Yama Zai -CSE, MCSE, MBA

Sales & Commercial Leader | Building Technology & Smart Buildings | BMS/BAS, HVAC Controls & Integrated Systems | Enterprise & Channel Growth, P&L | Western Canada | MBA

Greater Vancouver Metropolitan Area

About

Sales and commercial leader with 17+ years driving revenue growth across building technology, smart buildings, building automation (BMS/BAS/DDC), HVAC controls, and integrated low-voltage systems - partnering with the owners, operators, engineers, and OEM and channel partners who run complex building environments. My background spans executive sales leadership, regional sales management, and strategic account management with Siemens, Honeywell, Johnson Controls, and Core Automation Solutions. I've built and led high-performing commercial teams, owned forecast and P&L, and translated engineering-led building systems into measurable outcomes for institutional, healthcare, commercial and mission-critical clients. Selected impact: - Built and managed qualified sales pipelines exceeding $45M+ - Delivered $20M+ in building automation and modernization programs across 80+ facilities (Siemens President's Circle, 2x) - Grew multi-site service and retrofit revenue across institutional and commercial portfolios - Built go-to-market and channel strategies that exceeded growth targets while improving retention and recurring revenue - Established executive relationships with owners, operators, property managers, consultants, and OEM/channel partners Core strengths: revenue strategy & P&L ownership; enterprise & strategic account management; building automation, smart buildings & integrated systems (BMS/BAS, HVAC controls, access control, CCTV, IoT); OEM, distributor & channel development; forecasting, pipeline governance & CRM discipline; executive negotiation; cross-functional leadership across sales, engineering & delivery. I help owners and operators modernize building operations and apply technology to build smarter, more resilient, higher-performing environments.

Experience

  • Core Automation Solutions ()
    • Country Sales Manager, Building and Manufacturing
      Mar 2026 - Present · 5 mos

    • Director, Smart Building & Connected Systems Consulting-Western Canada
      Jun 2025 - Present · 1 yr 2 mos

  • Vice President/ Division Manager National Sales and strategy Growth Building and Manufacturing at BC Comfort Group
    Sep 2022 - Aug 2025 · 3 yrs

    Led national commercial strategy and revenue execution for DynamiX Building Automation, the building-automation and intelligent-systems division of BC Comfort Group. Owned the sales forecast and P&L, building the go-to-market model, pipeline governance, and deal execution that scaled the practice across complex, engineering-led environments. Built and led a cross-functional commercial organization spanning sales, engineering, and delivery — instilling an operating rhythm of forecast discipline, KPI-driven accountability, and transparent pipeline governance. Partnered closely with engineering leadership to translate customer challenges into scalable automation and digital-systems solutions, and expanded the channel and partner ecosystem to grow addressable market and recurring revenue. Focus areas: revenue strategy and P&L ownership · sales operations and forecasting discipline · channel and partner development · cross-functional leadership across sales, engineering, and delivery · contribution-margin and product-mix optimization

  • Regional Director – Industrial Automation & Digital Manufacturing Solutions at Honeywell
    Apr 2021 - Aug 2022 · 1 yr 5 mos

    Recruited to lead regional commercial strategy and enterprise sales across industrial automation and digital manufacturing portfolios. Owned a $30M+ automation portfolio, commercialized cloud-based industrial analytics across 30+ production environments, and led executive sales strategy for $8M+ enterprise modernization programs — partnering with engineering and product teams to align solutions with operational outcomes

  • Senior Director – Industrial Digitalization & Manufacturing Solutions at Siemens
    Jan 2016 - Mar 2021 · 5 yrs 3 mos

  • Sales Executive, Industrial Automation, Digital Infrastructure, & Electrification at Johnson Controls
    Jan 2013 - Nov 2016 · 3 yrs 11 mos