Director Projects

The organisation

Avantium is a Euronext listed technology development company and a forerunner in renewable and sustainable chemistry, with head office located in Amsterdam and a solid financial position. The company employs approximately 230 people, has extensive R&D laboratories and also pilot plants in Delfzijl and Geleen, and has recently built a production plant in Delfzijl for the production of important building blocks for bioplastics.

Avantium R&D Solutions (RDS), one of the three Business Units of Avantium, specializes in innovations and technologies to accelerate R&D for organizations who desire to gain efficiency in their chemical processes. With these expertise, Avantium has enabled its customers to make numerous catalyst inventions and develop chemical processes.

Avantium RDS offers four specific types of solutions (projects) to its customers:

• R&D Systems (advanced installations of reactor equipment for catalysis R&D at customers’ R&D laboratories, including maintenance and service contracts, such as the products Flowrence and Batchington);
• Custom-made Units (custom-made R&D installations, inhouse designed and built);
• R&D Services (contract research projects for the industry, tailored to specific applications);
• Refinery Catalyst Testing (best-practice testing programs in order to select the best catalyst for refinery application).

Avantium RDS cooperates with blue chip customers in the (petro)chemical, refinery and renewables industries, increasingly moving towards the field of sustainable chemistry. With its unique capabilities in innovative chemistry R&D and engineering, Avantium RDS is perfectly positioned to support this growing and attractive market segment.

Avantium RDS focuses on four emerging markets, in which there is already existing expertise and thus understanding of customer challenges: green hydrogen/electrolysis; chemical plastic recycling; adsorption; and sustainable chemical building blocks.

All professionals of Avantium are very high educated and experienced, representing over 20 nationalities. The company culture can be described as a typical “start-up” culture: ambitious, pragmatic, enterprising, innovative, dedicated, with a can-do mentality.

Due to expansion of the number of customer projects and the new organizational structure, the new position Director Projects has arisen.

The position

In the position Director Projects at Avantiums’ successful Business Unit RDS you are leading the department that is responsible for the execution of all commercial projects (R&D Solutions), and thus encompassing all customer-facing operational personnel. This projects department consists of several Project Leaders (10 fte), and the Customer Services team, consisting of a Team Leader having a group of Field Service Engineers, Field Software Engineers and an Assistant.

The purpose of the position is to further develop this projects department for the future, and to keep it in line with developments in the market.

As Director Projects you are member of the Leadership Team of RDS and you will report to the Managing Director of RDS. You work closely with other departments, including the Business Development Department.

Tasks & responsibilities

• Lead the team of Project Leaders in devising, writing and promoting compelling technical proposals for commercial projects;
• Lead the team of Project Leaders to ensure all commercial projects are completed in full, on time and within budget, including project scope, risk and quality management;
• Lead the Customer Services team including Field Service Engineers and Field Software Engineers to ensure sold units and products are installed and serviced, and have parts and components supplied according to maintenance and repair contracts established with customers, according to the strategy and pricing policy;
• Lead the projects department to strive for maximum customer satisfaction;
• Establish and manage the financial budget of the project department (revenue and expenditure);
• Build and continually develop the projects department;
• Strive for continual improvements in project management (in safety, quality, efficiency and profitability) by devising and executing improvement plans, and training and developing department members.
• Participate as member of the BU Leadership Team: devise, seek approval, execute and deliver on strategy, business plans, investments and budgets, manage and lead safety, and grow and develop the organization.

Candidate profile

We are looking for the person who fits well within the entrepreneurial culture of this knowledge-intensive company, a natural leader with the ambition to further develop this department.

• Academic Masters’ or PhD degree in Chemistry, Chemical Technology or Chemical Engineering
• More than 10 years of relevant work experience in project management of complex commercial R&D projects
• In depth understanding of and affinity with one/some of the relevant markets: catalysis; green hydrogen/electrolysis; chemical plastic recycling; adsorption; sustainable chemical building blocks.
• A natural leader with strong people management skills
• Well-developed commercial sense, customer-oriented attitude
• Entrepreneurial minded
• The drive for continuously improvement
• Internationally oriented

The offer

• Good salary package (including 8% holiday pay)
• Full time employment of 40 hours a week
• 25 vacation days
• Bonus up to a maximum of 20% of the gross annual salary, depending on company and department targets
• Laptop and phone
• Pension scheme

Further:

• Possibility of flexible working hours
• Many opportunities for personal development
• Fine and passionate colleagues in an innovative, cohesive organization

Interested?

You are invited to apply for this position by using the link below.