Business Development Manager – Advanced Materials

German American Chambers of Commerce; Chicago (IL); Remote; USD 100,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employer-paid medical

Dental & vision

401(k) with match

Holidays

Onboarding program

Job summary

German American Chambers of Commerce seeks a Business Development Manager - Advanced Materials to build new business across North America. This remote U.S.-based role focuses on identifying OEMs, manufacturers, and distributors, and turning technical applications into long-term opportunities.

You will collaborate with engineering, product management, and commercial teams, travel 50-70% across North America, and drive growth in mobility, automotive, and industrial markets.

Qualifications

• Experience developing new B2B customers or markets.
• Experience in engineered materials, composites, or industrial manufacturing.
• Ability to prospect independently and build opportunities.
• Ability to engage with engineering, procurement, and leadership.

Responsibilities

• Identify, prospect, and develop new OEM, manufacturer, and distributor relationships in North America.
• Build a qualified pipeline of customers, applications, and market opportunities.
• Own opportunities from outreach through proposal, pricing, negotiation, and launch.
• Collaborate with engineering, product, manufacturing, and commercial teams.
• Represent the company at industry events and customer visits.

Skills

New Business Development

Territory Sales

Technical Sales

Consultative Selling

Cross-functional Collaboration

Job description

Remote, United States | Mobility & Industrial Markets | 50-70% North American Travel

Build markets. Open accounts. Turn technical applications into new business.

A well-established international manufacturer of high-performance engineered materials is expanding its North American business and is seeking a Business Development Manager - Advanced Materials.

This is a true new-business development role for someone who enjoys building business rather than simply inheriting and maintaining an established territory.

You will identify new customers and applications, open doors with manufacturers and OEMs, understand the technical and commercial challenges they are trying to solve, and develop those opportunities into sustainable business.

The company's portfolio includes electrical insulation materials, technical laminates, reinforced materials, composites, and other high-performance engineered material solutions used in demanding industrial and mobility applications.

The primary focus will be developing new business across mobility, automotive and commercial vehicles, industrial manufacturing, automation, rail, and other technically demanding markets throughout the United States and Canada.

This is a remote U.S.-based position. The listed location is for job-posting purposes only; relocation is not required. Candidates should have convenient access to a major commercial airport.

What You'll Do

• Identify, prospect, and develop new OEM, manufacturer, fabricator, converter, and distributor relationships across North America.
• Build a qualified pipeline of new customers, applications, and market opportunities.
• Own opportunities from initial outreach and discovery through qualification, proposal development, pricing, negotiation, closing, and commercial launch.
• Identify applications where high-performance materials can solve customer performance, manufacturing, cost, or supply-chain challenges.
• Develop new territories and market segments rather than primarily maintaining an established book of business.
• Build relationships across engineering, procurement, operations, product development, and executive leadership.
• Work closely with engineering, product management, manufacturing, and commercial teams to advance technically complex opportunities.
• Coordinate customer and business-development activities with colleagues across the United States, Mexico, and Europe.
• Represent the company at customer visits, trade shows, conferences, and other industry events.

What You Bring

• Demonstrated success developing new B2B customers, territories, applications, or market segments.
• Experience in business development, territory sales, technical sales, market development, account development, or a comparable commercial role within engineered materials, composites, plastics, insulation, specialty materials, or industrial manufacturing.
• Experience selling technical materials, components, or industrial solutions into manufacturing environments.
• A strong new-business orientation and the ability to independently prospect, create, and develop opportunities.
• Ability to understand technical applications and engage credibly with engineering, manufacturing, procurement, and commercial stakeholders.
• Experience working with OEMs, manufacturers, fabricators, converters, distributors, or similar industrial customers.
• Strong consultative selling, qualification, negotiation, and relationship-development skills.
• A proactive, self-directed, and organized working style with strong commercial judgment.
• Ability to operate effectively within a lean, international organization and collaborate across functions and countries.
• Willingness to travel approximately 50-70% throughout North America.

Experience within composites, engineered plastics, electrical insulation, advanced materials, automotive, commercial vehicles, rail, industrial automation, or adjacent manufacturing markets is particularly valuable.

Compensation & Benefits

• Base salary: $100,000-$110,000, commensurate with experience
• Attractive performance-based variable compensation
• 100% employer-paid medical coverage
• Company-supported dental and vision coverage
• Employer-paid life, short-term, and long-term disability insurance
• Retirement savings participation with company match
• 12-14 company-observed holidays annually
• Progressive paid time-off structure that increases with tenure
• Structured onboarding through local mentorship

Why Join

You' ll join an established international manufacturer at a point when its North American growth story is still being written.

Rather than simply managing an existing territory, you'll have meaningful ownership over which markets are developed, which customers are pursued, and how new applications are turned into long-term business - while being supported by experienced technical, manufacturing, and commercial teams in North America and Europe.