Commercial Director

Our client is a global tier-1 automotive supplier, known for its cutting-edge solutions and leading presence in the market. Having achieved substantial growth the past years, the company is now focused on maximizing the potential of its existing products, client base, and teams. The organization operates at the forefront of the automotive interior sector.

Role
As Commercial Director, your primary mission is to unlock and maximize the full potential of the company’s existing resources. Driving greater value from established products, strengthening relationships with key OEM clients, and optimizing the performance to ensure continued growth and operational excellence. The focus has shifted from rapid expansion to capitalizing on the company’s current market position, products, and customer relationships, ensuring that all processes, teams, and strategies work cohesively to deliver long-term success.
You will be responsible for overseeing a cell-structure sales model, with a dedicated team, ensuring they understand the client’s needs and processes intimately. With key accounts including leading OEMs, the emphasis will be on strengthening relationships, ensuring smooth operations, and leveraging the company’s strong position in the market to further enhance profitability. Reporting into the CCO, the homebase of the role is The Netherlands. The board is seated here. Thus, to be truly able to be part of this great company, frequent travel to NL is part of the job.

Key Responsibilities
The focus will be on strengthening relationships with major OEM clients by refining negotiation strategies and ensuring teams can meet the evolving transactional demands. Performance enhancement will involve adopting data-driven approaches to negotiation and client management while integrating these with traditional models. Additionally, the goal is to maximize value from existing product lines by aligning them with client needs, leveraging R&D insights, and improving production efficiency. Operational efficiency across teams will be improved by sharing best practices and streamlining processes, all while staying aligned with corporate strategies.
A key responsibility is taking a lead role in negotiations with OEMs, navigating challenges while maintaining profitability and market position. The execution of commercial strategies will be focused on supporting long-term goals, working closely with the board to ensure alignment between the company’s commercial objectives and its broader business strategy.

Candidate
With over 10 years of expertise in high-stakes negotiations, particularly with the majority of automotive OEMs and managing Tier 1 supplier dynamics, you have proven experience as a senior commercial leader. You have a track record of managing and developing teams, driving operational excellence within the automotive supply chain, and executing strategies that align with corporate objectives. Your strong communication and collaboration abilities have allowed you to work effectively with key stakeholders, both internally and externally.
You excel at optimizing established product lines and client relationships to enhance the company’s market position, and are skilled in leading teams across global regions, with a deep understanding of various cultural and operational nuances. Proficient in data-driven decision-making and process improvement, you also have a strong grasp of market trends and internal systems. Your experience enables you to navigate high-pressure situations and complex negotiations, particularly in transactional client environments.
In addition to a deep understanding of business operations, finance, sales, marketing tactics, and market conditions, you hold a degree (BSc/BA/MSc/MA) in business administration, finance, or a related field. An analytical and creative thinker, you possess a keen attention to detail, strong time management skills, and the organizational and leadership abilities necessary to guide a business toward achieving its goals.

Key Takeaways
Strategic Mindset: Focused on long-term sustainability and growth.
Exceptional Interpersonal Skills: Strong communicator, capable of collaborating across regions to drive results.
Business Acumen: Deep understanding of operations, market conditions, and financial planning.
Leadership Balance: Ability to balance team leadership with hands-on management of high-level client relationships and negotiations.

Qualifications
BSc/BA/MSc/MA in Business Administration, Finance, or a related field.
Fluency in English; additional languages are an advantage.
Extensive experience in budgeting, forecasting, and financial performance management.

What our client offers
Competitive compensation package
Opportunity to play a key role in maximizing the potential of an industry-leading company.
Senior leadership role with significant influence over strategy execution and the development of key OEM relationships.
Dynamic, global work environment that emphasizes innovation and sustainability.