A. O. Smith, a leader in water heating and water treatment solutions, announces the return of Xiaoping Qian to the North America Water Heating (NAWH) business as vice president of finance, effectively immediately. In this role, Qian will lead the financial planning and analysis, pricing and business analytics teams with the goal of implementing strategies and actions to increase business growth, sales, earnings, cash flow and operational efficiencies. She will also establish annual financial budgets and plans, complete monthly forecasts and ensure proper accounting policies are followed.

Qian began her career with A. O. Smith at the Nanjing location in 2000, and has held various roles of increasing leadership, primarily focused on finance. In 2014, she was promoted to business and financial director for the NAWH business based out of Ashland City, Tennessee, and was later promoted to the vice president of finance for NAWH in 2019. In 2021, Qian returned to Nanjing to assume the role of chief financial officer of A. O. Smith China.

“We are pleased to welcome Xiaoping back to the North America Water Heating business headquarters in Ashland City. She has played a pivotal role in our financial operations for the past 24 years,” said Steve O’Brien, president and general manager of the A. O. Smith NAWH business. “We know Xiaoping and her team will work hard to ensure profitable growth for the company – one of our core values and the foundation of A. O. Smith.”

Qian earned a Bachelor of Science in industry automation and computer science from Nanjing University of Technology and a Master of Business Administration from Nanjing University with a concentration in accounting and finance. She holds national certifications in China as a Certified Internal Auditor and Certified Public Accountant and has her certification in machine learning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).