Strategic Business Development Manager

P2i; Remote; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading coatings company in the United Kingdom is seeking a strategic account manager to develop sales and manage strategic accounts within the coatings and electronics sector. The role involves technical sales, coordination of internal teams, and ensuring compliance with industry standards. Essential qualifications include 5-10 years in sales roles, strong Mandarin skills, and strategic thinking abilities. This position offers a dynamic environment with opportunities for business growth and cross-functional collaboration.

Qualifications

• 5–10+ years in sales/key-account roles within coatings or electronic materials.
• Proven track record managing large strategic accounts.
• Able to lead complex customer projects end-to-end.

Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of assigned customers and develop new business.
• Own strategic accounts and execute long-term account plans.
• Ensure products meet industry standards and regulations.

Skills

Sales in coatings and electronics

Technical sales & application support

Negotiation and forecasting

Strategic thinking

CRM proficiency

Mandarin Chinese (business fluent)

Tools

Excel

PPT

Job description

Job Purpose & Context

This role exists to develop sales and to support our on-going growth. To manage a portfolio of assigned customers, develop new business by actively seek new opportunities.

Previous experience in the coating and electronics industry within Asia, with an excellent track record for sales and performance.

Main Responsibilities

• Own strategic accounts (OEMs & tier-1s) — build and execute long-term account plans to grow revenue, protect margin and defend market share. Coordinate renewals, pricing, contracts and escalation handling.
• Technical sales & application support — translate coating technical advantages (acrylic, epoxy, silicone, polyurethane, parylene, UV-curable, etc.) into customer value; run or coordinate lab trials, qualification, and failure-mode analysis with R&D and QA. (Electronics coatings have application/IPC standards that directly affect buy decisions.)
• Cross-functional program management — lead internal teams (R&D, technical service, supply chain, QA, regulatory, production) to deliver on customer trials, scale-up, logistics and on-time delivery.
• Commercial planning & forecasting — produce account forecasts, volume/price negotiations, margin plans and business reviews; identify cross-sell and new product opportunities.
• Regulatory & quality compliance — ensure products meet electronics industry standards and local regulations (IPC specs, flammability/UL ratings, environmental rules such as China RoHS/REACH implications) and drive corrective actions for quality issues.
• Customer relationship & strategic influence — act as trusted advisor to procurement, engineering and quality teams; influence customer roadmaps and secure long-term supply / partnership agreements.
• Market & competitor intelligence — track competitor moves, market trends (e.g., growth in conformal coatings across automotive/medical/aerospace electronics) and adapt account strategy accordingly.

Additional Responsibilities

• Act as a role model for other team members and support more junior account managers

Key Relationships and Interfaces

• Customers
• Business Management
• Finance
• Operations
• Legal

Skills & Experience

Essential

Technical / industry background

• 5–10+ years in sales/key-account roles within coatings, adhesives or electronic materials — experience with conformal coatings, PCB materials, or related chemical products is strongly preferred.
• Good understanding of coating types, application methods
  and typical qualification tests for electronics.

Commercial & account skills

• Proven track record managing large strategic accounts (OEMs / EMS / contract manufacturers) with achievement of revenue and margin KPIs.
• Negotiation, commercial modelling, forecasting and P&L awareness.

Cross-functional & program management

• Able to lead complex customer projects end-to-end (trials → qualification → scale-up → production), coordinate multiple internal & external stakeholders, and remove blockers.

Technical communication & problem solving

• Able to communicate technical concepts to both R&D/engineering and procurement teams; comfortable in lab/plant settings during trials.

Soft skills

• Strategic thinking, relationship building, consultative selling, strong presentation skills and resilience.

Language & local know-how

• Mandarin Chinese (business fluent) is typically required; English for reporting to regional/global HQ is often needed. Knowledge of local supply-chain practices and Chinese business culture is highly valuable.

Tools & admin

• CRM proficiency, strong Excel / PPT skills and experience running Business Reviews.

Behaviours

Essential

• Organisational awareness and commitment
• Customer awareness
• Planning and organising
• Resilience
• Flexibility and adaptability
• Teamwork
• Initiative