Requirements:

• 3+ years successful sales experience in one or all of the industries mentioned
• Midwest based
• Able to travel regionally 30-40% of the time
• Demonstrated solution selling skills

Our client offers an aggressive compensation plan including a very competitive base, annual bonus and car allowance.

Base: Richmond is ideal but could be based anywhere in territory– Virginia, Maryland, Delaware – home office

Objective: To grow earnings for strategic principals and implement growth strategies.  Will manage 4-5 mil dollar region of existing accounts providing technical solutions, identifying business opportunities, converting target accounts, growing the region and personal/skill development.

Territory – Virginia, Maryland, Delaware

Travel – 40-50% – overnight travel approx 2 night/week

Requirements -

•        Ideal candidate will have distribution background and technical experience with raw materials and value added products.

•        Science or Business degree preferred – experience with applications/formulations and compounding. Products are specialty chemicals and can be technically complex.

•        2+ years chemical sales experience.

•        Very customer focused, detailed-oriented, with strong strong work ethic.

Excellent compensation package – base salary + commission + car allowance.

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The main function of the job is to: Manage and grow the $20MM Midwest Consumer Products sales territory.

• Based in Chicago-land area;  Territory covers IL, WI, MN, IA, MO, ND, SD, NE, Kansas City
  Travel roughly 50% of time to about 75 accounts
• 95% of Sales through Distribution;  5% Direct Channel
  75% HI&I market 25% PC market

Requirements:

Must have a technical degree and at least 1 year of specialty chemical sales experience.

Territory is approximately 5 mil in sales.  50% maintenance/ 50% business development

Base salary plus car and bonus potential of up to 3 months in salary paid out annually.

Travel – 50% overnight.

Requirements:

• MUST HAVE Experience selling excipients to pharma applications prior to moving into management
• MUST HAVE Experience in sales management—in some capacity.
• Tech degree, preferred but not required.

Location/Travel:

• Can base anywhere in the US, with preference for eastern region
• 40% overnight, to travel with reps to customers

REQUIREMENTS:

• Degree, although technical degree (chemistry, chemical engineering, or food science) is PREFERRED
• 5+ years sales/marketing experience preferably in the food ingredient or related industry
• Understanding of global market dynamics
• Understanding of food/flavor applications

Position can base anywhere in the US, about 40% travel.

Requirements:

• BS Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering or related field with a Masters degree strongly preferred
• 5+ years progressive experience in purchasing, energy management and/or vendor relations for a chemical manufacturing company
• Proven track record of working successfully on major capital projects with on time delivery and startups at or under budget

They offer a strong competitive compensation package, relocation allowance and a stable work environment.

Requirements:

• BS Degree in Chemical Engineering, Biology or Business Management with a Masters degree strongly preferred
• 5+ years purchasing experience in the chemical or chemical related industry

They offer a strong competitive compensation package, relocation allowance and a stable work environment.

Dear Evil HR Lady,

My operations manager just came to me and said she has a new job offer–at a 10 percent increase in salary. I cannot afford to lose this person right now, as we’re stretched pretty thin. It will take me at least six months to find, hire, and train a new person in this job.

How do I make a counter offer that will entice her to stay?

–Stretched Thin Boss

Dear Stretched Thin,

You can’t.

Well, maybe you can, but it’s awfully risky and most likely will end 12 months later with this employee leaving anyway and your other employees feeling a bit disgruntled. Because here’s the reality: When your employee starts looking for a new job, you’ve already lost her, and it’s (usually) not about the money.

It’s a rare situation where a person is perfectly happy in her job and a new position falls out of the sky. Most people who change jobs have been looking for months, if not years. While salary is always a consideration, usually it’s issues other than salary that prompt people to start looking. The number one people leave their jobs? They don’t like their managers.

Most likely, then, it’s not about the money, it’s about you. Sorry! Painful, I know. And it may well be money related, because she found out that others value her more than you do. And, like it or not, that’s a huge blow to the level of respect she has for you. Because, if she was so valuable to her, why weren’t you paying her more?

Think about that for a minute. If you knew that costs of losing her would be high, why weren’t you making every effort to see that she’s being paid at market value, even if that is a considerable raise from where she is now?

Often times, people just assume that as long as no one is complaining, everyone is happy as a clam. Problem is, some people are not complainers. They just quietly go about their jobs and even more quietly go about job searches. You don’t know anything until they come in and resign or ask for a counter offer.

As you’ve just learned, this can be a very expensive and potentially devastating lesson to learn. But, even if you go ahead and make a counter offer and convince her to stay with you, chances are she’ll be gone soon anyway. Some people claim that there’s an 85 to 90 percent chance of a person who accepts a counter offer being gone within 12 months.

I wrote “being gone” instead of leaving because it isn’t always a voluntary departure. Many managers begin to resent their former star employee for exploiting the business and using their position to pull in a huge, undeserved raise. Bitterness begins to build and suddenly nothing she does is right any more.

End result? Everyone is miserable and somebody is going to make a move to change the situation–either her by searching out another job or you by firing her. This is unpleasant.

So, here is what you say when your star employee comes to you and asks for a counter offer: “Congratulations on your new job? [Other company] will be so fortunate to get you. I wish you all the best. Maybe we’ll end up working together again in the future and I sincerely hope we do, but that’s a big increase and I can’t match it right now.”

If at that point the person says, “Well, I’d rather stay here, but I’d sure like a bigger raise,” the response is, “Wouldn’t we all? I can’t offer or promise anything, but if you decide to stay, your salary will be evaluated on the standard cycle. Let me know what your decision is by [date]. I’m really sad to see you go, but I’d hate to stand in the way of your career.”

Now, it’s possible that your employee will decide to turn down the job offer at this point and stay. Good for you! But, most likely she’ll leave. Ask her help for a transition plan and even ask if she has any recommendations to replace her.

But don’t counter offer. Instead, make sure you look at your remaining employees and make sure you’re paying them a good, solid, market rate (and if possible a bit higher). That way, you lower the chances of this happening again.

Have a problem employee or a people management question? Send your questions to EvilHRLady@gmail.com.

They are seeking a New Business Development/Market Manager to bring the company into the hydrocolloids marketplace. The company has the technology, research and product development geared up and ready to go. They have solid relationships in the relevant food industry segments for their other product lines. Strong sales force is already in place.  Now all they need is the right person to develop the strategy and then lead the tactical application of that strategy.

This is a good fit for someone who wants the challenging opportunity to lead a new business, supported by a full commitment of resources and production.  Excellent advancement opportunities with the company, both in the US and overseas.

Requirements:

• Must know hydrocolloids products for food applications well.
• Must know hydrocolloid market well.
• Must be creative, aggressive leader
• Must have experience setting strategy
• Must be based in the Midwest. Company will not consider candidate that are not in or willing to move to the Midwest.

Compensation: Base plus bonus and top-notch benefits.