Vice President - Business Development

Location

This role is preferred to be based in Santa Barbara, CA, with openness to candidates based in Boston, MA, New York, NY, or remote in the San Francisco Bay Area.

This position allows for a combination of remote work and in-office collaboration. Qualified applicants should expect regular travel to Santa Barbara and other Sonos office locations as needed for executive collaboration, team leadership, partner meetings, and business development activity.

The Role

Sonos is one of the most beloved brands in consumer technology. More than seventeen million active households trust us with the sound in their homes, and our customers are among the most loyal and engaged in audio. We build premium products that people genuinely love, and partners want to find ways to work with us.

Now, we are extending that platform into its next chapter. The VP, Business Development will be the deal architect for that growth. This leader will own strategic partnerships, commercial agreements, and corporate development evaluation that turn strategic ambition into signed, implemented outcomes.

Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, this person will work closely with Product, Legal, Finance, Marketing, and Revenue to identify, structure, and close partnerships that expand Sonos’ reach, deepen platform value, and create new growth paths. This is a builder’s role. The pipeline is active, and the person we hire will close deals, not just source them.

What You’ll Do

• Lead commercial negotiations with platform partners, content providers, ecosystem integrators, and other strategic partners that expand Sonos’ reach or deepen platform value.
• Identify and close two to three anchor partnerships per year that materially expand household reach, strengthen the platform, or increase operating leverage.
• Own the GTM partnership function alongside the existing team, translating partnership agreements into revenue, cost, or platform-value outcomes.
• Serve as the external commercial arm of the product roadmap. Product owns what we build; Business Development owns who we partner with.
• Bring market learnings, partner insights, and commercial opportunities back to Product through clear recommendations and position papers.
• Develop partnership strategies that leverage Sonos’ 5,000-strong patent portfolio, including opportunities to productize, license, or partner around Sonos IP.
• Run a standing M&A screen against the Sonos strategic map, reporting regularly to the COO on targets, multiples, and build-versus-buy logic.
• Lead diligence on inbound or outbound acquisition discussions, in partnership with Product, Finance, and Legal.
• Maintain relationships with bankers, VCs, founders, and leaders in adjacent spaces such as audio technology, streaming infrastructure, smart home, and in-vehicle entertainment.
• Lead and develop a small, high-leverage team that includes BD professionals and GTM partnership leadership, setting deal priorities and building stronger commercial discipline around deal structure and execution.

What You’ll Need

Basic Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in business development, corporate development, strategic partnerships, or a related commercial leadership role.
• Experience working in consumer technology, media, platform, hardware, software, or adjacent technology environments.
• Demonstrated record of closing signed and implemented deals with measurable business outcomes.
• Strong fluency in deal mechanics, including term sheets, licensing structures, revenue-share models, exclusivity provisions, partner obligations, and OEM pricing.
• Experience partnering cross-functionally with Product, Legal, Finance, Marketing, Revenue, and executive leadership to drive alignment and close complex deals.
• Demonstrated ability to operate in a fast-moving environment, create structure in ambiguity, and move from strategy to execution.
• Experience leading or developing teams, setting priorities, and allocating resources across a portfolio of opportunities.
• Ability to work from Santa Barbara, Boston, New York, or remotely from the San Francisco Bay Area, with regular travel to Santa Barbara and other Sonos locations as needed for executive collaboration, team leadership, partner meetings, and business development activity.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with hardware licensing, product partnerships, or connected-device ecosystems.
• Experience with media, advertising, streaming, content, smart home, automotive, or platform partnerships.
• Experience evaluating M&A opportunities, strategic investments, build-versus-buy decisions, or acquisition diligence.
• Experience working directly with senior executives, founders, strategic partners, and external deal counterparties.
• Strong product and commercial instincts, with the ability to translate market signals into partnership strategy.
• Experience building new partnership motions, growth engines, or commercial functions without a predefined playbook.

Why Sonos

Sonos has one of the strongest consumer technology brands in the market, with more than seventeen million active households and deep loyalty among a core audience that spends real money on a one-of-a-kind home audio system. The Business Development and corporate development agenda is central to driving growth and transformation into the next decade.

This leader will have direct visibility into the company’s growth agenda and a meaningful opportunity to shape the partnerships, commercial structures, and strategic opportunities that define Sonos’ next chapter.

Inclusion

Research shows that some candidates may not apply for roles if they don't meet all the criteria. If you don’t have 100% of the skills listed, we still strongly encourage you to apply if interested.

Visa Sponsorship

Sonos is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa for this role at this time. We ask that applicants be authorized to work for us in the country of role posting, both now and in the future.

Your profile will be reviewed and you'll hear from us once we have an update. At Sonos we take the time to hire right and appreciate your patience.

The base pay range for this role based off geographic location is:

$267,000 and $334,000

The specific pay offered will depend on the candidate’s geographic location, as well as qualifications and experience. We apply geographic pay differentials based on the cost of labor in the market.  Employees in high-cost locations may be compensated at the upper end of the range, while those in medium or low cost markets may be compensated at the lower end of  the range. Your recruiter can provide more details about the specific salary range for your location during the hiring process. 

Please note that compensation details listed in US job postings reflect the base salary only, and do not include bonus, equity, or benefits.

We also offer a comprehensive benefits program with choice and flexibility in mind to help support the health, wealth, and overall well-being of our employees. Regular full time employees in the US are eligible for benefits on day one, including:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance

• A 401(k) plan with company matching and immediate vesting

• An Open Time Off policy (OTO) so you have maximum opportunity to disconnect and recharge, with no tenure-based vacation accruals required

• 80 hours of sick time upon hire, refreshed annually

• Up to 12 paid holidays per calendar year

• Sonos offers a generous paid leave program for new parents or to care for a family member with a serious health condition, as well as short- and long-term disability for your own medical condition

• Company-paid Disability, Life, and AD&D Insurance

• Voluntary benefits, including Voluntary Life, AD&D, Accident, and Pet Insurance

• Mental health benefits to support your holistic well-being

• A generous employee discount program & Sonos Radio HD - on us!

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, 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 U.S. Job Applicants: Sonos is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics.

Sonos is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation because of a disability for any part of the employment process, please send an e-mail to [email protected] and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information.