Commercial Director

Rochester Executive Advisory; Bergamo; On-site; EUR 130,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus

Job summary

Rochester Executive Advisory represents an Italian engineering group near Bergamo, specialized in advanced industrial water treatment. The Commercial Director will report to the CEO, defining and executing the commercial strategy to drive international expansion and build a scalable commercial organization.

The role requires 15+ years in commercial leadership within water treatment or related sectors, with an engineering background and strong market understanding.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of commercial leadership in industrial water treatment or related sectors.
• Experience defining and implementing commercial strategies and go-to-market models.
• Ability to build and manage a new international sales network with partners and agents.
• Fluency in English; French is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Identify and prioritize strategic business opportunities across geographies, sectors and product lines.
• Define and implement the commercial strategy and go-to-market roadmap.
• Build and lead the international commercial organization, including agents, distributors and partners.
• Drive international business development with global accounts in cosmetics and pharma.
• Establish structured commercial processes: pipeline, forecasting, pricing, margins and reporting.
• Support CEO and Board with growth strategy and M&A scouting.

Skills

International business

Commercial leadership

Strategic planning

Sales process

Education

Engineering degree

Job description

The Client (undisclosed):

Our Client is an Italian engineering company specialized in advanced industrial water treatment and recycling solutions, primarily serving global cosmetic and pharmaceutical groups.

Headquartered near Bergamo, Italy, the company designs and installs high-performance modular systems enabling significant water reuse and operational efficiency for industrial clients.

With strong international exposure (approx. 80% of revenues generated outside Italy) and a track record of organic double digit organic growth coupled with a visible and fast-growing pipeline of complex projects, the Client is strengthening its organization to accelerate international expansion and consolidate its leadership in sustainable water technologies.

The Company is a private family SME, recently backed by a leading European Private Equity focused on environmental sustainability, and is currently entering a new phase of international expansion and organizational strengthening to support its next stage of growth.

Position – The role:

The new role of Commercial Director will report directly to the CEO and will be pivotal in defining and executing the Company's commercial strategy, driving international business development and building a structured, scalable commercial organization.

The position combines strong commercial leadership and strategic capabilities, with a solid market understanding of industrial water treatment solutions as well as Engineering-driven sales processes. Indeed, the professional will be pivotal in prioritizing strategic business opportunities (new sectors, geographies and business lines) as well as defining a business case to be discussed with CEO and Board of Directors.

A key priority will be to develop and organize the Company's international sales and distribution network, identifying and managing agents, distributors and commercial partners across strategic markets, while strengthening relationships with key global accounts.

Working closely with the CEO and the technical teams, the Commercial Director will contribute to transforming the Company's premium offering into a structured, proactive and scalable model, supporting sustainable and profitable growth.

Key Objectives and Responsibilities:

• Identify and prioritize strategic business opportunities in various business lines, geographies and sectors.
• Define implementation roadmap and execute the Company's commercial strategy and go-to-market approach, identifying priority markets, customer segments, sales channels and growth opportunities.
• Build, structure and lead the international commercial organization and sales network, including agents, distributors and local partners, establishing clear responsibilities, objectives and performance indicators.
• Drive international business development, expanding the Company's presence with global industrial clients, particularly in the cosmetics and pharmaceutical sectors, as well as other high-potential industrial segments.
• Develop and strengthen relations with existing and new accounts (typically multinational clients), identifying new business opportunities and fostering long-term partnerships.
• Lead complex technical sales processes, working cross-functionally with Engineering, Operations and Project Management teams to ensure alignment between customer needs, technical solutions, project execution and profitability objectives.
• Establish and oversee structured commercial processes, including pipeline management, sales forecasting, pricing, margin monitoring and performance reporting.
• Act as a strategic partner to the CEO, contributing to the Company's growth strategy, organizational development and scaling process under private equity ownership.
• Support scouting and assessment of M&A targets including identification of targets as well as participating to business due diligence

Requirements (“Must Have”)

Hard Skills:

• Degree in Engineering (Chemical, Environmental, Mechanical or similar), or equivalent technical background and professional experience.
• Significant experience (15+ years) in commercial leadership and international business development within industrial water treatment, water engineering or closely related technical sectors.
• Experience in defining and implementing commercial strategies, including market segmentation, customer development and go-to-market models. The sales process implies complex sales cycles and the negotiation of high-value contracts.
• Ability to build, structure and manage a brand new commercial organization and an international sales network, including agents, distributors and commercial partners.
• Solid technical understanding of industrial water treatment technologies, engineered solutions and complex industrial sales processes.
• International commercial experience and ability to operate effectively across multiple markets and geographies.

Soft Skills

• Leadership and organizational capabilities, combined with entrepreneurial approach and the ability to bring across managerial discipline to professionalize a fast-growing organization.
• Business development orientation, and ability to combine technical credibility with commercial acumen, effectively operating at the intersection of engineering and business.
• Excellent relationship-building inside and outside: with stakeholder and CEO, as well as with executives of multinational industrial clients.
• Hands-on, pragmatic and results-oriented approach, with a high level of autonomy, accountability and adaptability.
• Ability to operate effectively in a growing entrepreneurial company undergoing organizational transformation.

• Fluency in English is a must |French language nice to have
• Location: Northern Italy, Bergamo area (the position requires regular presence on-site).

Job – This is a permanent full time job, in a highly dynamic context.

Initial Salary range will be in between 130-160 EUR, plus Bonus and Benefits, in line with Client commitment to transparent and equitable compensation practices. Final compensation will depend on real experience and relevant skills.

Please note that we will only respond to and contact those profiles that meet client requirements. Thank you.