Sales Manager

Title: Sales Manager

Location: Houston, TX

Who we are:

Voted one of the Nation's Best and Brightest Companies to Work for, Kuraray America, Inc. (KAI) is a global leader in specialty chemical, fiber, and resin production. With top-of-the-line research and production facilities and a vast network of supplies from around the world, Kuraray leads the industry in specialty dental, fiber, resin, and elastomer products. Kuraray America is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kuraray Company, Ltd. Based in Tokyo, Japan. Kuraray has operations in 32 countries and employs more than 11,000 employees, including over 800 in the United States.

Why Kuraray:

Kuraray is building a better tomorrow, today. Our team members are dedicated to expanding our business with committed professionals who share essential values such as integrity, excellence, teamwork, and accountability.

As a part of Kuraray America, Inc., our team shares the advantages of working for the leader in specialty chemicals, resins, and fibers. Our international presence and resources allow us to be a world-leading innovator in the industries we service. Yet, despite our size, our people are more than just a number. As a new team member, you can expect to earn responsibility quickly. Our commitment to our people is visible in our comprehensive benefits package. As a Kuraray team member, you will have the opportunity to enjoy competitive salaries and benefits, incentive opportunities, and an excellent work environment.

Position Summary:

The Sales Manager - Americas will direct and manage PVOH sales and salespeople across Canada, the United States, and Mexico to support Kuraray's global business objectives. This position is based at Kuraray's Houston Headquarters. This is a hybrid role; however, the successful candidate is expected to collaborate with local teams, attend internal meetings, and ensure cross-functional alignment.

This role leads the regional execution of sales strategy, demand forecasting, and customer engagement for the North America region while supporting the profitable growth of the PVOH Business Unit (BU). The Sales Manager will play a key role in driving revenue growth, developing market presence, managing major accounts, and supporting operational excellence in alignment with global supply and demand plans.

Responsibilities:

Leadership & Team Management

• Provide direction, motivation, and performance management to the regional sales team.
• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Support individual development plans and offer coaching to enhance team capabilities.

Sales Strategy & Business Planning

• Develop, lead, and monitor a regional sales plan and budget for the PVOH BU that aligns with Kuraray's global supply-demand objectives.
• Build demand, revenue, and income forecasts starting with KAI's Demand Forecast software (Aspentech); coordinate volume and pricing with Kuraray HQ.
• Lead territory assignments, pricing strategies, budget planning, and performance targets across the regional sales team.

Customer Engagement & Market Development

• Personally manage key accounts critical to the BU's early-stage success and growth, including direct negotiation and proposal development.
• Represent Kuraray at trade shows, industry events, and in professional organizations to strengthen market presence and build strategic partnerships.
• Develop and implement customer relationship plans to grow market share and secure long-term business opportunities.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Collaborate with Product Management, Technical Service & Development, Accounting, Regulatory, Legal, and Logistics to ensure promises to customers are met ethically, efficiently and profitably.
• Work closely with the logistics team to maintain and optimize warehouse setup, freight costs, and supply chain efficiency.
• Inform internal stakeholders of volume changes and new business opportunities to maintain operational readiness.

Compliance & Financial Stewardship

• Maintain rigorous credit management practices to reduce financial exposure and ensure healthy accounts receivable levels.
• Partner with Accounting to monitor financial metrics and apply conservative contract terms and credit insurance where appropriate.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in chemistry/chemical engineering, Business, Marketing, Sales, or related field.
• Minimum of 10 years of progressive sales experience in process, industrial, and/or specialty chemicals.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in a leadership role managing a sales team, with a proven ability to inspire, engage, and develop team members while driving performance.
• Proven success in managing regional sales, preferably including Canada and Mexico
• Experienced in CRM (specifically Salesforce.com), Microsoft365 Suite (Word, Powerpoint, Excel, Power BI)
• Outstanding verbal and written communication, presentation, interpersonal, creative thinking, consulting, and analytical skills.
• Knowledge of contracting, negotiating, financial management, and strategic planning.
• Proven ability to lead through change and manage multiple complex initiatives.
• Cross-cultural fluency; comfort working across diverse cultures, languages, and customs.
• Exceptional communication (verbal, written, presentation) and relationship management skills.
• Ability to conduct business in Spanish would be an advantage but not a pre-requisite
• Up to 50% travel in the region

Competencies:

• Customer Focus
  • Building strong customer relationships and delivering customer-centric solutions.
• Business Insight
  • Applying knowledge of business and the marketplace to advance the organization's goals.
• Cultivates Innovation
  • Creating new and better ways for the organization to be successful.

• Action Oriented
  • Taking on new opportunities and tough challenges with a sense of urgency, high energy, and enthusiasm.
• Drives Results
  • Consistently achieving results, even under tough circumstances
• Collaborates
  • Building partnerships and working collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives.

We offer a competitive compensation package that includes base pay and an annual incentive. This program is designed to reward individual performance and align overall rewards with corporate and team performance.

Our employees benefit from a robust healthcare package that includes wellness reimbursements, along with generous perks such as three weeks of paid time off, ten company holidays, paid parental leave, education reimbursement, and a matching 401k plan, among other offerings.

Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the U.S.

Learn more at kuraray.us.com/careers/

Kuraray America, Inc. is an Equal Employment Opportunity/disability/protected veteran status

No third-party candidates accepted.