Senior Technical Expert - Decorative Coatings Americas

Evonik; Allentown (Lehigh County); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work environment

Health benefits

Job summary

Evonik Corporation in the United States seeks an accomplished Senior Technical Expert for Decorative Coatings in North America. You will serve as the primary technical interface for customers, leading advanced support and development initiatives focused on pigments, wood coatings, and flooring. You will guide product benchmarking, testing, and collaborative projects with RD&I and sales teams.

The role requires a Ph.D. or M.S.

Qualifications

• M.S. or Ph.D. in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or a related scientific discipline required.
• Minimum of 10 years of chemical industry experience, including customer technical support and development of additives or resins for coatings applications.
• Minimum of 10 years of experience leading new product and application development projects and supervising the technical work of others.
• Recognized by customers and the North American Coatings Industry as a technical expert in coatings additives, with demonstrated expertise in coating additives and structure-property relationships to solve application challenges and achieve desired performance.
• Demonstrated technical expertise with the ability to recommend technical solutions for specific customer applications.
• Proven leadership and project management skills, with experience supporting customers and distributors and collaborating across R&D, Applied Technology, Marketing, and Sales.
• Strong interpersonal, teamwork, and written/verbal communication skills, with the ability to work effectively across regions and functions in a complex, matrixed organization; English fluency required.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a primary senior technical expert and customer contact for Decorative Coatings applications in North America, with emphasis on Pigment Concentrates, Wood Coatings, and Flooring.
• Provide high-level technical service and application support through customer visits, virtual engagements, conferences, trade shows, webinars, and technical presentations.
• Identify customer needs, technical service opportunities, and application challenges, translating them into effective technical solutions and development initiatives and projects.
• Lead application testing, product benchmarking, and technical evaluations to demonstrate product performance, value, and competitive differentiation.
• Drive new product process development projects in collaboration with RD&I, regional ART teams, Market Segments, Product Lines, scientists, and laboratory personnel.
• Define and supervise experimental work supporting product development, validate results, contribute to intellectual property activities, and pursue patent applications when appropriate.
• Monitor market trends, competitive activity, customer requirements, and emerging technologies to identify innovation opportunities and develop Decorative Coatings market strategies for region North America.
• Partner with Marketing and commercial teams to translate technical findings into customer‑facing materials, including technical publications, fact sheets, product launch presentations, and training content.
• Serve as Global ART Lead for designated Global Key Accounts, partnering with Key Account Management, Marketing, and global technical teams to coordinate technical projects and growth opportunities.
• Build and share Decorative Coatings expertise by participating in or leading internal expert committees, Centers of Excellence, technical training, and knowledge transfer related to additives and formulation technology.
• Demonstrate leadership in EHSQ by complying with site and regional requirements, supporting Safe Work Practices and Design Hazard Reviews, assessing material and process hazards, and actively participating in site safety initiatives.

Skills

Customer technical support

Coatings additives expertise

Project management

Leadership

English fluency

Education

M.S. or Ph.D. in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or a related scientific discipline

Job description

What we offer

Explore a world of opportunities with us. Look ahead with us and help shape innovative solutions to make our world more sustainable and life healthier, more vibrant and more comfortable. At Evonik, you have the chance to explore, thrive, and grow alongside 33,000 colleagues. Among attractive career paths and high-quality development programs, we not only offer performance-based remuneration and occupational health benefits but also hybrid and flexible working environments with #SmartWork. Bring your fresh perspective, develop your strengths, break out your mold, and find a career that fits your dreams with us.

Provides technical representation of the Decorative Coatings market segment for all application areas (Architectural, Floor, and Wood Coatings, Pigment Concentrates, as well as DECO-Other) in the Americas, acting as the primary interface with the market and to customers.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a primary senior technical expert and customer contact for Decorative Coatings applications in North America, with emphasis on Pigment Concentrates, Wood Coatings, and Flooring.


• Provide high-level technical service and application support through customer visits, virtual engagements, conferences, trade shows, webinars, and technical presentations.


• Identify customer needs, technical service opportunities, and application challenges, translating them into effective technical solutions and development initiatives and projects.


• Lead application testing, product benchmarking, and technical evaluations to demonstrate product performance, value, and competitive differentiation.


• Drive new product process development projects in collaboration with RD&I, regional ART teams, Market Segments, Product Lines, scientists, and laboratory personnel.


• Define and supervise experimental work supporting product development, validate results, contribute to intellectual property activities, and pursue patent applications when appropriate.


• Monitor market trends, competitive activity, customer requirements, and emerging technologies to identify innovation opportunities and develop Decorative Coatings market strategies for region North America.


• Partner with Marketing and commercial teams to translate technical findings into customer‑facing materials, including technical publications, fact sheets, product launch presentations, and training content.


• Serve as Global ART Lead for designated Global Key Accounts, partnering with Key Account Management, Marketing, and global technical teams to coordinate technical projects and growth opportunities.


• Build and share Decorative Coatings expertise by participating in or leading internal expert committees, Centers of Excellence, technical training, and knowledge transfer related to additives and formulation technology.


• Demonstrate leadership in EHSQ by complying with site and regional requirements, supporting Safe Work Practices and Design Hazard Reviews, assessing material and process hazards, and actively participating in site safety initiatives.

Requirements

• M.S. or Ph.D. in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or a related scientific discipline required.


• Minimum of 10 years of chemical industry experience, including customer technical support and development of additives or resins for coatings applications.


• Minimum of 10 years of experience leading new product and application development projects and supervising the technical work of others.


• Recognized by customers and the North American Coatings Industry as a technical expert in coatings additives, with demonstrated expertise in coating additives and structure-property relationships to solve application challenges and achieve desired performance.


• Demonstrated technical expertise with the ability to recommend technical solutions for specific customer applications.


• Proven leadership and project management skills, with experience supporting customers and distributors and collaborating across R&D, Applied Technology, Marketing, and Sales.


• Strong interpersonal, teamwork, and written/verbal communication skills, with the ability to work effectively across regions and functions in a complex, matrixed organization; English fluency required.

The Evonik Group adopts an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) approach. Candidates are assessed based on their educational qualifications, experience, job competencies and potential and shall not be discriminated against on the basis of race, ethnicity, age, gender, religion, nationality, disability or sexual orientation or other classifications protected by local, state, or provincial regulations.

Your Talent Acquisition Manager: Kelvin Seals [C] Company is Evonik Corporation.

This is your opportunity to join a thriving global organization that combines cutting‑edge science, technology and engineering with world‑class business services to create solutions that answer real‑world problems. If you join us, we’ll expect you to take ownership of your work, team up with other great minds, and add your name to creations that make a positive difference for generations.

Further information about Evonik as Employer can be found at www.evonik.com/en/careers.html.