Key Account Manager Defense

Henkel group • Los Angeles, CA

3d • $120,000 - $160,000 • Remote

About The Position

At Henkel, you’ll be part of an organization that’s shaping the future through innovation, sustainability and collaboration. With our trusted brands like Persil®, ‘all®, Loctite®, Snuggle®, and Schwarzkopf® and our cutting-edge technologies, you’ll have countless opportunities to explore new paths and grow. This position is with our Adhesive Technologies business unit – where we empower our people to transform industries and provide our customers with a competitive advantage through adhesives, sealants and functional coatings. Dare to learn new skills, advance in your career and make an impact at Henkel.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in science, engineering, business, or related discipline required
• Experience in a B2B sales Business Development or Account Management role, with a focus on value-add and solution selling required
• Strong passion for defense technology innovation and ability to translate evolving mission needs into strategic customer engagement and growth opportunities
• 5+ years' experience in Aerospace Defense market working directly with a major defense contractor or defense materials supplier
• Requires technical knowledge of aerospace-grade materials, their specifications and application, an understanding of quality and compliance requirements, and forecast management
• Familiar with government funded programs, including both development and production phase
• Experience with structural adhesives, composite materials, electronics adhesives, thermal management, EMI shielding materials, and sealants required
• Strong relationship skills, project management, presentation, and communication skills
• Deep understanding of aerospace manufacturing and supply chain dynamics
• Ability to balance customer needs with internal resources
• Proficient in tools like SAP, Salesforce, Excel, etc.

Nice To Haves

• Preference will be given to candidates that reside in the Mountain West region – Texas, Colorada, California, Utah, Arizona.
• Candidate must be located in proximity to a major airport.

Responsibilities

• Building and growing business relationships with high opportunity emerging defense and aerospace accounts
• Implement new customer acquisition plans & develop customer-specific success metrics beyond revenue (e.g., innovation impact)
• Demonstrate and communicate technical knowledge of aerospace-grade materials, their specifications and application, an understanding of quality and compliance requirements, and forecast management
• Leverage understanding of emerging defense technologies (CCAs, UAS, autonomous systems, counter-UAS, hypersonics, advanced materials) to identify new customer materials opportunities
• Serve as the primary point of contact between Henkel and Customer across departments (procurement, engineering, quality, supply chain, etc.)
• Develop and build long-term strategic plan tailored to Customer’s business goals and production plan e.g. Defense platforms
• Identifies opportunities to expand the relationship through new product offerings, innovations, or process improvements
• Internal champion of Customer needs within the Henkel cross-functional organization, ensuring alignment and responsiveness
• Builds strong relationships with Customer stakeholders in supply chain, program, and engineering
• Translates customer’s strategy and priorities into a joint innovation roadmap
• Facilitate executive-level meetings and Business Reviews to maintain alignment
• Effectively manages escalations, delivery issues, or quality concerns with professionalism and urgency
• On-Time Delivery & Quality Performance management through KPI tracking and ensuring performance meets Customer’s needs
• Oversees pricing agreements, long-term contracts (LTAs), and terms & condition negotiations
• Uses analytics and forecasting tools to anticipate customer needs and add strategic value

Benefits

• Health Insurance: affordable plans for medical, dental, vision and wellbeing starting on day 1
• Work-Life Balance: Paid time off including sick, vacation, holiday and volunteer time, flexible & hybrid work policies (depending on role), and vacation buy / sell program
• Financial: 401k matching, employee share plan with voluntary investment and Henkel matching shares, annual performance bonus, service awards and student loan reimbursement
• Family Support: 12-week gender neutral parental leave (up to 20 weeks for parents giving birth), fertility support, adoption & surrogacy reimbursement, discounted child and elderly care, and scholarships
• Career Growth: diverse national and international growth opportunities, access to thousands of skills development courses, and tuition reimbursement

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior