Business Development Manager

Role Profile

The Business Development Manager is expected to expand Eastman’s presence in strategically important markets, improve early access to projects and specifications, strengthen relationships across the value chain, increase the quality of the opportunity pipeline, support higher project win rates, and convert market insights into sustainable commercial growth.

The Business Development Manager is responsible for executing our business strategy at the downstream customer and key value chain partners level, enabling customer success through identifying, developing, and securing new specifications for Eastman Heat Transfer Fluids offerings in existing & emerging applications. This position offers a unique opportunity to shape the way Eastman strategically develops its business through product specification working with process licensors, large engineering, procurement and construction companies & (OEM) Original Equipment Manufacturers in the conventional Oil & Gas Industries, downstream petrochemicals and derivatives and emerging renewable energy / sustainability markets. Approximately 50% + travel is required for this role.

This full-time, remote position is home-office based with a preference for candidates based in Houston, Atlanta, Chicago, St Louis, and Greenville. This is a critical role within the Specialty Fluids & Energy business reporting to the North America / Asia Sales Manager and offers an exciting opportunity to develop new business with our innovation-driven platform offerings in downstream applications.

Responsibilities

• Partner with the commercial team to understand market dynamics, industry trends, customer needs, end-market developments, and emerging applications relevant to the SFE- HTF business. Identify and prioritize attractive market segments, applications, investment projects, and growth opportunities by evaluating market potential, strategic fit, competitive intensity, customer value, and expected return.
• Develop a comprehensive understanding of the value chain, including customers, engineering, procurement, and construction companies, process licensors, consultants, technology providers, distributors, and other strategic partners. And, build and maintain a global ecosystem of value-chain partners and decision-makers, working directly or indirectly with the sales, technical, marketing, and regional teams to strengthen Eastman’s market position.
• Engage with EPC companies, process licensors, engineering firms, and other validation partners involved in conventional markets and emerging growth areas, including renewable energy and sustainability-related applications. Identify opportunities to influence product specifications and technical standards at an early stage of project development, while ensuring that customer and value-chain requirements are clearly communicated to the relevant internal teams
• Work closely with customers, account managers, and technical teams to understand application requirements, unmet needs and support the development, qualification, and specification of Eastman products and solutions. Translate market, customer, project, and value-chain insights into actionable business recommendations, including opportunity prioritization, commercial strategies, product-development needs, and market-entry plans.
• Use available business tools, market intelligence, project databases, Salesforce Opportunity Management, Power BI and investment-outlook resources to assess global developments in conventional and emerging markets and to guide the allocation of business-development resources supporting product specification.

Additional Responsibilities

• Monitor global investment activity, major projects, technology developments, regulatory trends, and sustainability priorities to anticipate future demand and identify opportunities for Eastman.
• Provide market and competitive intelligence to commercial and business leadership, including insights on competitors, alternative technologies, customer strategies, project pipelines, value propositions, and potential risks. Collaborate with sales, marketing, product management, technical service, application development, supply chain, and other functional teams to develop coordinated customer and project strategies.
• Support technical validation and commercialization activities by coordinating the required engagement among customers, engineering partners, process licensors, technical teams, and internal stakeholders. Develop and maintain strategic accounts, market, and project plans that define objectives, stakeholders, engagement priorities, value propositions, actions, and expected outcomes.
• Promote a global, customer-centric approach to business development by encouraging collaboration across regions and avoiding regional silos, particularly on global accounts and projects involving multiple supply or customer locations. Facilitate effective handoffs from business development to the commercial and technical teams, ensuring that project information, customer requirements, timelines, risks, and agreed actions are clearly documented and communicated.
• Track business-development activities, project progress, customer engagement, specifications, validation milestones, and commercial outcomes using established business processes and systems. Continuously assess the effectiveness of business-development strategies and recommend adjustments when market conditions, customer priorities, competitive dynamics, or investment plans change.
• Ensure all activities are conducted in accordance with Eastman’s policies, applicable laws, ethical business practices, and health, safety, environmental, and security requirements

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, or related engineering field required. Master in business administration (MBA) is preferred.
• 5–10+ years of advanced Sales / Business development in specialty chemicals, Engineering Procurement and Construction Companies or with Process Licensors. Strong process engineering background working with EPCs is preferred.
• Extensive knowledge of Process Engineering.
• Strong technical knowledge, market and customer strategy and planning experience
• Experience with CRM ( Sales Force preferred), opportunity management and other sales systems and tools
• Success in the role requires strong strategic thinking, global networking, customer and market orientation, commercial awareness, technical curiosity, influencing skills, collaboration, adaptability, and the ability to connect long-term market opportunities with practical business actions.

Travel Requirements

Required to spend minimum 50% of time on travel status for customer visits; trade shows; training; and regional/global meetings. Travel will mostly be in US and Canada however may also require additional international travel as needed.

Traits

Passion for Selling:

• Is consistently obsessed with understanding and shaping customer and market behavior
• Connects the dots to develop insights meaningful to customers’ and Eastman’s success
• Leverages data for learning, decision making, and prioritization
• Uses a disciplined approach in developing and following successful patterns in key sales processes

Tenacious:

• Pursues goals with energy, drive and a need to finish
• Seldom gives up before finishing, especially in the face of resistance, rejection or set-back
• Always looks for the possibilities and skillfully does discovery to overcome obstacles   
• Breaks down or work around perceived barriers; gets to the right decision makers internally and externally

Inquisitive:

• Leverages the skills of questioning, observation, listening and networking to gain a deep understanding of our customers’ goals, needs and issues
• Takes the required action to resolve gaps in information, knowledge or understanding
• Gathers all information needed to make informed choices
• Leverages experts and other key individuals as important sources of information
• Uncovers relevant information to make accurate judgments and sound decisions