Job Title: Technical Sales & Business Development Manager
Territory: Japan and Korea
Job Overview:
The Technical Sales & Business Development Manager is responsible for accelerating the growth of Howmet Fastening Systems' industrial products business in Japan and Korea by developing new customers, markets, and applications. This is a hands-on, individual-contributor hunter role rather than a position focused mainly on maintaining established accounts.
The role identifies customer challenges in joining, assembly, and manufacturing and develops technical and commercial solutions using Huck lockbolts, structural blind fasteners, Camloc, KEENSERTS, installation tools, and other HFS products. The position works directly with OEMs, EPCs, engineering and design companies, fabricators, contractors, distributors, and end users, and owns opportunities from prospecting and technical evaluation through specification, quotation, negotiation, and production launch. Close coordination with factories and global sales, engineering, quality, and supply chain teams is required.
Key Responsibilities:
New Business and Market Development
- Create and execute territory and account development plans for Japan and Korea.
- Research and prioritize target markets, applications, accounts, and decision makers.
- Generate opportunities through direct outreach, customer visits, referrals, exhibitions, industry networks, and distributor collaboration.
- Build relationships with design, product development, manufacturing, production engineering, quality, maintenance, project management, and purchasing teams.
- Maintain a qualified pipeline with clear next actions and timing for each opportunity.
Technical and Application Development
- Understand current joining methods, drawings, materials, plate thicknesses, loads, access conditions, production processes, and customer requirements.
- Identify applications where welding, conventional bolting, or other joining methods can be reduced, replaced, or improved, where technically appropriate.
- Develop value proposals based on productivity, quality, safety, labor availability, inspection, maintenance, and total installed cost.
- Select appropriate fasteners and tools, and coordinate samples, calculations, testing, and validation.
Drive design-in and specification activities with OEMs, EPCs, design firms, engineering companies, and end users.
Customer Demonstrations and Field Support
Prepare and conduct product demonstrations, sample installations, and customer trials at factories and project sites.
Set up installation tools and nose assemblies, verify installation conditions, and provide basic maintenance and first-line troubleshooting.
Train customers and distributors on correct installation, inspection, and basic tool care.
Work safely and maintain demonstration tools, samples, and related equipment in good condition.
Global and Cross-functional Collaboration
Communicate directly in English with overseas factories and global sales, engineering, quality, operations, and supply chain teams.
Translate customer requirements into clear technical and commercial requests for global teams.
Coordinate technical data, product recommendations, samples, testing, quotations, delivery information, quality investigations, and corrective actions.
Retain end-to-end ownership through completion, including follow-up and final customer communication, even when specific actions are assigned to others.
Commercial and Pipeline Management
Prepare quotations and negotiate pricing, commercial terms, and project conditions.
Evaluate opportunities based on revenue, margin, technical feasibility, timing, resource requirements, and business risk.
Provide reliable forecasts and maintain accurate customer, opportunity, and activity records in company systems.
Monitor market trends, competitor activity, and customer needs, and share relevant information internally.
Required Qualifications and Skills:
Technical background in mechanical, materials, structural, manufacturing, welding, or a related field, through a university degree, technical college qualification, or equivalent practical experience.
Experience in technical B2B sales, business development, application engineering, or a related industrial role.
Proven personal record of winning new customers, applications, projects, or specifications.
Ability to read drawings and discuss products, joining methods, and manufacturing processes with customer engineers.
Business-level spoken and written English, including direct communication with overseas factories in meetings and by email.
Native or business-fluent Japanese communication skills.
Willingness and ability to conduct hands-on demonstrations, tool setup, basic maintenance, and first-line troubleshooting.
Ability to work safely at customer factories, workshops, and project sites.
Availability for frequent travel within Japan and occasional travel to Korea and other countries.
Valid Japanese driver’s license.
Key Competencies:
New-business hunter mindset and strong customer prospecting ability.
Technical curiosity and ability to learn new products and applications quickly.
Practical, hands-on approach and comfort working in industrial environments.
Persistence through long evaluation and approval processes.
Clear communication with both shop-floor personnel and senior decision makers.
Strong ownership and ability to work effectively in a small, lean organization.
Global collaboration, commercial awareness, and disciplined opportunity management.
Preferred Qualifications:
Experience with industrial fasteners, joining technology, welding, adhesives, industrial tools, assembly equipment, metal fabrication, or engineered components.
Experience in design-in, specification sales, EPC sales, project sales, or long technical approval cycles.
Experience in commercial vehicles, rail, heavy or construction equipment, material handling, renewable energy, infrastructure, industrial plants, or steel structures.
Experience working with overseas factories in a global manufacturing company.
Experience developing business through distributors while maintaining direct contact with end users.
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