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Job Description:
Area Sales Manager – Industrial Adhesives & Tapes (Territory Role)
Role Summary
The Area Sales Manager is responsible for driving profitable growth within the assigned territory by acquiring new customers, expanding share of wallet in existing accounts, and delivering differentiated application-based solutions. The role requires strong consultative selling capability, technical engagement, and disciplined execution to achieve Operating Plan (OP), OLCG, margin, and working capital objectives.
Key Responsibilities
1. Sales & Profitable Growth
Deliver monthly, quarterly, and annual revenue targets aligned to OP.
Drive New Business Development (NBD) through structured prospecting and opportunity management.
Execute account plans and opportunity strategies to expand product mix and margin.
Focus on value-based selling and protect pricing within defined guardrails.
2. Customer Engagement & Application Selling
Conduct regular customer visits, process audits, technical demonstrations, and product trials.
Identify process gaps and recommend adhesives/tapes solutions that enhance efficiency, quality, and total cost of ownership (TCO).
Collaborate with Technical Service/Application Engineers for successful trial validation and commercialization.
Build strong relationships with OEMs, converters, fabricators, and key accounts.
3. Territory & Funnel Management
Plan and manage territory coverage, call cadence, and visit productivity.
Maintain a healthy opportunity funnel (≥3× coverage) with accurate stage definition and probability.
Utilize CRM (e.g., Salesforce) for lead tracking, forecasting, and action planning.
Drive disciplined pipeline reviews to improve forecast accuracy.
4. Commercial & Operational Excellence
Prepare proposals and negotiate commercial terms within pricing guardrails.
Ensure timely invoicing, collections, DSO control, and overdue reduction.
Monitor competitor activities and market dynamics; implement counter-strategies.
Support aged inventory liquidation and stock allocation planning.
5. Cross-Functional Collaboration
Partner with Marketing for Ad Merch programs, campaigns, and demand generation initiatives.
Collaborate with Supply Chain for allocation management and backorder mitigation.
Align with Finance on credit management, CIR impact, and working capital control.
6. Compliance & Governance
Adhere to company policies on Ethics, EHS, Trade Compliance, and documentation.
Maintain accurate records of trials, approvals, agreements, and regulatory compliance.
Required Qualifications
Bachelor’s degree in Engineering / Science / Business (Mechanical, Chemical, Production preferred).
3–7 years of B2B industrial sales experience (adhesives, tapes, specialty chemicals, industrial consumables).
Demonstrated success in solution selling and margin-focused negotiations.
Strong customer-facing and presentation skills.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience with Automotive, Electronics, Packaging, Construction, or General Manufacturing OEMs.
Exposure to process lines such as lamination, bonding, gasketing, assembly, surface preparation.
Proficiency in CRM systems (Salesforce preferred), Excel, and demand forecasting tools.
Core Competencies
Application & Product Knowledge
Consultative & Value-Based Selling
Territory Planning & Discipline
Negotiation & Margin Protection
Data-Driven Decision Making
Ownership & Accountability
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Revenue vs OP; OLCG contribution
NBD wins (number/value) & conversion cycle time
Funnel coverage (≥3×) & forecast accuracy
Visit productivity & trial-to-commercialization rate
DSO adherence & collection efficiency
Ad Merch program ROI
Customer retention & wallet share expansion
Travel & Work Conditions
50–70% field travel within assigned territory.
Customer plant visits requiring PPE and adherence to safety protocols.
Flexibility for early/late visits aligned to production schedules.
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