Global Key Account Director - SCA Containerboard

Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA (publ); Town of Sweden (NY); On-site; USD 186,030 - 330,720; Full time

Job summary

SCA Containerboard in Obbola, Sweden, seeks a Global Key Account Director to lead our most strategic international customer portfolio. You will shape long‑term partnerships, drive growth across Europe, and collaborate with Product Management, Technical Service, Supply Chain and Operations to deliver sustainable value.

Reporting to the VP Sales & Marketing Containerboard, you will lead high‑value negotiations, balance commercial and strategic priorities, and act as a trusted partner to senior

Qualifications

• Extensive experience from senior commercial roles within international B2B industries.
• Proven track record of developing strategic customer partnerships with large multinational organisations.
• Significant experience from Key Account Management, Business Development or Commercial Leadership with substantial commercial responsibility.
• Exceptional negotiation skills, with a proven ability to lead complex, high‑value commercial negotiations over extended periods of time.
• Strong commercial judgement and a strategic mindset, with excellent business acumen and analytical capability.
• Experience of working across international markets and cultures, navigating complex organisations and multiple stakeholders.
• A collaborative leadership style with the ability to influence without formal authority and create value across functions.
• University degree and excellent communication skills in English.

Responsibilities

• Lead complex, high‑value commercial negotiations and drive long-term contracts.
• Develop strategic customer relationships and identify new business opportunities across Europe.
• Collaborate with Product Management, Technical Service, Supply Chain and Operations to deliver sustainable customer value.
• Act as a trusted business partner to senior customer executives and align commercial strategies with client goals.

Skills

Senior commercial roles

Strategic partnerships

Key Account Management

Commercial leadership

Negotiation skills

Strategic thinking

Cross-cultural experience

English communication

Education

University degree

Job description

Global Key Account Director - SCA Containerboard

Placering: Obbola, SE

A sustainable work life

At SCA, you have the opportunity to make a real difference. Harnessing the power of the forest, we contribute to a sustainable future and help customers worldwide reduce their fossil footprint. If you are eager to grow and think innovatively, you will thrive here, as we give everyone the opportunity to reach their full potential. We know that our people drive our success!

We are currently looking for a committed and experienced Global Key Account Director to our business area Containerboard. We look forward to receiving your application!

SCA Containerboard is looking for an accomplished commercial leader to take responsibility for one of our most strategically important global customer portfolios.

This is a unique opportunity to join one of Europe’s leading containerboard businesses and play a key role in shaping long‑term commercial partnerships with some of the packaging industry's largest international customers. Reporting to the Vice President Sales & Marketing Containerboard, you will contribute to SCA Containerboard’s continued growth by developing strategic customer relationships, identifying new business opportunities and driving profitable long‑term growth across Europe.

More than managing key accounts, this role is about acting as a trusted business partner to senior customer executives. You will influence long‑term commercial strategies, navigate complex international organisations and collaborate closely across Product Management, Technical Service, Supply Chain and Operations to deliver sustainable customer value.

A key part of the role is leading complex, high‑value commercial negotiations that often extend over long periods of time. Success requires the ability to navigate multiple negotiation rounds, balance commercial and strategic interests, maintain momentum throughout demanding decision‑making processes and ultimately bring complex agreements to a successful close.

Who are you?

We believe you bring

• Extensive experience from senior commercial roles within international B2B industries
• A proven track record of developing strategic customer partnerships with large multinational organisations
• Significant experience from Key Account Management, Business Development or Commercial Leadership with substantial commercial responsibility
• Exceptional negotiation skills, with a proven ability to lead complex, high‑value commercial negotiations over extended periods of time. You know how to balance patience with determination, maintain strong customer relationships throughout demanding negotiation processes and ultimately convert strategic opportunities into profitable long‑term agreements
• Strong commercial judgement and a strategic mindset, combined with excellent business acumen and analytical capability
• Experience of working across international markets and cultures, successfully navigating complex organisations and multiple stakeholders
• A collaborative leadership style with the ability to influence without formal authority and create value across functions
• University degree and excellent communication skills in English

It is considered an advantage if you also have

• Experience from containerboard, packaging, paper, forest products or other industrial B2B sectors.
• Experience working with major European packaging groups
• Knowledge of sustainability‑driven business models and circular value chains

To succeed in the role you are

• A highly credible relationship builder with exceptional interpersonal skills
• Commercially driven, business‑oriented and genuinely interested in understanding your customers' business and long‑term ambitions
• A strategic thinker with strong analytical capability and sound business judgement
• Collaborative and able to build trust and influence at all organisational levels
• Structured and disciplined while remaining flexible and adaptable in a dynamic international environment
• Curious, proactive and continuously looking for opportunities to create value and drive business growth
• You thrive in complex commercial negotiations, remaining persistent, solution‑oriented and commercially focused throughout lengthy decision‑making processes until agreements are successfully concluded
• Resilient, humble and comfortable operating in an international matrix organisation
• An excellent communicator with high integrity and strong personal credibility

Our core values - responsibility, excellence, and respect - form the foundation of everything we do at SCA. That is why it is important that your values align with ours.

What do we offer you?

With us, you have great opportunities to grow and develop. We encourage professional development, taking responsibility, and bringing your ideas to life. At SCA, we care about one another and offer an open, supportive work environment. We also understand the importance of a sustainable working life. Our forests capture carbon, we utilize every single part of the trees we harvest, and our products can replace fossil based alternatives. Together, this helps reduce emissions by an amount equivalent to Sweden’s annual passenger car traffic. Making a real difference adds an extra dimension to the work.

For this position, it is possible to live in a European country other than Sweden. We would like you to come to Umeå for meetings approximately once a month.

More information and how to apply

For this recruitment, we are collaborating with Ahrle Laurell & Partners. To apply for the position, please email your application to [e-mail] no later than August 24, 2026, stating "Global Key Account Director - SCA Containerboard" in the subject line. If you have specific questions regarding the role, you are welcome to contact Ahrle Laurell & Partners via the same email address.

About SCA

SCA is Europe’s largest private forest owner with 2.7 million hectares of forest land in Northern Sweden, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The forest is a unique asset, which grows each year and forms the core of SCA’s operations. Around this renewable resource SCA has built a well‑invested and efficient value chain, which maximises the value of each tree.