Vice President, Sales - North America & Latin AmericaJob Summary: The Vice President of Sales is responsible for developing and executing the commercial growth strategy for the Americas region across the company's Performance Additives and Functional Additives businesses. This executive leadership role is accountable for delivering profitable volume growth, revenue expansion, customer retention, margin improvement, and market share gains across a diverse portfolio of specialty chemical products serving polymer, coatings, adhesives, sealants, lubricants, personal care, pharmaceutical, and industrial markets.
This executive will build and lead a high-performing commercial organization focused on commercial excellence, disciplined sales execution, customer intimacy, channel optimization, and strategic account management. The role partners closely with Product Management, Finance, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, Technology, and Customer Service to accelerate growth, improve service levels, and maximize EBITDA performance.
As a member of the Executive Leadership Team, the Vice President plays a critical role in executing the company's growth strategy by driving organic growth initiatives, expanding participation in high-value applications and end markets, strengthening distributor partnerships, and developing the commercial capabilities necessary to support long-term value creation. This aligns with Valtris' objectives to selectively grow our Performance Additives business, expand participation in higher-value end markets, improve service levels, and rebuild commercial capabilities.
Key Responsibilities:Commercial Strategy & Growth- Execute the regional commercial strategy to achieve aggressive revenue, volume, EBITDA, and market share objectives.
- Lead organic growth initiatives across Performance Additives and Functional Additives product portfolios.
- Identify and prioritize attractive end markets, customer segments, applications, and geographic growth opportunities.
- Drive customer acquisition, penetration, retention, and expansion strategies.
- Partner with Product Management and Technology teams to develop growth roadmaps and commercialization plans.
- Support new product introductions and innovation-driven growth opportunities.
- Lead efforts to regain lost business and capture competitive conversions.
- Estimated travel is 40-50%, almost exclusively within the United States.
Sales Leadership- Lead, coach, and develop a team of approximately ten commercial professionals, including Key Account Managers, Distribution Managers, and Inside Sales personnel.
- Establish clear performance expectations, territory plans, sales goals, and accountability mechanisms.
- Build a culture of ownership, urgency, customer focus, collaboration, and execution.
- Recruit, develop, and retain top commercial talent.
- Conduct regular sales reviews, pipeline assessments, and opportunity management processes.
Strategic Account Management- Personally manage executive relationships with the company's most strategic customers and distribution partners.
- Negotiate major commercial agreements and long-term contracts.
- Lead escalation management and executive customer engagement activities.
- Expand share of wallet within existing strategic accounts.
- Ensure alignment between customer needs and company capabilities.
Distribution & Channel Management- Execute channel strategies to maximize market coverage and profitability.
- Establish growth plans and performance expectations for channel partners with channel strategy leader.
- Evaluate and optimize distributor performance across the Americas.
Commercial Excellence- Drive adoption and continuous improvement of CRM tools, sales processes, forecasting discipline, and pipeline management.
- Utilize KPIs and dashboards to measure sales productivity and commercial effectiveness.
- Improve forecast accuracy and support the S&OP process.
- Utilize market intelligence and competitive insights to inform pricing and growth strategies.
Pricing & Profitability- Lead pricing strategy execution and value-selling initiatives.
- Ensure disciplined pricing governance and margin management.
- Partner with Finance and Business Leaders to optimize product mix and profitability.
- Drive initiatives that improve EBITDA and contribution margin performance.
Cross-Functional Leadership- Partner closely with Product Management, Technology, Regulatory, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Customer Service, Finance, and Marketing Communication teams.
- Champion a "one-company" approach to serving customers.
- Support service-level improvement initiatives and customer experience enhancements.
- Drive alignment between commercial commitments and operational capabilities.
Leadership & Culture- Demonstrate visible leadership consistent with company values and leadership behaviors.
- Foster a safety-first culture across all customer-facing activities.
- Promote employee engagement, talent development, succession planning, and organizational effectiveness.
- Serve as a trusted advisor to executive leadership regarding market conditions, customer trends, and growth opportunities.
Qualifications:Experience- 15+ years of progressive commercial leadership experience within specialty chemicals, performance materials, additives, polymers, or adjacent industrial markets.
- Demonstrated success leading multi-million-dollar commercial organizations.
- Experience managing direct and indirect sales teams across North America.
- Proven track record of delivering significant volume, revenue, and profit growth.
- Experience working with distributors, direct sales models, and strategic accounts.
- Strong pricing, negotiation, and contract management experience.
- Experience operating in a global matrix organization preferred.
- Private equity-owned company experience preferred.
Competencies- Strategic Thinking | Commercial Acumen | Executive Presence | Leadership and Talent Development
- Customer Focus | Value Selling | Financial Acumen | Data-Driven Decision Making
- Change Leadership | Negotiation and Influencing Skills | Cross-Functional Collaboration | Results Orientation
Success Profile:The successful candidate will be a growth-oriented commercial leader who combines strategic vision with operational discipline. They will have a demonstrated ability to build high-performing sales organizations, create accountability, strengthen customer relationships, and consistently deliver profitable growth in specialty chemicals. This leader will help accelerate the company's transformation by rebuilding commercial capabilities, expanding participation in higher-value applications, improving customer experience, and driving sustainable volume and revenue growth across both Performance Additives and Functional Additives businesses.
