How to Apply to Heidelberg Materials (HeidelbergCement)

10 min read Last updated April 20, 2026 2 open positions
Blake Crosley
Blake Crosley Researched using publicly available information, hiring data, and ATS analysis.

Key Takeaways

  • Heidelberg Materials is the world's #2 cement maker, renamed from HeidelbergCement in September 2022 to reflect a broader, sustainability-led identity.
  • CEO Dominik von Achten (since February 2020) has anchored the company's strategy around CCUS, low-carbon cements, and a credible 2050 net-zero pathway.
  • The Brevik plant in Norway is the world's first industrial-scale CCS at a cement facility and the most prestigious project for engineers entering the field.
  • The ATS is SAP SuccessFactors; resumes must be ATS-safe single-column PDFs with cement-industry keywords mirrored from the requisition.
  • The talent surface is broad: process engineering, CCS/CCUS, plant operations, sustainability, digital/SmartOps, B2B sales, and corporate finance.
  • Lehigh Hanson is the major North American operating brand and a separate but integrated hiring channel for US and Canadian candidates.
  • Sponsorship is realistic for specialized technical profiles (process, cement chemistry, CCS) and rare for generalist or commercial roles.
  • Interviews are technically rigorous, formally structured, and reward candidates who can speak credibly about decarbonization and plant economics.

About Heidelberg Materials (HeidelbergCement)

Heidelberg Materials AG (FRA: HEI) is the world's second-largest cement producer (after Holcim) and one of the largest building materials companies globally, with approximately 51,000 employees, ~€21 billion in 2024 revenue, and more than 3,000 production sites across 50+ countries. Headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany and founded in 1873, the group makes cement, ready-mixed concrete, aggregates, asphalt, sand and gravel, lime, and an expanding portfolio of low-carbon and circular building materials. The company was renamed from HeidelbergCement AG to Heidelberg Materials in September 2022, signaling a deliberate move beyond cement toward a broader, sustainability-led identity. Leadership has been led by CEO Dr. Dominik von Achten since February 2020, who succeeded long-tenured chairman Bernd Scheifele after roughly 15 years at the helm. The von Achten era has been defined by aggressive decarbonization. Cement is responsible for an estimated 7-8% of global CO2 emissions, and Heidelberg Materials has positioned itself as the industry's most ambitious mover, with a 2050 net-zero commitment, 2030 milestones, and more than €1.5 billion of planned capex on carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS). The flagship project is the Brevik plant in Norway, the world's first industrial-scale CCS deployment at a cement facility, which has been ramping toward commercial operations in 2024-2025. Additional CCUS projects are underway in Edmonton, Canada and across multiple European sites. The R&D portfolio also covers low-clinker cements, calcined clay (LC3) technology, recycled concrete aggregates, supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), and alternative fuels such as biomass and refuse-derived fuel (RDF) replacing coal in kilns. Geographically, the company operates through five major regions: Western and Northern Europe, Eastern Europe-Central Asia, North America (anchored by the Lehigh Hanson brand in the US and a major Canadian subsidiary), Asia-Pacific, and Africa-Mediterranean. Notable subsidiaries and operational hubs include Lehigh Hanson (US/Canada, integrated under the Heidelberg Materials brand), Italcementi in Bergamo, Italy (acquired 2016), Cementa in Sweden, Suez Cement in Egypt, and active operations in Dnipro, Ukraine that supply local reconstruction. The group exited Russia following the 2022 invasion and divested its Indian cement business in 2018 as part of ongoing portfolio rationalization. For candidates, Heidelberg Materials offers an unusually broad role surface: process engineering and cement chemistry, CCS/CCUS engineering, plant operations and quarry management, sustainability and ESG, digital transformation (SmartOps, predictive maintenance, AI for kiln control), B2B sales into construction and infrastructure, and corporate functions across an active M&A platform.

