OxyChem R&D Group Leader

Oxy Chem R&D Group Leader – Oxy Chemical Corp

Contribute. Grow. Lead… with Oxy Chem. Looking for a challenge? Desire to achieve your true potential? Oxy Chem is a growing, action-oriented, safety-driven chemical manufacturing company continually striving to be the best in the business while staying focused on environmental protection. The secret to our success has been, and will continue to be, our people. Oxy Chem, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is a leading producer of essential chemicals with operations in the U.S., Canada and Latin America.

Our products play an essential role in everyday life, supporting critical applications in water treatment, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, manufacturing, automotive, personal hygiene, and residential and commercial construction. We are committed to rewarding top performers, offering very competitive pay and benefits, and providing tremendous career development opportunities.

The position is responsible for supervising and overseeing the Wichita Organic Technical Center’s Research & Development activities to support Oxy Chem’s business objectives.

• Maintain as our highest priority the protection of the environment, the health and safety of employees, customers, and communities in which we operate and/or transport our products.
• Understand and work in accordance with all site safety and environmental procedures, including the site Chemical Hygiene Plan, and adhere to the use of personal protective equipment as required.
• Identify, recommend, and manage research activities to develop new products, improve existing products, reduce manufacturing costs, improve safety, improve quality, or reduce environmental impact of Oxy Chem products.
• Conduct performance reviews and prepare salary and promotion recommendations for members of the Research and Development group.
• Act as liaison and provide technical support to manufacturing, marketing, and business management through the identification, planning, and execution of joint projects and/or implementation of new technologies.
• Produce clear, concise, accurate, and timely written and oral reports in which conclusions and recommendations are effectively supported by analytical and/or research data and supporting literature.
• Serve as technical specialist and resource person for major process and/or product technologies.
• Apply advanced understanding of chemistry and technical expertise to the planning and execution of significant, complex, or innovative technologies related to the synthesis, manufacture, and applications of organic and inorganic chemicals.
• Maintain current awareness of significant trends and advances in chemistry or markets and initiate and recommend new technology for project development or use in manufacturing.
• Assist in development of Oxy Chem intellectual properties such as patents, copyrights, and trademarks.
• Follow the Technical Center’s Process Safety Management (PSM) program, including execution of Process Hazard Analyses (PHAs), compliance with Management of Change (MOC) requirements, pre‑start up safety reviews (PSSRs), and investigation of process safety incidents.
• Ensure process safety information is current and accurate for the physical assets (P & ), for the process conditions (PFD), for the process chemistry (SDS), and for technician‑process activities (procedures and work instructions).

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related field is required.
• A minimum of 15 years of experience in the development or support of chlorination chemistry, organic chemistry, and/or photochemistry technology.
• Good problem‑solving and organizational skills.
• Good written and verbal communication skills.
• Self‑motivated with the ability to work efficiently with minimal supervision.
• Good interpersonal skills; must be able to work in teams.
• Must be able to handle multiple complex issues simultaneously.
• Proficient in analytical methodologies and instrumentation.
• High degree of problem‑solving and organizational skills.
• Comfortable presenting information to all levels of management, vendors, and customers.
• High proficiency in Microsoft Office applications.
• High proficiency in SAP…