Location: Somerset, New Jersey
Employment Type: Full-Time
Position Summary
We are seeking an entrepreneurial, growth-driven Controls General Manager to lead and scale an established $5 million Building Automation and Controls business serving New Jersey, New York City, Long Island, Eastern Pennsylvania, and surrounding markets.
This is an exceptional opportunity for a proven leader who wants to take ownership of a strong controls business with a respected reputation, exceptional product offerings, and significant untapped growth potential. The division has built a successful owner-direct business model and is positioned to expand aggressively into new construction, plan-and-spec opportunities, and larger enterprise accounts.
The ideal candidate is an “A Player” with a passion for growing businesses, developing people, building customer relationships, and driving financial performance. Whether your background is in controls sales leadership, operations leadership, service leadership, or as a high-performing Project Manager ready to take the next step into executive leadership, we are interested in speaking with candidates who possess the drive and capability to lead and grow a controls organization.
Business Overview
- Established $5 million annual controls business.
- Primarily owner-direct customer relationships.
- Significant opportunity to expand into new construction and specification-driven markets.
- Strong support from an established mechanical services organization.
- Regional reach across New Jersey, New York City, Long Island, and Eastern Pennsylvania.
- Strategic collaboration opportunities with mechanical construction and service operations.
Current Team Structure
The Controls General Manager will lead a team of approximately 10 professionals, including:
- Controls Sales Representative
- Project Manager
- Two Controls Engineers
- Technical Operations / Field Leader
- Field Technicians and Support Personnel
The successful candidate will be responsible for further expanding the organization through strategic hiring and market growth initiatives.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead all aspects of the Controls Division including sales, operations, engineering, project execution, and service delivery.
- Assume full profit and loss responsibility for the business unit.
- Develop and execute a strategic growth plan to scale the division beyond its current $5 million revenue base.
- Drive annual revenue, margin, and EBITDA growth.
- Expand market presence within existing owner-direct accounts while developing new construction and specification opportunities.
- Develop relationships with owners, developers, consulting engineers, architects, general contractors, and mechanical contractors.
- Build strategic partnerships with major OEM and controls platforms including Johnson Controls, Honeywell, Siemens, Automated Logic, and other leading building automation manufacturers.
- Create annual budgets, forecasts, hiring plans, and investment strategies.
- Lead sales strategy, pipeline development, account management, and business development efforts.
- Drive accountability through KPIs focused on revenue growth, profitability, customer retention, project execution, and team development.
- Mentor and develop future leaders within the organization.
- Ensure exceptional customer satisfaction and operational excellence across all projects and service activities.
- Partner with executive leadership to identify acquisition opportunities, market expansion initiatives, and long-term business strategies.
Required Qualifications
- Minimum 7 years of experience within Building Automation Systems, Controls, HVAC Controls, or Smart Building technologies.
- Minimum 3 years of leadership responsibility in sales, operations, service, project management, or business unit management.
- Demonstrated success driving revenue growth and customer development.
- Experience managing budgets, financial performance, or profit center operations.
- Strong understanding of DDC systems, controls integration, HVAC systems, and building automation technologies.
- Proven ability to develop relationships with customers, engineers, contractors, and decision-makers.
- Strong leadership, communication, financial, and organizational skills.
- Valid driver’s license with ability to travel throughout the assigned territory.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience leading a controls business, branch, department, or business unit.
- Experience with financial responsibility exceeding $3 million in annual revenue.
- Experience with Johnson Controls, Honeywell, Siemens, Automated Logic, Tridium Niagara, Distech, or similar platforms.
- Prior responsibility for profit and loss management.
- Experience expanding a service-focused controls business into new construction opportunities.
- Engineering, Construction Management, Business, or technical degree.
- MBA or advanced business leadership training.
- Existing relationships within the New Jersey, New York, or Pennsylvania controls markets.
Compensation
Base Salary: $150,000 – $175,000
Additional Incentive Compensation:
- Performance-based annual bonus tied to revenue growth, profitability, and business objectives.
- Sales commission component available for candidates actively involved in business development and sales leadership.
- Total annual earnings opportunity of $200,000 – $250,000+ based on performance.
Ideal Candidate
This is not simply an operations management role. We are seeking a business leader who wants to build something larger. The ideal candidate is highly competitive, financially savvy, customer-focused, and energized by growth. They understand how to lead teams, manage financial performance, develop customer relationships, create market opportunities, and scale a controls business into a regional market leader.