Application Process

  1. 1
    Search open roles on heidelbergmaterials

    Search open roles on heidelbergmaterials.com/career or the regional Lehigh Hanson, Hanson UK, or Italcementi careers portals, all of which feed into the SAP SuccessFactors recruiting tenant.

  2. 2
    Create a SuccessFactors profile, upload a tailored CV in PDF, and complete the s

    Create a SuccessFactors profile, upload a tailored CV in PDF, and complete the structured profile fields (work history, education, skills) so the parsed data matches your resume.

  3. 3
    Apply to roles within your country of work authorization first; sponsorship exis

    Apply to roles within your country of work authorization first; sponsorship exists for specialized profiles (process engineers, cement chemists, CCS/CCUS specialists) but is not the default for generalist or commercial roles.

  4. 4
    Expect a recruiter screen within 1-3 weeks, focused on motivation, location flex

    Expect a recruiter screen within 1-3 weeks, focused on motivation, location flexibility, salary expectations, and a high-level technical or functional check.

  5. 5
    For technical roles, prepare for a HireVue or live video screen with the hiring

    For technical roles, prepare for a HireVue or live video screen with the hiring manager covering domain depth (kiln operation, raw mill, finish grinding, alternative fuels, amine capture, etc.).

  6. 6
    Plan for 2-3 panel rounds combining the hiring manager, a peer engineer or opera

    Plan for 2-3 panel rounds combining the hiring manager, a peer engineer or operations lead, and a regional or functional leader; plant-based roles often include a site visit.

  7. 7
    Process engineering interviews go deep on cement chemistry, energy and mass bala

    Process engineering interviews go deep on cement chemistry, energy and mass balance, clinker production, and SCM integration; CCS interviews probe amine systems, oxyfuel, calcium looping, and CO2 transport and storage.

  8. 8
    Sustainability, digital, and corporate roles typically include a written case st

    Sustainability, digital, and corporate roles typically include a written case study or portfolio walk-through plus competency-based behavioral questions.

  9. 9
    Reference checks and a formal background check follow the verbal offer; expect a

    Reference checks and a formal background check follow the verbal offer; expect a written contract aligned to local labor law and, in Germany and several European sites, collective bargaining agreements.

  10. 10
    End-to-end timelines run 4-8 weeks for most roles; senior leadership and CCS spe

    End-to-end timelines run 4-8 weeks for most roles; senior leadership and CCS specialist hires can stretch to 10-12 weeks given panel scheduling across regions.

Resume Tips for Heidelberg Materials (HeidelbergCement)

recommended

Mirror the SuccessFactors job description language exactly: cement, clinker, kil

Mirror the SuccessFactors job description language exactly: cement, clinker, kiln, raw mill, finish grinding, alternative fuels, CCS, CCUS, SCMs, low-clinker cement, calcined clay, slag, fly ash, calcium sulfoaluminate.

recommended

Name the cement industry employers you have worked with or alongside: LafargeHol

Name the cement industry employers you have worked with or alongside: LafargeHolcim, Cemex, Italcementi, Lehigh Hanson, Buzzi, CRH, Eagle Materials, Martin Marietta, Votorantim, UltraTech, Anhui Conch.

recommended

Quantify plant performance impact: tonnes per day of clinker, kiln thermal subst

Quantify plant performance impact: tonnes per day of clinker, kiln thermal substitution rate (TSR) percentage, specific heat consumption (kJ/kg clinker), CO2 intensity (kg CO2/t cementitious), OEE, and unplanned downtime reduction.

recommended

For CCS/CCUS candidates, call out specific technologies (post-combustion amine,

For CCS/CCUS candidates, call out specific technologies (post-combustion amine, oxyfuel, calcium looping, cryogenic), pilot or demo plant experience, and any exposure to Brevik, Edmonton, Mississauga, or other industrial CCS reference projects.

recommended

List relevant standards and frameworks: ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 9001, EN 197-1

List relevant standards and frameworks: ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 9001, EN 197-1 cement standards, ASTM C150/C595/C1157, and GCCA (Global Cement and Concrete Association) reporting protocols.

