Sales Director

Make a +Difference at Kraton!

At Kraton, we make a Positive Difference, and we are looking for individuals who are also looking to make a difference in their jobs, for our customers and to the world. We are looking to hire a key member of our Sales team at our Almere location.

The Sales director is the functional leader of the sales team owning the development of growth oriented sales strategy and aligned resource plan with clearly defined performance targets. The Sales Director works collaboratively with business and functional leadership to define and drive business specific initiatives designed to maximize value through price/volume optimization, customer driven application projects, and leading the commercialization of new business within targeted markets.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategy:

  • Communicate global sales strategy and regional plan to Sales Managers.
  • Contribute to and helps build regional sales strategy.
  • Translate strategy into territory priorities and roadmap to achieve strategy.
  • Own and drive implementation of the contribution margin, volume, and commercialized innovation goals for assigned market segment(s).
  • Develop and track KPI’s for assigned region/products.
  • Oversee and support Sales Managers in developing and executing account/territory plans.
  • Participate to the definition of new business developments priorities with Marketing and R&D leadership.

• Customer Intimacy:

  • Develop relationships with senior leaders within key regional accounts to facilitate strategic partnerships for sustainable, high return supply positions aligned to customer’s strategic priorities.
  • Assign global accounts to appropriate Sales Manager, and foster cross-regional collaboration and alignment.
  • Develop and engage in senior level relationships within industry associations.
  • Assist sales team in resolving issues. Escalate as needed.
  • Communicate market trends to Marketing and R&D leadership.

• Pricing:

  • Develop a solid understanding of price/volume elasticity by account and application.
  • Continuously refine Share of Wallet intelligence by account and application.
  • Develop – together with other commercial leaders – and provide pricing guidance to sales managers. Assist them in the execution phase.
  • Demonstrate more sophisticated market POV and can identify and articulate value proposition to all stakeholders.
  • Identify and develop options and recommend decisions based on economic and strategic criteria.
  • Mentor others in negotiation – skilled negotiator.
  • Approve pricing within MOBA guidelines.

• Pipeline:

  • Drive the development and growth of the sales pipeline for assigned market segment(s).
  • Prioritize and review pipeline, Coordinate with R&D, Product Management and Marketing as needed.
  • Articulate the value of new opportunities and strategic fit.
  • Prioritize and convince stakeholders to pursue good opportunities.
  • Secure resources for priority opportunities
  • Manage sales pipeline, lead follow-up, and innovation tracking using company CRM and PowerBI.

• Account Plans:

  • Monitor account plans and KPI’s.
  • Ensure account plans are aligned regionally and globally.
  • Contract excellence – manage commitments and options, negotiation support, justify and drive decisions to max value.
  • Articulate value in economic terms.
  • Set expectations for the team to understand value and develop sophisticated POV to drive competitive advantage for our company.
  • Support resourcing to differentiate our offering where warranted.
  • Secure needed resources to execute account plans.

• Forecast and Product Allocation:

  • Collaborate with Sales Managers to analyze forecasts, set challenging targets for assigned market segment(s) and communicate to Finance.
  • Own financial forecast for the assigned territory.
  • Collaborate to maximize value for the global enterprise.
  • Work with Sales Managers to address customer issues and manage risks.
  • Manage product allocations & force majeure.
  • Develop regional allocation plan and customer communication.
  • Coordinate with Supply Planning to ensure the right products are available at the right time.

Required Skills

• 10+ years of commercial experience.
• Provide day-to-day leadership to sales team in accomplishing goals.
• Provide on the job opportunities for team members to develop the skills, competencies, abilities, that align with current and future results.
• Remove roadblocks and assist sales team in resolving issues.
• Establish a high performance healthy culture, hire people in alignment with our "hungry, humble, smart" culture, and develop and motivate the sales team in executing the strategic sales plan.
• Set goals for Sales Managers in coordination with the Regional Sales Leader.
• Develop Individual Development Plans (IDPs) for each Sales Manager; review progress against goals and IDP’s, and provide feedback.
• Train, coach and develop Sales Managers.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to accomplish goals and objectives
• Ensure adequately training sales staff and channel partners on Kraton compliance policies meet high standards of compliance.

Education, Certifications & Licenses

• Bachelors' degree (or equivalent) required

What we offer

• A supportive work environment that values teamwork and collaboration.
• A competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package.
• The opportunity to work with a talented and diverse team of professionals in this field.
• Ongoing learning and development opportunities to enhance your skills.
• The opportunity to make a real positive change in the industry by working on sustainable solutions.

The statements above are intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by employees assigned to this classification. Statements are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities and skills required for this position.

Kraton’s internal talent acquisition team manages our recruiting efforts and from time to time works with pre-selected/pre-approved external staffing agencies. We do NOT accept unsolicited resumes or candidate referrals from recruiters and/or agencies who are not pre-selected/pre-approved.

Kraton is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer.