Management Development Trainee - 4 Year Rotational Program

Hajoca Corporation is the nation's largest privately held wholesale distributor of plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, industrial pipe-valve-fitting, and pool supplies. Founded in 1858, Hajoca operates more than 450 locations nationwide. What sets Hajoca apart is its decentralized business model, where each location, known as a Profit Center, is led by a manager who runs the business with an entrepreneurial mindset; managing strategy, financial performance, customer relationships, and local growth. With more than 165 years of success, Hajoca combines the strength of a national organization with the agility and customer focus of a locally operated business.

About the role

The Management Trainee position is a rotational four-year training program built for sales-driven, entrepreneurial-minded individuals who want to run their own business, without the risk of starting one from scratch. Over four years, you'll rotate through progressively greater levels of responsibility—warehouse, counter, sales, customer ownership, and business leadership—building the skills to become a Profit Center Manager: Hajoca's version of a business owner. This is not a desk job and not a generic corporate training track. From day one, you'll be immersed in the operational and commercial heartbeat of a Profit Center: quoting jobs, growing accounts, and negotiating with contractors.

Four-Year Rotation

• Phase 1 (1 year) – Warehouse and Counter: Start by learning the business from the ground up. You'll gain hands-on experience across operations, from warehouse logistics to customer service, building product knowledge, working directly with customers, and spending time in the field to learn about the wholesale distribution industry.
• Phase 2 (9 months) – Inside Sales: Develop customer relationships and problem-solving skills. You'll work directly with customers, understand their needs, provide solutions, and build lasting relationships through exceptional service.
• Phase 3 (2 years) – Outside Sales: Move into the field as an outside sales representative focused on prospecting contractors, bidding jobs, and winning new accounts. This rotation is where the entrepreneurial mindset takes hold; you're building your own book of business and learning to think like an owner about growth.
• Phase 4 (3 months) – Leadership & Operations: Step into a leadership rotation focused on the full operating picture of a Profit Center: P&L management, inventory and margin strategy, staffing and team leadership, and vendor negotiations. You'll work directly with a Profit Center Manager as a business partner, preparing to lead a location and its sales team on your own.

What You'll Gain

• Entrepreneurial runway: Graduates are positioned to run a Profit Center with real P&L ownership and financial upside tied to performance.
• Sales-focused development: Roughly three of four years are spent in sales—prospecting, bidding, negotiating, and managing accounts.
• Dedicated coaching: Every trainee is paired with an experienced manager-coach throughout the program.
• Network exposure: Rotate through Profit Centers and markets to see different business models, leaders, and customer bases.
• Clear path to ownership: A defined path from trainee to Profit Center Manager, with many graduates leading a location in four years.

Requirements

• Currently enrolled in a Bachelor's degree program.
• A competitive, self-starting mindset; you want to create something meaningful and be measured by the results you achieve, not simply by showing up.
• Genuine interest in relationship-building, sales, and the mechanics of running a business.
• Willingness to relocate during and after the program, based on business need and career opportunity.
• Strong communication skills and comfort working in the field with contractors, tradespeople, and customers.
• Demonstrated leadership in professional, educational, and/or social experiences.
• No industry experience required; we'll teach you the business.

Pay

$70,000 per year, plus benefits, with increases after each phase and eligibility for profit sharing.

Application deadline: September 30, 2026.