Senior Account Manager - Automotive Job

Arkema is looking for a Senior Account Manager to lead and grow strategic automotive accounts across North America’s Light Vehicle market. You’ll own executive‑level relationships, drive profitable growth, and partner with OEMs and Tier suppliers to advance high‑performance applications using Arkema’s specialty polyamides.

This role offers significant visibility, direct influence on revenue and margin, and collaboration with global stakeholders across Sales, Business Development, Technical Service, R&D, Supply Chain, and Customer Service.

The role is based in the Detroit / Cleveland region and reports directly to the Business Director, Polyamides.

Key Responsibilities

Account Management 

• Own and manage a portfolio of North American Light Vehicle customer accounts, serving as the primary contact for commercial engagement, forecasting, order coordination, and collections.
• Deliver profitable growth by increasing revenue, volume, and margin through disciplined account strategy and execution.
• Develop and implement strategic account plans, including long‑term supply agreements where appropriate, to drive sustained growth and retention.
• Build strong, trusted relationships across multiple levels and functions within strategic customer organizations; lead quarterly business reviews to align on performance and future opportunities.
• Provide actionable market insights and competitive intelligence to inform short‑ and long‑term decision‑making.
• Support territory planning and strategic market mapping aligned with annual budgets and multi‑year growth plans.
• Communicate clearly and effectively with regional and global leadership, providing updates on performance, risks, and opportunities.
• Partner closely with Global Account Managers to align activities in North America and ensure seamless coordination for NA‑led global accounts.
• Collaborate cross‑functionally with Customer Service, Supply Chain, and Quality teams to ensure strong execution and customer satisfaction.
• Lead pricing strategy and execution, including tier‑level pricing, formula and non‑formula adjustments, pricing for new programs, and coordination of pricing actions for global key accounts.

OEM Relationship Management 

• Establish and maintain relationships with assigned Passenger Vehicle OEMs to understand market trends, technical requirements, and upcoming programs.
• Support material qualifications and position Arkema solutions early in the vehicle development cycle to create new business opportunities.
• Develop and execute OEM‑specific action plans in collaboration with internal market management and global transportation sales and business development teams.

Light Vehicle Business Development 

• Build and manage a strong new‑business opportunity pipeline within established fluid transfer applications for light vehicles, aligned with long‑term growth objectives.
• Partner with Business Development Engineers and technical teams to advance opportunities from concept through commercialization.
• Engage and coordinate internal resources (Technical Service, R&D, HSE, Legal) to support opportunity development and successful execution.
• Support pricing and commercialization efforts for diversification initiatives beyond fluid transfer, including injection applications and busbars.
• Track, manage, and report pipeline activity and progress using Salesforce or similar CRM tools.
• Represent Arkema at industry trade shows, customer meetings, and market‑related events; contribute to market communications and MarCom planning

Qualifications: 

Experience:

• 7–10 years in Sales or Business Development, ideally with automotive OEMs/Tier suppliers.
• Demonstrated success managing complex customer portfolios and delivering profitable growth in a matrixed, global environment.

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in Sales, Chemistry, Engineering, or related field (advanced degree a plus).

Skills & Competencies:

• Strong commercial acumen; able to balance customer needs with pricing strategy and margin objectives.
• Excellent communication, relationship management, and negotiation skills at all levels.
• Highly organized with strong time management and analytical capabilities.
• Self‑starter with a proactive, new‑business (“hunter”) mindset; thrives in team settings and cross‑functional collaboration.
• Comfortable with Salesforce (or similar CRM) for pipeline, forecasting, and reporting.

Working conditions

• Significant travel within North America; occasional global travel as needed.

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