Director, Principal Development

Azelis; Connecticut; On-site; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Azelis is seeking a dynamic Principal Development Manager/Director to join our US leadership team. This role acts as the primary liaison with strategic principals, defines growth strategies, and drives cross-functional collaboration across sales, supply chain, pricing, and R&D to execute priorities.

The position demands a seasoned professional with strong analytical and strategic acumen, capable of leading pipeline initiatives, managing supply challenges, and shaping marketing and technical

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Chemistry, or related field.
• MBA is a plus or preferred for senior leadership roles.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving and strategic thinking skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead operational and strategic growth initiatives within US leadership.
• Oversee pipeline management and collaborate with TDM and Sales teams.
• Address supply and allocation decisions with supply chain and commercial functions.
• Develop and implement action plans with VP Principal Management and cross-functional teams.
• Develop marketing strategies for principal products and drive market penetration.
• Drive technical projects with Principals, TDM, and Lab teams to meet client needs.
• Ensure forecasting accuracy for Principals and align Sales and Supply Chain.
• Review sales opportunities and identify improvement initiatives.
• Set annual goals for the principal segment and ensure cross-functional input.
• Oversee supplier setup, onboarding, and offboarding activities.

Skills

Analytical thinking

Problem solving

Strategic thinking

Communication

Leadership

Market research

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business, Chemistry, or related field

MBA (preferred)

Job description

FT Salary Remote w/Travel

Azelis is a leading global innovation service provider in the specialty chemical and food ingredients industry present in over 63 countries across the globe. Our knowledgeable teams of industry, market and technical experts are each dedicated to a specific market within Life Sciences and Industrial Chemicals. We offer a lateral value chain of complementary products to more than 59,000 customers, supported by ~2,700 principal relationships, generating a revenue of €4.11 billion (2022).

Azelis is a leading specialty chemicals and food ingredients distributor, delivering innovative and sustainable solutions to customers across multiple markets. With a global presence and strong local expertise, Azelis is committed to fostering partnerships that create long-term value for our suppliers and customers.

Azelis is seeking a dynamic and results-oriented

Principal Development Manager/Director

to join our team.

Role Responsibilities

Operational and strategic business leadership: This role is a key member of Azelis US leadership team and serves as the primary liaison between the company and its strategic Principal(s) to define and execute growth strategies. Principal Development Management also serves as an internal advocate for assigned principals within Azelis US, ensuring seamless communication and collaboration through the organization (Executives, Management, Sales, Supply Chain, Customer Service, Pricing, Technical teams; both Laboratories and Technical Development Management) to execute strategic priorities. Drive growth, facilitate technical interactions, solve problems, and promote specific value propositions.

Pipeline Management: Oversee the sales pipeline, analyze opportunities, and develop strategies to deliver accelerated business growth within the market segment. Collaborate with the Technical Development Management (TDM) team to ensure pipeline development goals are aligned. Ensure supply chain and pricing teams are informed and aligned with market strategies.

Supply Issues/Allocation Decisions: Address supply-related challenges at Principals in partnership with supply chain and commercial functions. Under official allocation situations the PDM will support Sales VPs' ultimate decision to optimize resource utilization and meet market demands. These decisions will be aligned with Sales team’s objectives, contractual obligations, operations and other strategic factors.

Communication and Action Plans: Communicate effectively with VP Principal Management and Product Strategy, Vice Presidents of Sales, TDM, BDM (Business Development Management), Marketing, Pricing/Business Analysts, and R&D Teams, developing and implementing action plans to achieve business objectives.

Marketing Strategy Development: Develop marketing strategies for push assigned principal products within the segment, ensuring effective promotion and market penetration. Engage Marketing, R&D, Operations, TDM and BDM teams to streamline activities and efforts. Align and drive said strategies in synchronization with VP’s growth initiatives, assuring mutually beneficial objectives and deliverables. Balance Principal’s focus and objectives with Azelis' striking the optimized outcome for both.

Technical Project Management: Collaborate with the Principals and TDM and Lab Teams to drive technical projects, ensuring successful implementation and meeting client requirements. Align Azelis’ technical team and those of Principals, setting achievable milestones and deadlines, to efficiently drive technical projects toward timely completion.

Forecasting Accuracy: Ensure accurate monthly forecasting from and for our Principals, utilizing this data to make informed decisions and plans. Ensure Sales and Supply Chain team are aware and aligned.

Sales and Growth Opportunity Reviews: Conduct detailed reviews of sales and growth opportunities, identifying areas for improvement and implementing strategic initiatives to address.

Settings & Principal Specific Annual Goals: Establish clear, measurable, and achievable yearly goals specific to the segment, working towards continuous improvement and market success. Ensure relevant cross functional input and communicate goals to relevant groups each year.

Supplier set-up and onboarding: Responsible for the overall process to set-up, onboard, and, if necessary, offboard, assigned suppliers. PDM will collaborate with necessary and Corporate functions to achieve complete set-up and ensure readiness to perform all required business transactions.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Chemistry, or related field. MBA is a plus.
• Minimum 10 years' experience; Business Management, Business Development, Sales & Sales Management, Product Management or Strategic Marketing, preferably within the industry
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and strategic thinking skills.
• Exemplary business acumen with deep strategic awareness and understanding with ability to understand and drive decisions at a P&L level
• Excellent communication and interpersonal abilities, with the capacity to build and maintain relationships at all organizational levels.
• Technical acumen and understanding of related products and applications.
• Results-driven mindset with a focus on achieving and exceeding targets.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team, demonstrating leadership and initiative.
• Proficiency in market research, data analysis, and forecasting tools.

Travel

Travel is an essential component of this role and may account for 30-50% of work time. The successful candidate must be able to travel domestically and/or internationally as needed, including overnight and weekend travel.