The Market Sector Director – Inland Waterways is responsible for developing and executing ABS’ business strategy for the inland waterways market sector. This role aligns business and technology priorities with market conditions, client needs, and emerging industry trends, while leading coordinated market sector activities across the organization. Based in Europe, the position will play a key role in strengthening ABS’ presence and growth in the inland waterways sector, particularly across Europe and other strategic markets.
This position drives performance and results across sector strategy, market intelligence, sales support, sector visibility, and product and rule development.
The Inland Waterways sector may include, but is not limited to:
- Inland vessel owners and operators
- Barge and push-tow operators
- Inland shipyards and repair yards
- Ports, terminals, and logistics stakeholders
- Equipment manufacturers, retrofit providers, and other inland waterways industry participants
What You Will Do:
- Develop and execute a business plan for the Inland Waterways market sector, including growth objectives, sales targets, and strategic actions to capture new business and support ABS business outcomes.
- Act as Process Manager within the specific market sector for the applicable components of the Demand & Account Management / Commercial Operations Core Process.
- Maintain a detailed understanding of the inland waterways market, including sector structure, client priorities, commercial drivers, fleet characteristics, and business and technology trends.
- Coordinate with Global Business Development to maintain and validate the global chase list of business opportunities in the assigned market sector.
- Work directly with business development teams to coordinate proposal development and activities related to contracting new business.
- Provide direction and strategy to the Product & Digital Solution Development, Survey & Certification, Engineering Delivery, and Rule Development Core Processes to achieve organizational business outcomes.
- Advise on and propose new services that provide value to members and clients while creating opportunities for new revenue streams within the market sector.
- Provide Corporate and Regional management teams with market, client, and competitor intelligence in the form of meetings, visit reports, and business plans.
- Support ABS Enabling Market Processes, including but not limited to, Rule Development, Survey & Certification, Engineering Delivery, and Product & Digital Solution Development, as needed.
- Coordinate and facilitate marketing efforts related to the assigned market sector by evaluating and determining the scope of ABS presence at relevant trade shows and conferences and providing recommendations for campaigns targeting appropriate clients.
- May serve as a Key Account Manager to designated customers and potential customers and actively promote the services and capabilities of ABS throughout the business community.
- Identify and support opportunities across inland vessel new construction, retrofit programs, fleet modernization, decarbonization initiatives, digitalization, and lifecycle support services.
- Build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders across the inland waterways value chain, including owners, operators, shipyards, ports, logistics providers, equipment suppliers, industry associations, and relevant regulatory bodies.
- Partner with internal stakeholders to align ABS capabilities with market demand and support the development and promotion of services relevant to inland waterways, including classification, certification, advisory, and digital solutions.
- Represent ABS in client meetings, industry events, conferences, and forums to strengthen market visibility, client engagement, and sector credibility.
- Monitor and communicate market developments, including competitive activity, regulatory changes, sustainability trends, and emerging client needs, to support informed business decisions.
What You Will Need:
Education and Experience
- Bachelor’s degree or recognized equivalent required.
- MBA or equivalent preferred.
- Seven (7) or more years of related experience.
- Experience in one or more relevant sectors, including inland waterways, commercial marine, shipbuilding and repair, ports and terminals, marine logistics, or related maritime services.
- Experience in business development, market strategy, client engagement, or sector leadership within the maritime industry is strongly preferred.
- Experience in the European inland waterways market, including the Rotterdam/Rhine corridor or broader Northwest European inland shipping environment, is strongly preferred.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
- Demonstrated leadership and success in driving results through matrixed teams and a global workforce.
- Demonstrated understanding of inland waterways market dynamics, including fleet modernization, sustainability, emissions reduction, operational efficiency, safety, and regulatory developments.
- Demonstrated technical and/or commercial expertise related to vessel operations, shipbuilding, retrofit activity, classification, certification, or marine services.
- Excellent business judgment, including the ability to assess the reasonableness and likelihood of success of various business scenarios.
- Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, and the ability to communicate effectively in group and client-facing environments. English language fluency required to conduct detailed business and technical communication at a professional level.
- Ability to engage credibly with both commercial and technical stakeholders across the inland waterways sector.
- Ability to develop a working knowledge of ABS Rules, Guides, statutory regulations, and related instructions, as well as the ABS Employee Safety Policy.
- Additional European language capability, particularly Dutch or German, is a plus.
Reporting Relationships:
Typically reports to an executive-level leader. May report to a geographic leader, when necessary, based on country or business requirements.
