Director, Early-Stage Growth & Commercial Strategy

Ingevity; North Charleston (SC); On-site; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Ingevity seeks a results‑driven leader to own the commercial side of early‑stage growth opportunities in our Performance Materials team. You will translate customer conversations into clear value propositions, coordinate with R&D, and guide projects through Stage Gate to commercialization.

You will manage multiple opportunities, balance strategic priorities, and collaborate across functions to ensure commercials align with technical capabilities and market needs.

Qualifications

• 5–10 years in B2B industrial markets such as chemicals, materials, automotive components, filtration, engineered products, or similar.
• Experience taking an idea from concept to something that real customers have seen, handled, reacted to, or tested.
• Experience with products that have technical differentiation or IP‑protection, where the value has to be communicated clearly.

Responsibilities

• Lead the commercial side of early‑stage growth opportunities and build a simple, clear commercial picture for each opportunity.
• Work with a technical counterpart to prioritize features that matter to customers.
• Guide ideas through Stage Gate by grounding decisions in customer feedback rather than assumptions.
• Oversee the commercial strategy for multiple platforms and shape where to focus time and investment.
• Define long‑term platform growth and position across segments; prepare opportunities for sales handoff.

Skills

B2B Industrial

Customer discovery

IP protection

Opportunity portfolio

R&D liaison

Education

Bachelor’s degree in engineering, chemistry, materials, or business

MBA preferred

Job description

Ingevity seeks a results‑driven leader to own the commercial side of early‑stage growth opportunities in our Performance Materials team. You will translate customer conversations into clear value propositions, coordinate with R&D, and guide projects through Stage Gate to commercialization.

You will manage multiple opportunities, balance strategic priorities, and collaborate across functions to ensure commercials align with technical capabilities and market needs.