[Hiring] Vice President, Key Accounts @APPLIED Adhesives

Role Description

The VP of Key Accounts leads the strategy, execution, and performance management for the company’s key accounts channel. Key accounts are defined as large customers that procure products for multiple locations and require coordinated, strategic focus.

This role is responsible for:

• Growing APPLIED's most strategic customers
• Strengthening executive-level relationships
• Improving retention and share of wallet
• Maintaining disciplined account plans and forecasts
• Aligning cross-functional resources to customer priorities

The VP of Key Accounts has budgetary responsibility for the key accounts organization and is accountable for delivering revenue, volume, margin, and profitability objectives within the approved budget.

This is a remote role, which requires up to 75% travel. You must reside in the United States to be considered for this role.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and execute the key accounts strategy to achieve revenue, volume, margin, profitability, retention, and share-of-wallet objectives across the company’s most strategic customers.
• Own the key accounts channel and ensure its scope remains limited to large, multi-location customers that require coordinated, strategic focus.
• Lead, mentor, and develop the Key Accounts team, setting clear expectations for performance, accountability, collaboration, customer stewardship, and continuous improvement.
• Create and maintain strategic account plans for each key account, including growth priorities, opportunity pipelines, relationship maps, competitive positioning, risks, and measurable actions.
• Build and sustain executive-level relationships with key customers, coordinate engagement across customer locations, and serve as an escalation point for strategic opportunities and issues.
• Identify and capture growth opportunities within key accounts by expanding product penetration, locations served, applications supported, and strategic partnerships.
• Own the key accounts budget; establish resource priorities, manage spending, and deliver financial performance within the approved plan.
• Set account-level goals, inspect pipeline and execution, maintain accurate forecasts, and adjust strategies to ensure consistent achievement of targets.
• Analyze customer needs, procurement models, market trends, and competitor activity to strengthen account strategies and improve customer value.
• Work closely with sales, marketing, operations, product, supply chain, finance, and executive teams to align company resources with key account commitments and growth priorities.
• Provide regular reports to senior management, including forecasts, financial performance, account health, strategic risks, growth opportunities, and required actions.
• Model and reinforce Applied’s core values by building a team-oriented culture, getting things done with urgency, holding the team accountable to commitments, staying customer-focused, and promoting growth.
• Support and adhere to all safety procedures and complete all required safety training.
• Identify and support process improvements that strengthen key account execution, company objectives, and customer expectations.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Value teamwork and recognize that the best results come from supporting and learning from one another.
• Focus on solutions, prioritize effectively, and go the extra mile when needed to achieve goals.
• Build trust through reliability, transparency, and a strong sense of responsibility.
• Embrace learning opportunities and use curiosity to solve problems and drive improvement.
• Are motivated by achieving results and creating exceptional experiences for customers.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree or higher
• 8+ years of leading key accounts or strategic accounts, with a strong track record of growing large, complex customers that procure products for multiple locations.
• Valid driver’s license and a clean driving record. Must be able to travel up to 75% of the time.
• Legally authorized to work in the United States.

Other Qualifications

• Master’s degree preferred.
• Strong leadership and people management skills, with experience motivating, developing, and holding a key accounts team accountable to clear goals and core value expectations.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and execute strategic account plans that align customer priorities, market dynamics, company capabilities, and financial objectives.
• Experience with budget ownership, forecasting, resource allocation, and management of revenue, margin, and profitability performance.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with a proven ability to negotiate, build executive-level relationships, and influence across customer and internal organizations.
• Strong analytical skills to assess account performance, customer economics, opportunity pipelines, market trends, and competitive activity.
• Demonstrated ability to create a team-oriented, accountable, customer-focused culture with urgency, follow-through, and a growth mindset.

Physical Requirements

• Communicate information and ideas so others will understand.
• Observe details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Remain in a stationary position for extended periods of time.
• Operate a computer and other office productivity machinery, such as a keyboard, mouse, telephone.
• Travel between company locations, customer sites, and/or manufacturing facilities as needed.
• Walk through manufacturing, warehouse, and production areas as needed.

Benefits

• Medical, Dental and Vision Benefits
• 401k Match
• Flexible and Team-Oriented work environment
• Generous PTO policy
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Employee Assistance Program
• Career and talent development opportunities as well as opportunities for personal growth

Interview Expectations

To ensure a fair and consistent hiring process, AI-generated or AI-assisted interview responses are not permitted. Candidates who use AI tools during interviews will not be considered for employment.

FLSA Status

Exempt

Compensation

The anticipated base compensation range for this position is $220,000 - $240,000 annually. This range represents a good-faith estimate of the compensation expected for this role at the time of posting. Actual compensation offered may vary based on various factors.

Equal Opportunity Statement

We are an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.