Commercial Assistant

COMMERCIAL ASSISTANT

Main Accountabilities

Provide the best commercial and digital support to the customer portfolio:

• Serve as first and direct point of contact for Customers and ensure timely communication on product specifications (product changes, legal aspects, PBMs ...). Follow-up on customer satisfaction, facilitate response to customer questionnaires.
• Assist customers in accessing and navigating the customer portal to ensure a smooth and user-friendly digital experience.. Encourage the use of the customer portals and the e-Lab (where applicable). Generate best-in-class customer engagement through optimal usage of CRM and other IT systems. Maintain complete and accurate customer data in all IT systems.
• Provide support to the external Sales team. Challenge pricing & margin development on new orders. Raise and discuss price issues  with Sales Managers. Communicate pricelist updates to customers and handle customer price claims.
• Process/create sample requests in CRM, liaise with Customers and/or Sales Manager for improved qualification of the sample request (application, project, …).. Detect and share opportunities with Sales Managers to develop commercial relationships.
• Assist Sales Administrators with blockers in MetaMaze and/or help with issues on open orders. Contribute to collecting overdues and handle credit limits together with Credit Control.
• Follow up on the customers’ purchasing behavior, collect forecasts and assist Planners on demand modelling.
• Destocking actions: Identify slow-moving products within customer portfolio (as flagged by the Planner), coordinate with Sales Manager on spot price offers, ensure offer is sent to Customer and follow up on its status, provide regular updates to Business Manager.

• Master the relevant CRM and ERP functionalities to operate efficiently and provide best-in-class service to Customers.

Ensure conformance & contribute to sustainability:

• Ensure compliance with all QA and SHE requirements, procedures and working instructions in order to maintain high service standards and quality of Data Management.
• Review non-conformances on a daily basis, in collaboration with the Sales Administrators, Supply Chain Administrators, Sales Managers and SHEQ team. Provide feedback to Stakeholders to allow closing of non-conformances in CRM.
• Translate the Group’s Sustainability Strategy into concrete job-related actions.

Contribute to continuous process optimization and excellent teamwork:

• Provide regular feedback to business process owners and Key Users to enable operational excellence, efficiency and effectiveness.
• Develop expertise in processes and work instructions related to own scope and support development of best practices.
• Act as back-up within the Commercial Assistant team as required.

KPIs

• Customer satisfaction (surveys).
• Automatch in MetaMaze / Internal non-conformances

Experience, Skills & Education

• Proven experience in commercial development and customer service, understanding market dynamics and requirements.

• Entrepreneurial and dynamic mindset and technical affinity and interest.
• Strong relationship building and negotiation skills.
• Strong communication skills, local language and good knowledge of English.
• Self-motivated, team-player, passionate about achieving goals/targets, high service level standards.
• Excellent organisational skills and self-starter, advanced user of various IT tools & CRM.
• Ability to adapt to new & changing requirements and a flexible approach to working with pressure.