Strategic Technical Accounts Manager

Green Plains Renewable Energy, Inc. is seeking a Strategic Technical Accounts Manager in Cedar Rapids, IA. The role involves building customer relationships, providing technical expertise, and supporting sales efforts in the biofuel and biochemical industries. Responsibilities include relationship management, developing sales strategies, monitoring competition, and preparing sales documents. Candidates should have a bachelor's degree and 5+ years of experience, along with strong leadership and organizational skills.
Job Description Summary: The Technical Sales Lead position is directly responsible for “Telling” FQT’s story in the marketplace and providing technical expertise to sales clients as well as the sales team, while being a part of team selling process.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

Create the customer relationship marketing/sales structure to facilitate greater industry awareness and increase sales through:
• Developing FQT’s name recognition within the biofuel and biochemical industries.
• Establish a customer relationship where a Accounts Manager is the point of contact for customer communications and facilitating the sales process for a number of clients.
• Understand customer's needs; survey needs through the entire marketing and sales process, from pre-relationship through completion of the sale and beyond. Providing continuous point of contact with client.
• Be a technical expert in the solutions that FQT provides for clients, and part of a selling team for these solutions.
• Act to educate & promote the technical aspects of FQT’s “technologies within the sales organization, and for a select group of clients.

Essential Functions:
• Establishes and maintains relationships, for the promotion of FQT products and services with new and existing customers.
• Develops and maintains detailed updated customer database (data to include, key contacts, plant location, plant size, major projects in the past, strategic partnership, marketing partners, financials, board member make-up, etc…).
• Develops and implements, and managers sales plans and forecasts, and opportunties to achieve corporate objectives for products and services.
• Determines clients’ needs and provides necessary connections/communication with engineering and service departments.
• Monitors competition activities, sales and marketing activities and updated FQT management of changes and new threats or opportunities.
• Meets with key clients regularly, assisting engineering and R&D, maintenance service and sales representative with maintaining relationships.
• Prepares preliminary sales documents, needed to complete/close the sale, (Sales contracts, proposals, presentations, etc…).
• Guides preparation of marketing activity reports and presents to Sales Manager/ Leadership Team.
• Prepares periodic (monthly, quarterly, annually) marketing/sales report showing potential sales, and areas of proposed client base expansion/new project opportunities.
• Represents company at trade association meetings to promote products, technologies and services.
• Assists other departments within organization to prepare manuals and technical publications, ensuring the FQT “Story” is consistently represented across all news and media channels.
• Assist Business Development & Marketing Leads with advertising and promotion activities including print, online, electronic media, and direct mail.
• Tracks all sales cost related activities and projects future planned costs.
• Oversees and evaluates market research and adjusts sales strategy to meet changing market and competitive conditions.

Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university and/or equivalent industry experience
• 5+ years of experience
• Strong leadership, time management, and organizational skills.
• Demonstrated experience in developing and executing sales strategies
• Solid business acumen with strong negotiation, analytical, and problem-solving skills
• Ability to effectively communicate technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences
• Strong organizational awareness, including understanding company structure, internal dynamics, and industry context.
• Biofuels, biochemical, and/or agricultural business industry knowledge
• Travel of 50%+ is expected. Travel expense is reimbursed directly to the employee

Location
• Ability to work remotely from anywhere within or near the assigned region
• Regions:
• South West Region: Kansas, Missouri, Colorado
• Floater: All regions and Canada

Work Environment/Physical Demands:
• Ability to lift up to 30 pounds
• Performing typical office duties