Senior Manager - Technical Development Flotation

We are a leading chemical company, with the best teams developing intelligent solutions for our customers, and for a sustainable future.

We connect and develop people with diverse talents all over the world. For you, this means a variety of ways to progress.

Not only your performance but also your personality matter to us, regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, orientation, and background.  At BASF, careers develop from opportunities. 

Objectives of the Position:

• Promote and differentiate BASF as a value-adding, technically excellent and professional customer focused company in the manufacture and supply of "Solutions" to the Mining Industry. 
• Act as the key BASF representative on customer sites, ensuring strong customer relationships are built and maintained across all hierarchy levels. In addition, lead the development of BASF Flotation business with focus (but not limited to) Asia Pacific (focus Southeast Asia and Greater China) from a technical point of view and manage the technical interactions between key customers and account managers.

Main Tasks:

• Promote and differentiate BASF as a value-adding company: Develop and implement strategies to position BASF as a technically excellent and professional customer-focused company in the mining industry. This includes creating and delivering compelling presentations, conducting technical demonstrations, and highlighting the unique value of BASF solutions.
• Act as the key lead BASF representative on customer sites: Establish and maintain strong customer relationships across all levels of the customer organization. This includes regularly visiting customer sites, attending meetings, and actively engaging with key stakeholders to understand their needs and provide technical support.
• Lead the development of BASF Flotation business: Take ownership of the Flotation business in the Asia Pacific region, driving its growth and success. This involves conducting market research, identifying customer needs, and developing tailored solutions to meet those needs. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure successful implementation of business plans.
• Lead and steer technical interactions between key customers and account managers: Serve as a technical point of contact for key customers, working closely with account managers to address technical inquiries, resolve issues, and provide technical guidance. Ensure effective communication and collaboration between internal teams and external customers.
• Stay up to date with industry trends and developments: Continuously monitor the mining industry, including competitor activities, market trends, and emerging technologies. Stay informed about regulatory changes and industry standards to effectively position BASF as a leader in the sector.
• Support marketing and sales activities: Collaborate with marketing and sales teams to develop and implement effective strategies to promote BASF solutions in the mining industry. This includes participating in industry conferences, exhibitions, and customer events to showcase BASF's technical expertise and value proposition.
• Ensure personal EHS compliance - Think Safety, Act Safely, every day.
• Ensure sales targets (volumes, sales, profit) for assigned applications and defined sales area are met or exceeded.
• Increase sales of products to existing customers and develop new business opportunities.
• Proactively manage, maintain, and monitor supply of products to customers through accurate monthly forecasting to Head of Sales and communication with Supply Chain.
• Keep proactive control of working capital by actively handling overdue, credit management, credit blocks, storage, DSO etc.
• Generate customer reports for visits – to be uploaded in Salesforce and where required, load report or link onto global tech service SharePoint.
• Use Salesforce to plan and record customer interactions (i.e. emails) specifically including all visits, opportunities and contacts (for NPS) and foster team communication via chatter.
• Promote cross BU and segment selling into the mining and mineral processing market.
• Align customer contract content and negotiation closely with Contract Manager and Head of Sales.

Requirements:

• Education: University degree required – preferably in Chemistry, Metallurgy or Chemical/Mining Engineering; MBA is a plus.
• Working Experience: A minimum of 15 years - direct experience in the mineral processing industry, with a very strong technical background - experience in business interactions with mine operators.
• Proven application experience and understanding of mining processes and associated chemicals, including laboratory testing, technical process parameter collection and reporting, as well as an understanding of the beneficiation process with all its stages.
• Proven beneficiation experience 
• Strong relationship-building and networking skills, with the ability to establish and maintain strong customer relationships at all levels.
• Well established industry network across the region.
• Experience with SAP, CPQ, Salesforce and MS Office.
• Must be capable of working in a multi-tasking environment, be team-oriented and be able to handle difficult situations and solve problems efficiently & effectively.
• Willingness and capability to advise, coach and train younger colleagues in the team
• Willingness to engage in travel nationally (and internationally) at least 50% of time.