Job Description Desk Manager | APAC Keizersgracht, AmsterdamAbout OLYXOLYX is an ambitious and fast-growing organization based in the heart of Amsterdam. Since its founding in 2014, OLYX has specialized in trading renewable energy and environmental commodities. Building on a strong position in the international biofuels market, we connect buyers and sellers across the globe.
What sets OLYX apart is the combination of entrepreneurship, international market dynamics, and strong personal relationships. We believe sustainable, long-term partnerships are built on genuine connections between people.
Guided by this philosophy, OLYX has developed an extensive international network and established itself as a recognized player in the global biofuels market.
Our international team represents more than 15 nationalities and languages. We operate in a fast-moving market where agility, commercial instinct, and effective collaboration are essential. No two days are the same.
Be part of our future, and let’s thrive together.
About The JobJob title: Desk Manager - APAC
Reports to: Management Board
Location: Amsterdam
Direct reports: 3 (Junior and Senior Brokers)
Employment: Full-time, 40 hours per week
We are looking for an experienced and commercially driven Desk Manager to lead our APAC Physical desk from our headquarters on the Keizersgracht in Amsterdam.
This role combines commercial ownership with people leadership.
You will be responsible for the performance and further development of the desk across physical biofuels, including advanced feedstocks, FAME, HVO, ethanol, bunkering, and other niche renewable fuels. Your focus will be on developing flows and opportunities across Asia and Southeast Asia, including trade into European markets.
At the same time, you will lead and develop the brokers on your desk. You will set clear commercial standards, establish accountability, and help each team member strengthen their market knowledge, network, and commercial performance.
This is a genuine player-coach role. You will remain active in the market, manage your own key accounts, and originate and close transactions, while dedicating a meaningful part of your time to coaching, reviewing, and developing the brokers around you.
If you get as much satisfaction from helping a junior broker close their first significant deal as you do from closing a major transaction yourself, this could be the right role for you.
Markets Covered
Tasks And ResponsibilitiesLeadership & Team Development
Lead, coach, and develop the brokers covering the APAC physical market while supporting the continued expansion of both the desk and its market presence. Manage a small group of brokers as direct reports, providing direction, performance feedback, and career development support. Run structured one-to-ones, call reviews, and deal post-mortems; build individual development paths; and actively create the conditions for your people to succeed, leading structured onboarding of new joiners during the growth phase, unblocking stuck deals, and making the introductions that accelerate their portfolios. Set the desk's cultural and commercial tone, modeling integrity, long-term thinking, and collaborative behavior.
Team Performance Management
Own the desk's targets and translate them into clear individual objectives. Track performance transparently, address underperformance early and directly, and recognize strong contributions. Manage account distribution across the team based on objective performance metrics to ensure optimal client allocation. Maintain a firm hand on the standard while keeping the desk a place people want to work.
Commercial Ownership & Deal Origination
Carry your own portfolio alongside the team's. Originate, structure, negotiate, and mediate physical biofuel transactions between producers, traders, importers, blenders, and obligated parties across APAC and Europe. Own execution of high-value transactions and complex deal structures — tolling agreements, long-term offtakes, and strategic partnerships — and act as a senior point of escalation, supporting the team in navigating complex or high-value deals.
Counterparty Network Development
Expand and deepen OLYX's relationships across Asia, Southeast Asia, and Europe. Maintain and develop senior-level relationships across the desk's key counterparty base, and form strategic partnerships in the renewable fuels market with consultants, banks, traders, and other market participants. Build the kind of trust that makes counterparties call you first, representing OLYX in the market with the highest standards of professionalism and integrity.
Market Intelligence & Positioning
Maintain a strong understanding of pricing, supply-and-demand dynamics, trade flows, and the regulatory developments shaping the biofuels market.
Closely monitor developments affecting flows between APAC and Europe, including RED III implementation, sustainability requirements, certification frameworks, and changing import and compliance requirements.
Cross-Desk & Internal Collaboration
Work closely with the other desks and with our compliance, operations, and finance teams to move deals cleanly from agreement to confirmation to invoice.
Job Requirements
What’s in it for you?
Application ProcessIf you're excited about environmental commodities and want to build a career at the center of the energy transition, apply today.
Here at OLYX, we are committed to a fair and inclusive recruitment process. We carefully consider all applications and aim to give every candidate an equal opportunity to succeed.
