Global Process Owner - Inquiry to Order

Xylem is a Fortune 500 global water solutions company dedicated to advancing sustainable impact and empowering the people who make water work every day. As a leading water technology company with 23,000 employees operating in over 150 countries, Xylem is at the forefront of addressing the world's most critical water challenges. We invite passionate individuals to join our team, dedicated to exceeding customer expectations through innovative and sustainable solutions.

Job Description

We are hiring a Global Process Owner for Inquire to Order!

The Global Process Owner (GPO) for Inquiry to Order is accountable for the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of Xylem’s end-to-end Inquiry to Order (I2O) process on a global scale. This leader ensures that the process is customer-centric, standardized, efficient, and scalable—directly supporting Xylem’s growth ambitions and delivering superior customer experiences. The GPO is also responsible for driving digital transformation by leveraging AI and advanced analytics to redesign, automate, and optimize critical process steps for enhanced speed, accuracy, and insight.

Key Responsibilities:

• Own and steward the global Inquiry to Order process, ensuring alignment with Xylem’s commercial strategy and customer experience goals.
• Lead AI-enabled process redesign initiatives to streamline workflows, eliminate manual bottlenecks, and enable data-driven decision-making across the customer journey.
• Collaborate with IT, digital, AI, and commercial teams to identify, pilot, and scale AI and automation technologies (e.g., intelligent quoting, predictive analytics, workflow automation, conversational AI for customer inquiries).
• Continuously monitor process performance, using advanced analytics to identify improvement opportunities and drive measurable gains in cycle time, accuracy, and customer satisfaction.
• Champion process standardization and best practice adoption across all regions and business units, ensuring compliance and scalability.
• Partner with the VP of Commercial Excellence & Customer Experience and other peer functions to ensure seamless integration of process, technology, and customer insights.
• Establish and report on key KPIs such as order cycle time, conversion rates, process accuracy, automation impact, and customer feedback related to the I2O process.
• Foster a culture of innovation, continuous improvement, and digital literacy within the global commercial organization.

Critical Success Factors:

• Demonstrated ability to lead large-scale process transformation, ideally with a proven track record in deploying AI or digital technologies within commercial operations.
• Deep understanding of customer-centric process design and the commercial sales cycle.
• Strong cross-functional leadership and stakeholder management skills.
• Analytical mindset with experience in leveraging data and AI for operational improvement.
• Change management expertise and the ability to drive adoption across diverse teams and geographies.

Interrelationship Overview

The AI-enabled GPO for Inquiry to Order and the VP of Commercial Excellence & Customer Experience are peer leaders, each with a distinct but highly complementary mandate. The GPO ensures that the end-to-end Inquiry to Order process is customer-centric, standardized, and digitally optimized using AI and automation. This creates a strong operational foundation for commercial activities.

The VP of Commercial Excellence & Customer Experience is responsible for embedding best-in-class commercial strategies, sales practices, and customer engagement models across the organization

Education:
Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain, Operations Management, IT, or related field. Master’s (MBA) preferred.

Experience:

• 8–10+ years in Quote-to-Order, Order Management, Customer Service, or Supply Chain operations.
• At least 3–5 years in senior-level process ownership or process improvement roles within global organizations
• Proven ability to design, implement, and govern end-to-end Quote-to-Order or Order Management processes at scale
• Strong understanding of the full Order-to-Cash lifecycle and upstream/downstream dependencies
• Hands-on experience with major ERP and automation platforms  
• Familiarity with Quote-to-Order automation tools 

Certifications: Lean Six Sigma Green/Black Belt, PMP or equivalent project management credentials.

Salary: The estimated salary range for this position is $155,000 to $250,000 plus bonus.   Starting pay is dependent on multiple factors, such as skills, experience and work location, and is not typically at the top of the range.  At Xylem we offer a competitive compensation package with a generous benefit package, including Medical, Dental, Vision plans, 401(k) with company contribution, paid time off, paid parental leave and tuition reimbursement.

Join the global Xylem team to be a part of innovative technology solutions transforming water usage, conservation, and re-use. Our products impact public utilities, industrial sectors, residential areas, and commercial buildings, with a commitment to providing smart metering, network technologies, and advanced analytics for water, electric, and gas utilities. Partner with us in creating a world where water challenges are met with ingenuity and dedication; where we recognize the power of inclusion and belonging in driving innovation and allowing us to compete more effectively around the world.