NORTH AMERICA SALES SPECIALIST- SPECIALTY CHEMICALS

Position Summary

The Sales Specialist for Specialty Chemicals is a segment expert responsible for accelerating Yokogawa’s growth in the Specialty Chemicals market, with strong emphasis on batch and semi-batch processes. This role blends technical domain expertise, business development, and customer engagement. The Specialist supports the regional sales organization, develops key customer relationships, leads opportunity identification, and helps craft high-value solutions spanning DCS, SIS, batch/MES, instrumentation, digital solutions, and lifecycle services.

Key Responsibilities

1. Segment Expertise & Thought Leadership

• Serve as Yokogawa’s industry expert for Specialty Chemicals, including batch applications, polymerization, resins, coatings, adhesives, fine chemicals, and intermediates.
• Provide best practices, domain insights, and guidance on ISA-88, batch recipe management, quality consistency, flexibility, and operational excellence.
• Build a personal network within the segment and represent Yokogawa at industry conferences, workshops, and technical forums.

2. Business Development & Opportunity Creation

• Identify customer pain points, challenges, and mid- to long-term needs; translate them into Yokogawa solutions.
• Support sales teams in uncovering and qualifying new projects (greenfield, brownfield, expansions, MRO).
• Conduct discovery sessions and strategic conversations with operations, engineering, process control, maintenance, IT/OT, and leadership.
• Develop and implement relationship management plans for complex and strategic accounts—including influencers, technical stakeholders, and corporate decision makers.

3. Customer Engagement & Relationship Leadership

• Build and maintain strong customer relationships based on trust, delivery, and operational value.
• Ensure a two-way flow of information between customers and Yokogawa; drive timely resolution of customer needs and issues.
• Solicit customer feedback and action it internally to improve service levels, solution fit, and long-term satisfaction.

4. Solution Shaping & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Lead cross-functional teams—including Solutions Consulting, Engineering, Product, Service, and Marketing—to design tailored product-and-service packages aligned with customer requirements.
• Influence internal stakeholders to align proposals with customer needs while maintaining margin and strategic focus.
• Introduce internal subject matter experts where needed and coordinate value demonstrations, workshops, and technical assessments.

5. Sales Process & CRM Excellence

• Support opportunity strategy, solution framing, and commercial positioning for major pursuits.
• Maintain pipeline accuracy and account intelligence within Salesforce (or applicable CRM).
• Provide insight to global and regional teams on market trends, competitive activity, and system/process improvements.

6. Segment Marketing & Internal Enablement

• Work with Business Marketing and Market Intelligence to develop segment campaigns, case studies, and value propositions.
• Provide input to global Materials teams on segment priorities, competitive dynamics, digitalization trends, and evolving batch needs.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in a STEM discipline (Chemical Engineering preferred).
• 6–10+ years of experience in Specialty Chemicals, batch processing, process control, or industrial automation.
• Deep understanding of batch processes, ISA-88, recipe management, and quality/repeatability challenges.
• Strong business development, customer-facing, or sales support experience within the process industries.
• Demonstrated ability to interpret strategy and translate it into actionable plans and measurable outcomes.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage complex, multi-stakeholder engagements.
• Willingness to travel frequently (planned and short-notice) across North America.

Preferred

• Experience with DCS/SIS, MES/batch systems, instrumentation, APC, historians, or digital/analytics solutions.
• Exposure to North American chemical clusters (Gulf Coast, Louisiana, Midwest).
• Strong knowledge of key competitors and EPCs in the specialty chemicals space.
• Prior experience in a global organization with multi-site customer structures.

Competencies & Attributes

• Customer-centric with strong consultative skills.
• Strategic thinker with the ability to lead long-cycle relationship development.
• High integrity, professionalism, and commitment to Yokogawa values.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and presentation skills.
• Ability to influence without authority and collaborate across functions and cultures.
• Self-driven, organized, and capable of managing multiple initiatives concurrently.