EMEA Sustainability Partnership and Grant Technical Lead

Goodyear. More Driven.

Primary Purpose of the Position

The Global Material Science department seeks a highly motivated and hands-on associate to identify and develop new material technologies that address current and future business needs from our organization. The ideal candidate will have a strong passion for technology and high-performance application development. The associate will be responsible for translating product performance requirements such as traction, handling, and durability into chemical and physical property requirements of materials and then developing tire compounds which demonstrate performance in tire applications. The successful candidate will be high energy and naturally inquisitive.

The Global Material Science team in Goodyear's Akron Innovation Centre is responsible for identifying, developing, and industrializing new material technologies for all of Goodyear's product lines including consumer, truck, aircraft, off-road, and racing. Teams within the department are responsible for providing Goodyear a sustainable competitive advantage in tire performance and manufacturing resulting from best-in-class material technology. Associates work with cross functional product design teams and production to establish performance and manufacturability targets for tires and tire components. In conducting their work, associates may be responsible for developing and directing external collaborations, and projects are often conducted on a global basis where activities are coordinated through an international technical organization.

This position will provide leadership in material sustainability through external partnership on novel technologies, critical value chain integration and leverage EMEA government incentives toward sustainability. The Senior Scientist is responsible to define the proper innovation and technology strategy for capturing Sustainable Material EMEA R&D grants and serve as technical lead to execute and advance technology development from the grants. This includes serving as Principal Investigator for current LIST projects and support the exploration of other potential EMEA grant opportunities. This associate will ensure the grant strategy is fully integrated/aligned with the Goodyear innovation and technology strategy. In addition, he/she will support gathering of proper/meaningful documentation (in-line with the established strategy with the Domain Leaders) to maximize grant acquisition and approval (Luxembourg/European Union [EU]). This position will also be accountable for establishing grant agreements with the funding authorities (with support of the Goodyear Legal department). The incumbent will manage progress reviews and oversee the final report documentation/submission. While this role has no direct reporting line, the associate will coordinate with Global Grant and Partnership leader to lead all Innovation Domain Leaders (Directors/Senior Managers) by influence.  The associate will also monitor emerging sustainable material trends, support scouting activities, and interact with Material Venture team on investment opportunities. The successful candidate will be high energy and naturally inquisitive with an innovative mindset.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

• Serve as Principal investigator for current LIST projects under the Sustainable Material program. Ensure best project execution by designing and executing good scientific experiment, monitor/control the projects throughout its life cycle, and manage (either formally or through influence) the engagement of assigned project team members to successfully execute the project. Provide regular reports and communicate progress through regular sponsor reviews. Also responsible for fully understanding LIST capability and propose or coordinate best new concepts suitable to partner with LIST. 
• Explore EMEA region Sustainability related government funding opportunities beyond LIST.  Drive strategic decisions to internalize/externalize resources and identify skill sets/resource gaps and eligibility of grants. Support subject matter experts and Global grant lead to submit concept paper for EMEA grants. Identify key partners and coordinate with external agent to prepare and submit grant applications. Provide leadership and technical guidance/support to obtain grant recovery (in-line with the annual plan).
• Follow sustainable material emerging technologies and develop point-of-view and strategy to pursue or monitor. Support scouting efforts especially in EMEA region and coordinate with each category leads and the global scouting leader to identify relevant concepts. Utilize the scouting process to complete proof-of-concept experiment, support Material Venture team on investment opportunities, and internalize the concepts into technology development, release and implementation.
• Developing and maintaining tire compounds for optimal performance while considering cost and environment.
• Designing laboratory studies to evaluate material technologies, and interpreting the results based on the underlying chemistry and physics of the materials being studied.
• Effective communication and collaboration with design teams, customers, and manufacturing to ensure successful development and technology transfer.

To join our team, you will need:

Education & Certifications

• A bachelor’s degree in engineering or science is required.
• A master’s degree in engineering or science PHD is desired.

Experience

• 5 or more years of experience working on Research and Development projects (principal investigator)
• Experience in collaborating with external partners - Private and/or public
• Broad/Technical expertise in science and engineering
• Experience in cross-disciplinary projects/portfolio

Knowledge, Skills & Capabilities

• Drive for results, priority setting, build effective teams, planning
• Able to work independently with minimum guidance 
• Process management, directing others, manage conflict, organizing
• Proven communication skills with funding authorities and external research parties
• Familiarity with polymers, fillers, and/or reinforced composites is required.
• Strong interpersonal skills & ability to work in teams are required. Exceptional communication and technical documentation skills.
• Tire plant experience in mixing/component preparation and with tire production processes are an asset.
• The associate needs to be open minded, optimistic, and collaborative with a strong sense of urgency.

Goodyear is one of the world’s largest tire companies. It employs about 68,000 people and manufactures its products in 53 facilities in 20 countries around the world. Its two Innovation Centers in Akron, Ohio and Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg strive to develop state-of-the-art products and services that set the technology and performance standard for the industry. For more information about Goodyear and its products, go to www.goodyear.com/corporate.