in fast-moving markets.QualificationsYou bring 0-12+ years of experience in business development, strategic sales, or market strategy roles within the storage, semiconductor, cloud infrastructure, or AI hardware space.A bachelor's degree in engineering, computer science, or a related technical field is preferred, with an MBA or equivalent business experience considered a strong plus.Direct experience working with hyperscalers, AI infrastructure companies, or large enterprise data center customers is highly desirable.Salary Range: 233,500.00-311,300.00Additional InformationWD is committed to providing equal opportunities to all applicants and employees and will not discriminate against any applicant or employee based on their race, color, ancestry, religion (including religious dress and grooming standards), sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), gender (including a person’s gender identity, gender expression, and gender-related appearance and behavior, whether or not stereotypically associated with the person’s assigned sex at birth), age, national origin, sexual orientation, medical condition, marital status (including domestic partnership status), physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, protected medical and family care leave, Civil Air Patrol status, military and veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. We also prohibit harassment of any individual on any of the characteristics listed above. Our non-discrimination policy applies to all aspects of employment. We comply with the laws and regulations set forth in the Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal” poster. Our pay transparency policy is available here.WD thrives on the power and potential of diversity. As a global company, we believe the most effective way to embrace the diversity of our customers and communities is to mirror it from within. We believe the fusion of various perspectives results in the best outcomes for our employees, our company, our customers, and the world around us. We are committed to an inclusive environment where every individual can thrive through a sense of belonging, respect and contribution.WD is committed to offering opportunities to applicants with disabilities and ensuring all candidates can successfully navigate our careers website and our hiring process. Please contact us at View email address on apply.placed-app.com to advise us of your accommodation request. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying.Based on our experience, we anticipate that the application deadline will be 06/30/2026 (3 months from posting), although we reserve the right to close the application process sooner if we hire an applicant for this position before the application deadline. If we are not able to hire someone from this role before the application deadline, we will update this posting with a new anticipated application deadline.#LI-AP1Compensation & Benefits DetailsAn employee’s pay position within the salary range may be based on several factors including but not limited to (1) relevant education; qualifications; certifications; and experience; (2) skills, ability, knowledge of the job; (3) performance, contribution and results; (4) geographic location; (5) shift; (6) internal and external equity; and (7) business and organizational needs.The salary range is what we believe to be the range of possible compensation for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and this range is only applicable for jobs to be performed in California, Colorado, New York or remote jobs that can be performed in California, Colorado and New York. This range may be modified in the future.If your position is non-exempt, you are eligible for overtime pay pursuant to company policy and applicable laws. You may also be eligible for shift differential pay, depending on the shift to which you are assigned.You will be eligible to be considered for bonuses under either WD’s Short Term Incentive Plan (“STI Plan”) or the Sales Incentive Plan (“SIP”) which provides incentive awards based on Company and individual performance, depending on your role and your performance. You may be eligible to participate in our annual Long-Term Incentive (LTI) program, which consists of restricted stock units (RSUs) or cash equivalents, pursuant to the terms of the LTI plan. Please note that not all roles are eligible to participate in the LTI program, and not all roles are eligible for equity under the LTI plan. RSU awards are also available to eligible new hires, subject to WD's Standard Terms and Conditions for Restricted Stock Unit Awards.We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid vacation time; paid sick leave; medical/dental/vision insurance; life, accident and disability insurance; tax-advantaged flexible spending and health savings accounts; employee assistance program; other voluntary benefit programs such as supplemental life and AD&D, legal plan, pet insurance, critical illness, accident and hospital indemnity; tuition reimbursement; transit; the Applause Program; employee stock purchase plan; and the WD Savings 401(k) Plan.Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law.Notice To Candidates: Please be aware that WD and its subsidiaries will never request payment as a condition for applying for a position or receiving an offer of employment. Should you encounter any such requests, please report it immediately to WD Ethics Helpline or email View email address on apply.placed-app.com: InternFunction: SalesExperience level: InternshipIndustry: Computer Hardware