Sales Engineer

Forvia, a leader in sustainable mobility technology, is hiring in Lyon at the Materi’Act division, a FORVIA unit focused on sustainable materials that support the CO₂ reduction roadmap. The Sales Engineer role is full-time and onsite at the Lyon FIS R&D site, a fit for someone who enjoys blending technical insight with customer-facing work and wants to help automakers move toward cleaner technologies.

Joining the team means working at the forefront of materials and clean tech, collaborating with the world’s leading automotive brands and suppliers. The role sits within the sales organization and is responsible for developing the portfolio’s sales across assigned accounts in a regional footprint.

This position suits someone who likes mixing technical understanding with relationship-building, negotiation and commercial planning, and who wants to contribute to a large sustainability and innovation agenda within the automotive sector.

Striking a balance between tech and talk

In this capacity, the Sales Engineer drives the sales development of a defined product portfolio for designated accounts within a region, blending technical know-how with customer-facing execution.

Your day revolves around building real connections with client teams, purchasing, engineering and programs, to translate their technical needs, validation expectations and timing constraints into a portfolio that Materi’Act engineering can tailor. You’ll keep an eye on customer satisfaction across milestones to ensure alignment and trust.

When customers request commercial offers, the role requires understanding cost files, designing targeted pricing paths, and formalizing proposals in precise terms while adhering to contract-management guidelines from leadership. It also involves managing price dynamics and sales administration, purchase orders, invoices and payment terms, within established processes.

For larger opportunities, the job calls for developing a long-term plan per customer, understanding the business plan and RFQA, refining commercial offers through negotiation, and executing a lobbying plan to win with solid financials while staying competitive against rivals.

Your profile and competencies to succeed

The ideal candidate holds either a Master in Business or an Engineering degree and shows a clear interest in building a business-focused career. A couple of years of relevant sales experience in an industrial B2B environment is highly valued, along with a strong technical background in plastics materials or substantial automotive industry exposure (OEM or Tier 1/2 suppliers).

• 2–3 years of B2B industrial sales experience
• Solid technical grounding in plastics materials or notable automotive sector exposure
• English fluency, with additional languages as a plus
• Comfort with Microsoft Office and solid reporting capabilities
• Ability to work with financials and numbers
• Strong communication and presentation skills, plus empathy and an international mindset
• Results orientation, client focus and teamwork; solid analytical skills and accountability

Nice-to-have extras include additional language skills beyond English, experience supporting pricing strategies or contract management, and exposure to cross-border or multicultural teamwork.

What the role comes with in Lyon

The position is full-time and onsite at FORVIA’s Materi’Act site in Lyon, FR, reporting to the sales organization within the regional team. FORVIA positions itself as a global automotive supplier with a substantial footprint and a strong commitment to training through FORVIA University, offering more than 22 hours of online and in-person training across five campuses around the world. The company highlights a large, multinational environment and a track record of growth, with a broad portfolio spanning six business groups and a deep IP foundation, inviting professionals who want to build a career across markets and technologies.

In addition to the everyday duties, the company emphasizes a culture that values learning, diversity and collaboration, with a clear emphasis on sustainable mobility and a net-zero trajectory as part of its strategic priorities.

Put your sales chops up front on your resume by highlighting a 2–3 year track record in industrial B2B sales and any concrete examples of how you bridged customer needs with technical solutions in plastics or automotive materials.

When you describe your must-have skills, show concrete proof of translating customer requirements into portfolio adaptations and of managing pricing and contract processes. Bring evidence of successful collaboration with engineering and purchasing teams and of delivering clear, data-driven presentations to buyers.

For interviews, be ready to walk through how you would develop an account strategy, including how you’d build long-term plans with customers, how you’d handle price fluctuations, and how you’d navigate formalized sales administration and contract guidelines. Practice describing a real negotiation loop you’ve managed and the financial outcomes you achieved.

Consider ending with a thoughtful question that shows you’ve studied the role’s scope, such as how the team balances long-term customer strategy with competitive pricing, or how the lobbying plan is structured to win key accounts in a sustainable materials context.