Technical Customer Service Manager, Coatings, EMEA

Job Description

Grace is seeking a Technical Customer Service Manager – EMEA to provide technical expertise and services to our customers in the fields of Coatings applications in close coordination with Sales and Marketing of the Materials Technologies business unit. This role reports to the Lead TCS Manager, EMEA and is located at the Worms Germany site. 

This is an exciting opportunity to join a team of highly technical advisors and solution-makers in a customer-facing technical role for our highly desirable SYLOID®, SHIELDEX® and LUDOX® colloidal silica product line.  If you enjoy a challenge of creating value and solving problems for our customers while utilizing technical skills, this is an opportunity you don’t want to miss.

Responsibilities

• Provides technical expertise and service to our customers on the use of GRACE products as functional additives and processing aids in various coatings applications in close coordination with Sales, Marketing and R&D.
• Serves as a champion for value selling methodologies and enables maximum value capture of total Grace offerings (product and non-product in nature).  Communicates potential value creation at the customer to other Grace functions to enable sales and marketing strategy development and implementation.   
• Acts as technical interface between Grace and our customers by cooperating closely with commercial and technical functions. This role is vital to support new customer acquisition, expand our application reach, support introduction of new products and help to define the future development and strategic direction of the segment
• Develops and maintains customer contacts through technical competence and regular visits to key accounts; diagnoses and solves customer´s technical problems and advises on the use and properties of Grace products
• Represents Grace at conferences, trade shows and technical seminars including preparation of presentations, publications and customer trainings.
• Acts as focal point for any technical questions for internal and external partners, evaluates & reports on industry trends and competitive products, decides product fitness for use, resolves technical complaints, and provides product performance data.  Also contributes to continuous improvement projects with Grace manufacturing function.
• Drive & support new product launches in the EMEA  region
• Design and carry out application development programs using both internal and external resources.  . 
• Manages the resources in the application lab
• Plans and executes lab work to address specific customer requests and quality investigations

Required Qualifications

• Education: PhD in Chemistry or MS in Chemical Engineering or related field.
• Experience: minimum of 5 years in a customer-facing role or combination of work and education experience
• Demonstrated track record of application development and project management
• Excellent interpersonal communication is essential, as this role requires interfacing with the customer as well as several key functions within Grace (R&D, Sales, Marketing, Manufacturing, etc.); fluency in written and oral English is required
• Strong analytical thinking and problem-solving skills with an inherent curiosity for developing new applications for the product line
• Excellent organization and time management skills, along with the ability to react to and balance rapidly changing priorities
• Self-starter with the ability to thrive in an independent work environment while still being able to work as part of a team, both regionally and globally
• Must be able to travel within EMEA as required by business needs (up to 40%). 

Preferred Qualifications

• Direct experience in a customer-facing role
• Industry experience in coatings applications
• Knowledge of silica and end-use applications

Benefits

• Attractive Compensation
• Employer funded Pension Plans
• Lifetime Work Account
• Mobile Work Opportunities (job related)
• Corporate Health Management
• On Site Canteen
• Water and hot drinks for free