About The Role

The Senior Chemist provides technical expertise and leadership in support of maintenance of business activities for the Industrial Wood Maintenance of Business team. Reporting to the Technical Manager, this role is responsible for sustaining existing products, resolving customer and manufacturing issues, supporting business continuity, and ensuring reliable product performance. The Senior Chemist partners closely with Manufacturing, Sales, Marketing, Quality, Technical Service, Supply Chain, and customers to address technical challenges, execute product modifications, support operational needs, and deliver timely solutions that maintain customer satisfaction and business objectives.

Job duties include contact with other employees and access confidential and proprietary information and/or other items of value, and such access may be supervised or unsupervised. The Company therefore has determined that a review of criminal history is necessary to protect the business and its operations and reputation and is necessary to protect the safety of the Company’s staff, employees, and business relationships.

This role is not hybrid and will be located at Sherwin-Williams Morikis Global Technology Center located at 6745 Miller Road, Brecksville, OH 44141.

Lead technical activities that support maintenance of business objectives, including product stewardship, customer issue resolution, manufacturing support, and sustaining existing product lines.
Investigate and resolve internal and external technical issues through structured problem solving, root cause analysis, and implementation of corrective and preventive actions.
Coordinate technical activities with Manufacturing, Sales, Marketing, Quality, Procurement, Technical Services, and external customers to support ongoing business requirements.
Prioritize and respond to urgent customer requests, product performance concerns, manufacturing issues, and supply continuity challenges.
Support operational excellence by identifying risks to product quality, customer satisfaction, regulatory compliance, and business continuity.
Recommend and execute product modifications and process improvements that improve performance, manufacturability, reliability, and customer satisfaction while minimizing business disruption.
Support manufacturing plants and customers through troubleshooting, process optimization, training, and technical consultation.
Maintain strong technical relationships with customers and serve as a key resource in addressing escalated technical concerns.
Meet or exceed established turnaround times for customer support activities, investigations, corrective actions, and sustaining projects.
Maintain safe operating procedures through adherence to company safety requirements and laboratory standards.
Maintain laboratory inventories, equipment, panels, and supplies necessary to support ongoing business operations.
Mentor and develop chemists and laboratory personnel through technical guidance, coaching, and knowledge sharing.
Identify opportunities for continuous improvement that enhance operational efficiency, product performance, and customer experience.
Prepare technical reports, investigation summaries, and recommendations to communicate findings and business impacts to stakeholders.
Adhere to company safety standards at all times.
Perform other duties as assigned.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

Must be legally authorized to work in the country of employment without needing sponsorship for employment work visa status now or in the future (e.g., OPT, CPT, H1B, EB-1,etc.)
Bachelor’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering or Math field.
Must be at least 18 years of age.
5+ years of experience in coating formulation and application.
Demonstrated success resolving technical issues and leading root cause investigations.
Demonstrated analytical and problem-solving abilities.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

Degree in Polymers and Coatings
MS or Ph.D.
Experience in industrial or OEM coating formulation.
DFSS, Lean Six Sigma, Kepner-Tregoe, or other structured problem-solving methodologies.
Experience supporting commercialized products in a manufacturing and customer-facing environment.
Experience working cross-functionally with Manufacturing, Quality, Sales, Marketing, and Technical Service teams.
At least one year in mentoring or management experience
Experience on customer application lines (e.g., curtain coaters, vacuum coaters, roll coaters, and other OEM application equipment).
Familiarity with statistical analysis, Design of Experiments (DOE), DFSS, Lean Six Sigma, or other problem-solving methodologies.

Travel Requirements: Up to 15%
This position is not eligible for sponsorship for work authorization now or in the future, including conversion to H-1B visa.
Successful candidate will be required to sign an Employee Restrictive Covenant Agreement where permitted by law.
This position is also eligible for bonus based on performance and subject to the terms of the Company’s applicable plans.