Senior Sales Manager, AI Datacenter, Cloud & HPC
- Full-time
- Job Type (exemption status): Exempt position - Please see related compensation & benefits details below
- Salary Range: 170,600.00-227,400.00
- Business Function: Enterprise Sales
- Work Location: San Jose Great Oaks Headquarters--LOC_WDT_USCA23
- Location (Secondary): Colorado Springs Federal Drive Office--LOC_HGST_KJB
Company Description
At WD, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology to make what you thought was once impossible, possible.
At our core, WD is a company of problem solvers. People achieve extraordinary things given the right technology. For decades, we’ve been doing just that—our technology helped people put a man on the moon and capture the first-ever picture of a black hole.
We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, HDDs, and platforms for business, creative professionals, and consumers alike under our Western Digital®, WD®, and WD_BLACK™.
We are a key partner to some of the largest and highest-growth organizations in the world. From enabling systems to make cities safer and more connected, to powering the data centers behind many of the world’s biggest companies and hyperscale cloud providers, to meeting the massive and ever-growing data storage needs of the AI era, WD is fueling a brighter, smarter future.
Today’s exceptional challenges require your unique skills. Together, we can build the future of data storage.
Job Description
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
This role is core to Western Digital’s AI Datacenter growth strategy, sitting at the intersection of AI infrastructure build‑outs, cloud platforms, High Performance Computing (HPC), and data‑intensive enterprise environments.
The Senior Sales Manager, AI Datacenter, Cloud & HPC is a quota‑carrying individual contributor responsible for translating strategic platform wins and AI datacenter pursuits into scalable, repeatable revenue across the U.S. channel ecosystem.
This role is designed for a seller who already operates at the level of:
- Architecture‑driven solution selling
- Cloud and AI infrastructure GTM
- Multi‑party, ecosystem‑led deals
It requires comfort selling alongside Business Development, technical leaders, SIs, OEMs, and cloud partners, while maintaining rigorous ownership of forecasting, pipeline, and close execution.
Organizational Alignment
- Reports to: Director of Channel Sales – Datacenter & Enterprise
- Works in close partnership with: Director of Business Development – Storage Platforms & AI Datacenter
This pairing intentionally mirrors the market:
- Business Development: new customer acquisition, AI platform attach, ecosystem strategy, and top‑of‑funnel creation
- Senior Sales Manager (this role): commercial execution, partner‑led GTM, deal progression, and revenue realization
Together, these roles pursue the same AI, cloud, and HPC segments, but with a clear separation of strategic creation vs. sales execution.
What You Will Own
Revenue, Quota & Execution Leadership
- Own and deliver quota‑based revenue for WD Datacenter Hard Drives and Storage Platforms across AI, cloud, HPC, and enterprise workloads.
- Drive complex, multi‑stakeholder deals from qualification through negotiation and close.
- Convert design‑wins, reference architectures, and platform attachments into predictable revenue streams.
- Build territory and account plans aligned to:
- AI datacenter buildouts
- Neo‑Cloud expansion
- Cloud service providers (CSPs) and GPU cloud ecosystems
- HPC modernization initiatives
Channel‑Led GTM & Ecosystem Selling
- Execute through systems integrators, OEMs, distributors, and cloud‑adjacent service providers.
- Lead co‑sell and joint pursuit motions with partners aligned to AI infrastructure and cloud consumption models.
- Work closely with Channel Marketing and BD to:
- Drive enablement on AI‑relevant architectures
- Support GTM campaigns and partner readiness
- Influence partner prioritization of WD platforms
- Position WD as a strategic component of AI and cloud infrastructure, not a commodity supplier.
Datacenter HDD, Platform & Capacity‑Led Solutions
- Lead sales for WD’s Datacenter HDD portfolio, including high‑capacity, SMR, and AI‑data‑lifecycle‑aligned solutions.
- Position HDDs as foundational infrastructure supporting:
- Tiered storage
- Object and data lake architectures
- Checkpointing, training data, inference data, and archival
- Sell Storage Platforms as part of validated architectures, not stand‑alone products.
- Support design‑in, POCs, and customer evaluations with BD and technical teams.
Software‑Defined Storage & Architecture‑Led Selling
- Confidently position WD hardware within software‑defined storage and cloud‑adjacent ecosystems, including:
- Object storage
- Distributed file systems
- Data lake and AI data platforms
- Translate AI, ML, and HPC workload requirements into clear hardware + SDS alignment.
- Support adoption of reference architectures, blueprints, and validated designs.
- Help partners convert architectural value into repeatable sales motions.
Cross‑Functional & Executive Engagement
- Operate comfortably alongside:
- Business Development leaders
- Partner executives
- Customer infrastructure and cloud teams
- Serve as a trusted commercial counterpart in advanced AI datacenter and cloud pursuits.
- Represent WD at industry events, partner forums, and customer briefings tied to active deals.
Forecasting, Pipeline & Operating Discipline
- Maintain high‑confidence pipeline, forecast accuracy, and deal hygiene.
- Track design‑win stages, platform adoption, and revenue milestones.
- Use data‑driven insights to prioritize partners, opportunities, and investment.
Qualifications
REQUIRED
- 10+ years in datacenter, cloud, AI infrastructure, or enterprise technology sales.
- Proven success in quota‑carrying roles managing complex, consultative sales cycles.
- Experience working closely with:
- Business Development
- Strategic partnerships
- GTM and ecosystem teams
- Strong channel orientation with SIs, OEMs, distributors, and cloud‑aligned partners.
PREFERRED
- Direct exposure to AI infrastructure, HPC, or cloud data platforms.
- Experience selling solution stacks (hardware + software + services), not point products.
- Comfort engaging with customers and partners on:
- Cloud infrastructure models (IaaS, hybrid, GPU cloud)
- AI data lifecycle requirements
- Storage economics and TCO at scale
- Background working with:
- Large Sis, OEMs, ODMs, VARs, VADs
- Storage, cloud, or AI ecosystems
- Ability to articulate GTM strategy, not just the deal.
SKILLS
- Architecture‑led solution selling
- Cloud and storage fluency
- Strong partnership and co‑sell instincts
- Strategic account planning
- Executive‑level communication
- Forecast rigor and operating discipline
- Ability to operate at the intersection of Sales and Business Development
What Makes This Role Compelling
- You are selling into the fastest‑growing segment in infrastructure.
- You influence both strategy and execution, not just bookings.
- You work alongside best‑in‑class BD talent targeting AI datacenters, cloud providers, and hyperscale‑adjacent customers.
- Strong performers naturally progress into broader GTM, strategic sales, or BD leadership roles.
Additional Information
WD 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 [email protected] 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 07/21/2026 (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.
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Compensation & Benefits Details
- An 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 [email protected].