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Terrence Tan is the Catalysts Sales Team Lead Manager for Shell Catalysts & Technologies in the Asia-Pacific region (APR). His team is responsible for developing opportunities to deploy Shell’s refinery and petrochemical catalyst technologies.

From this vantage point, Terrence shares insights about APR market trends and how they inform his approach to mentorship and collaboration.

1.Tell us more about your team. How do you engage with customers?

Right now, I’m based in Singapore and I manage a team of sales managers, five in China and four in Singapore. All of my sales managers are account-based, meaning that each salesperson covers all of the catalysts needs for each individual customer. This is important because it ensures that all of our customers can work with one dedicated person who understands their business and their related objectives.

Meanwhile, my focus is representing APR needs, ensuring our customers’ needs are met and that projects in our region are prioritised correctly. That means discussing demand, getting products into the plan and keeping our team informed about what’s going on outside of our region so they can have better conversations about what’s happening in the market.

APR customers want �鶹��ý about emerging market trends so they can respond with strategic choices of their own. We discuss their pain points and organisational goals, while their feedback unveils shifts in demand, new product opportunities, and other key areas for improvement.

2. What are the most pressing challenges your customers face? How does Shell Catalysts & Technologies address them?

Refining and petrochemicals customers face several challenges, including regulatory pressures for environmental compliance, fluctuating feedstock costs affecting profitability, increasing competition and the need to invest in technology for efficiency and sustainability.

Additionally, geopolitical tensions and shifts in demand patterns have dampened global economic growth, thereby impacting our customers’ operations and strategies. For example, the softening demand for polyester and overcapacity, especially from China, has resulted in financial challenges for most.

Some of our customers have undertaken efforts to diversify into ethylene oxide (EO) derivatives, but success there will be dictated by available capacities versus market demand. It will probably take a while for demand to once again match capacity. Hence, different companies will experience varying paces of recovery in their markets. In any case, the speed of the customer’s response will be crucial, as the reward will go primarily to the first few companies to diversify.

To summarise, all of these driving forces compel our customers to continually adapt. Shell Catalysts & Technologies, as a provider and developer of technology as well as the implementer of best practices, is committed to offering a broad range of options and solutions that our customers need to respond. We leverage solutions from other departments within Shell to offer the widest solutions-based approach possible. This empowers our customers to make informed, agile responses to the complex market forces impacting their business.

3. How have APR customers responded to the energy transition? How do you advise them in this area?

Customers are responding to the energy transition by exploring renewable energy sources, investing in clean technologies and adopting more sustainable practices. They are interested in solutions that reduce carbon emissions, improve energy efficiency, and enhance environmental stewardship, such as recycled plastic and CO₂ utilisation in new applications.

Concerns often revolve around the economic viability of renewable energy products, regulatory uncertainties and the capital expenditure required for infrastructure upgrades. Even over the past year, there has been some reticence in addressing Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 emissions. This hesitation stems from various companies adjusting their strategies, recognising that societies and markets are not progressing as swiftly towards this transition as anticipated. However, there may also be a lack of awareness regarding the costs and rewards associated with these changes, which also impacts the pace of adoption as well.

We remind customers about the rising costs of CO₂ and energy. We advise them on pursuing their own decarbonisation efforts with an emphasis on energy efficiency and intensity, so they can deliver more value with less emissions. Taking a balanced, orderly approach to reducing energy intensity helps our customers focus on ensuring production reliability and resiliency in the face of a changing energy landscape.

4. Have global market forces and the energy transition impacted how you mentor your direct team or the ways you collaborate within the larger organisation?

To ensure my team is prepared to support our customers through this transitional period, I think it’s important to expose salespeople to other Shell account owners, like key account managers, who will formulate the business solutions. This gives each dedicated salesperson a holistic overview of information that can support better external performance.

In fact, we updated our team structure to better facilitate this exchange of knowledge. Previously, the salespeople were siloed across business segments rather than assigning dedicated salespeople for each account, covering all catalysts, the way we do now. After talking with customers and salespeople, we recognised that having an account-based sales team would be easier and more productive. It enables salespeople to work with stakeholders in other departments to leverage Shell’s full ability to enhance value and enrich customer offerings.

My team knows that we need to anticipate client needs and challenges ahead of time whenever possible. If they can anticipate what challenges our prospects will experience, they can get support from internal stakeholders to brainstorm potential strategies. That cross-pollination improves the salesperson’s insight and confidence level when recommending solutions.

I’ve found that supporting my team this way is a win for them and our customers. It builds up their experience, helping them creatively address clients’ challenges keeping up with the energy transition and beyond. So, really, our salespeople’s growth translates into our clients’ growth.

And of course, the benefits of collaboration work both ways. What’s happening in our region is not siloed here; market trends, demand and the effects of global geopolitics are all direct market input that can help all teams stay competitive.

5. Finally, what excites you the most about your industry?

The industry is evolving, and it’s going to keep evolving. When I started more than 10 years ago, catalysts were our main product. With time we started adapting to the market and responding to customer feedback, developing unique value propositions in anticipation of their needs.

Right now, that means following our customers’ focus on the energy transition and helping them decarbonise, but it's always important to keep our eyes on the challenges ahead. Ultimately, we listen to our customers to understand their needs and develop products that support them. I’m excited about the constant challenge of keeping up with this progress, and continuing to stay ahead through collaboration and creative problem solving.