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We are looking for a Customer Solutions Manager to join our Customer Facing team within one of Construction Industries’ newly formed divisions: Customer Solutions Growth Regions.
About Customer Solutions Growth Regions Division
This team, alongside dealers, engages closely with customers to create, customize, and adapt solutions to meet their needs by leveraging the extensive range of offerings available today—across products and services, digital and technology, rental and used, and financing.
The division is regionally focused on Africa, the Middle East, Eurasia, Asia (excluding Japan), and Latin America (LATAM) and organized into three functional areas: Customer Facing, Customer Solutions, and Business Enablers.
This role is part of the Customer Facing team, the engine of our business—driving growth by delivering tailored, territory-specific solutions that solve customer pain points, accelerate decision-making, and enable profitable sales execution.
Role Definition: Oversees and coordinates all sales and various solution programs for a significant client or specific client group.
What You Will Do (Responsibilities):
Following organizational policies and procedures and maintaining clear and direct line of communication within the organization to meet customer requirements.
Consult with dealers and internal business partners on the subject of sales and service support of product to “corporate account” customers.
Designing processes for informing customer of rates, shipping date, anticipated delays and any additional information needed by the customer.
Working directly with customers to collect information, sell additional products and services to current customers, and ensure customers' needs are met.
What Will Put You Ahead (Preferred Skills):
Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or Business Administration. Master’s degree is a plus.
Minimum 5 – 7 years of experience in Sales, Account Management, End-Customer Facing positions with proven sales track record.
Minimum 3 – 5 years of experience in mining, construction, quarry, forestry, heavy machinery applications or technology.
Demonstrated expertise and experience working in emerging markets & regions.
Fluent in English - proficiency in another local language will be advantageous
What You Have (Basic Skills Required):
Customer Focus: Knowledge of the values and practices that align customer needs and satisfaction as primary considerations in all business decisions and ability to leverage that information in creating customized customer solutions.
Level Extensive Experience:
Facilitates creation of the 'right' products and services to resolve customer business issues.
Fosters strong customer relationships via delivery on commitments, open communication, and on-going feedback/improvement.
Advises others on creating customer focused environments in various scenarios.
Anticipates customer needs, focusing efforts to proactively meet needs and exceed customer expectations.
Measures and observes customer satisfaction levels to ascertain and implement service improvement alternatives.
Communicates and models the criticality of customer focus as an organizational strategy.
Industry Knowledge: Knowledge of the organization's industry group, trends, directions, major issues, regulatory considerations, and trendsetters; ability to apply industry knowledge appropriately to diverse situations.
Level Working Knowledge:
Discusses industry-specific flagship products and services.
Demonstrates current knowledge of the regulatory environment for industry segment.
Describes the contribution of own function as it relates to the industry segment.
Participates in major industry professional associations; subscribes to industry-specific publications.
Currently works with a major industry segment and associated functions and features.
Decision Making and Critical Thinking: Knowledge of the decision-making process and associated tools and techniques; ability to accurately analyze situations and reach productive decisions based on informed judgment.
Level Working Knowledge:
Applies an assigned technique for critical thinking in a decision-making process.
Identifies, obtains, and organizes relevant data and ideas.
Participates in documenting data, ideas, players, stakeholders, and processes.
Recognizes, clarifies, and prioritizes concerns.
Assists in assessing risks, benefits and consideration of alternatives.
Effective Communications: Understanding of effective communication concepts, tools and techniques; ability to effectively transmit, receive, and accurately interpret ideas, information, and needs through the application of appropriate communication behaviors.
Level Working Knowledge:
Delivers helpful feedback that focuses on behaviors without offending the recipient.
Listens to feedback without defensiveness and uses it for own communication effectiveness.
Makes oral presentations and writes reports needed for own work.
Avoids technical jargon when inappropriate.
Looks for and considers non-verbal cues from individuals and groups.
Negotiating: Knowledge of successful negotiation concepts and techniques; ability to negotiate successfully across the organization and with external vendors and clients in a constructive and collaborative manner.
Level Extensive Experience:
Ensures negotiators have awareness of complementary yet diverse interests.
Successfully completes significant negotiations, both internal and external.
Details the risks of negotiation breakdown from each party's perspective.
Protects own position, while demonstrating willingness to achieve win-win.
Identifies similarities and differences in position and assesses impact on discussions.
Detects and addresses lack of progress or a stalemate.
Relationship Management: Knowledge of relationship management techniques; ability to establish and maintain healthy working relationships with clients, vendors, and peers.
Level Extensive Experience:
Communicates to clients regarding expectations of all parties.
Participates in negotiating the terms of the business relationship.
Conducts periodic reviews of work effort, progress, issues, and successes.
Maintains productive, long-term relationships with clients or vendors.
Creates opportunities to educate support teams on client priorities.
Empowers others to establish collaborative, healthy relationships.
Account Management: Knowledge of account management; ability to manage day-to-day activities, providing services and support to existing clients.
Level Working Knowledge:
Participates in orchestrating and coordinating a team sale.
Uses proper resources for the day-to-day support of existing clients.
Analyzes the sales history and current activity for a specific account.
Coordinates with internal support functions to meet unique client needs.
Provides account management support to a specific customer or account.
Value Selling: Knowledge of the principles and practices for selling products, technology and services; ability to provide overall product/service 'value' and to differentiate support offerings that address clearly understood customer needs.
Level Extensive Experience:
Acquires and retains customers in multiple settings using 'value selling' techniques.
Coaches others on the application of 'value selling' principles and practices.
Delivers value-added services to customers beyond delivery of a purchased product, technology or service consistently.
Qualifies sales prospects based on a clear understanding of customer business needs and the service company's determined ability to meet those needs.
Solicits feedback from the customer community as a valued service provider.
Teaches and coaches 'value selling' to others within the organization.
Additional Information:
Must be able to travel 70% - 80% (Domestic & International)
Onsite, five days a week in Kempton Park, Johannesburg.
Relocation will not be supported.
Please frequently check the email associated with your application, including the junk/spam folder, as this is the primary correspondence method. If you wish to know the status of your application – please use the candidate log-in on our career website as it will reflect any updates to your status.
Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer and considers applicants for all positions. Caterpillar commits itself to the realization of employment equity goals as envisaged in the South-African Employment Equity Act and policies relating to workplace equality. Caterpillar is committed to creating a dynamic work environment that values diversity and inclusion, respect and integrity, customer focus, and innovation.
For more information, visit https://www.caterpillar.com/en/careers/why-caterpillar.html
Caterpillar takes data privacy seriously and is committed to compliance with The Protection of Personal Information Act in South Africa. Candidate CVs are used for the limited purpose of evaluating suitability for this job role and deleted from our database when it is no longer needed for the purpose as soon as it is practicable. For more information on Caterpillar’s privacy practices, please visit our Global Data Privacy Statement.
NB: The panel cannot make assumptions when shortlisting therefore please demonstrate your qualifications and experience on your CV relevant to the criteria outlined.
Pending the number of applications, the criteria for the position may be enhanced to facilitate shortlisting.
About Caterpillar
Caterpillar Inc. is the world’s leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and diesel-electric locomotives. For 100 years, we’ve been helping customers build a better, more sustainable world and are committed and contributing to a reduced-carbon future. Our innovative products and services, backed by our global dealer network, provide exceptional value that helps customers succeed. Caterpillar does business on every continent, principally operating through three primary segments – Construction Industries, Resource Industries and Energy & Transportation – and providing financing and related services through our Financial Products segment.
Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants of any age are encouraged to apply
