Key Account Manager Defense

About this 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.

What you´ll do

The Key Account Manager, a remote position, is responsible for 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 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

What makes you a good fit

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.

Travel will be on average 30-50%, depending on the location of the candidate.

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.

Some benefits of joining Henkel

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

The salary range for this role is $120,000.00 and $160,000.00. This range represents the good‑faith minimum and maximum wages the Company reasonably expects to offer for this role at the time of posting. In addition to base salary, this position may be eligible for incentive pay or other forms of compensation, as applicable. The Company also offers a comprehensive benefits package as described above. Actual compensation will be based on factors such as the candidate’s skills, experience, education, training, and work location. This posting is intended to comply with all applicable state and local pay transparency laws.

Henkel does not accept unsolicited resumes from search firms or employment agencies. Unsolicited referrals and resumes are considered Henkel property and therefore, Henkel will not pay a fee for any placement resulting from the receipt of an unsolicited referral.