Key Account Manager - Defense / Advanced Materials
A Talascend client is seeking a Key Account Manager – Defense / Advanced Materials for a direct-hire, remote opportunity. The role involves building solid customer relationships with strategic large accounts, creating demand for products and services, and leading regular strategy meetings with senior management teams to align offerings with customer needs.
The ideal candidate demonstrates experience with defense materials, armor systems, or ammunition programs, including armor-piercing (AP) solutions, and possesses a strong network within the defense and materials space. They have a deep understanding of customer needs in these industries and can translate that insight into account-level strategy, demand creation, and actionable feedback for product development and customer engagement.
- Builds solid customer relationships with strategic large accounts typically involving complex global customers and multi-national enterprises.
- Creates demand for the organization’s products and services by raising the profile with customers.
- Leads regular status and strategy meetings with the customer’s senior management team to align products/services with customer needs.
- Addresses customer action items and concerns within a timely manner.
- Develops strategy, sales plans, and budgets to achieve sales goals with key accounts.
- Identifies new sales opportunities for growth within assigned accounts.
- Gathers key customer input for new product development and communicates to product management team.
- Supports new product development programs through identification of field trial sites and actively solicits key account customer feedback to support product launch and value proposition development.
- Partners with regional segment team members who gather business intelligence and business trends to set strategy and create demand for products and services.
- Supports enterprise selling and global account initiatives and manages contacts and price harmonization.
- Utilizes customer relationship management (CRM) tools to document and manage customer activity.
- Completes required sales training modules (CRM, large account management, etc.)
- Bachelor of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Engineering, or related field preferred, MBA preferred
- 8-10 years in related industries or materials
- 2-4 years of sales experience preferred
- Knowledge of connected industries or solutions including specialty markets (armor plating, body armor, vehicle protection systems)
- Domestic and International travel
- Previous military or law enforcement experience preferred
- Able to achieve secret level US DoD clearance
- Self-starter and self-sufficient requiring little supervision for decision making, account planning and advancing sales discussions
- Industrial consumables industry preferred
- Deep understanding of both the quantitative and qualitative aspects of a successful sales operation
- Excellent listening, negotiation, and presentation skills
- Effectively communicate in a highly collaborative environment
- Ability to interpret market trends in a meaningful and actionable way
- Being able to be proactive and provide strategy to mitigate future issues
- Possess foresight and hindsight with ability to rely on historical context - learning and incorporating into future plans/actions
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We thank all applicants for their interest. However, only those qualified individuals who closely meet the qualifications of the position will be contacted. The details of the position are only a summary, other duties may be assigned as necessary.
Background Check and Drug Screen may be required.
Pay range is not a guarantee of compensation or salary, as final offer amount may vary based on factors including but not limited to experience and geographic location. Talascend also offers a variety of benefits including: health and disability insurance, 401(k), EAP, paid time off, and company-paid holidays. The specific programs and options available to an employee may vary depending on date of hire, plan requirements, schedule type, and client work site mandates.
Talascend is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits and hires qualified candidates without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, disability, or veteran status.