recommended

For sustainability and ESG roles, surface GRI, SASB, TCFD, CDP, EU Taxonomy, CSR

For sustainability and ESG roles, surface GRI, SASB, TCFD, CDP, EU Taxonomy, CSRD, and Scope 1/2/3 carbon accounting experience, including any work on Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) submissions.

recommended

Plant operations and maintenance candidates should highlight union or works coun

Plant operations and maintenance candidates should highlight union or works council experience where applicable, plus specific OEM platforms (FLSmidth, KHD, ThyssenKrupp Polysius, Loesche).

recommended

Digital and IoT candidates should reference SmartOps-style use cases: predictive

Digital and IoT candidates should reference SmartOps-style use cases: predictive maintenance, kiln optimization, computer vision for quarry or quality control, MES/SCADA integration, and any work on Azure, Databricks, or industrial AI platforms.

recommended

Use a clean, ATS-safe single-column layout with standard headings (Experience, E

Use a clean, ATS-safe single-column layout with standard headings (Experience, Education, Skills); SuccessFactors parsing struggles with multi-column designs and graphic elements.

recommended

Localize the resume to the hiring country: Lebenslauf format with photo for Germ

Localize the resume to the hiring country: Lebenslauf format with photo for Germany if requested, two-page chronological for North America, and CV-style with publications for R&D roles in Europe.

ATS System: SAP SuccessFactors Recruiting

Heidelberg Materials uses SAP SuccessFactors as its global recruiting platform across the Heidelberg HQ, Lehigh Hanson, Italcementi, Hanson, Cementa, and most regional careers sites. The system parses uploaded resumes into structured profile fields and routes applications by country, function, and requisition.

  • Upload a PDF resume but verify the parsed Work Experience, Education, and Skills fields after upload; SuccessFactors often misreads dates and job titles, and recruiters frequently filter on the parsed fields rather than the attachment.
  • Use exact keyword matches from the requisition (cement, clinker, CCUS, SuccessFactors, EHS, etc.) in both the resume and the structured Skills section to improve internal search ranking.
  • Complete optional fields including languages, certifications, and willingness to relocate; recruiters often filter candidate pools using these facets, especially for European multi-country roles.
  • Reuse a single SuccessFactors profile across all Heidelberg Materials brands and applications so recruiters see a consolidated history rather than fragmented records.
  • Avoid headers, footers, text boxes, tables, and multi-column layouts in the uploaded resume; these consistently break SuccessFactors parsing and silently strip content.
  • If applying from outside the hiring country, explicitly state work authorization status and visa sponsorship needs in the cover letter or screening questions to prevent automatic deprioritization.

Interview Culture

Heidelberg Materials interviews reflect a traditional German industrial company that has been deliberately modernized under CEO Dominik von Achten.

Expect formality, technical rigor, and a strong preference for evidence over storytelling. Panels typically combine a hiring manager, a senior peer, and a regional or functional leader, and English is the working language for cross-border roles even when the office is in Germany, Italy, or Sweden. For process engineering, plant operations, and CCS roles, the technical bar is high. Interviewers will ask candidates to walk through cement chemistry, kiln heat balance, alternative fuel substitution strategies, or amine-based capture trade-offs in concrete numbers. Whiteboard-style problem solving is common, and senior interviewers often draw on decades of plant experience, so vague answers are noticed quickly. For sustainability, ESG, and digital roles, expect a structured competency interview plus a written case or portfolio review centered on real Heidelberg Materials decarbonization challenges. Culturally, the legacy is heavy industry: long tenures (20-40 year careers are common at plants), serious safety discipline, and respect for the operational backbone of the company. The modern overlay, especially at Heidelberg HQ and in CCUS, sustainability, and digital teams, is more international and mission-driven, with many newer hires citing the company's net-zero ambition as the deciding factor. Plant cultures vary by country and site: Lehigh Hanson in the US is more operationally regional and union-influenced, Bergamo retains an Italcementi engineering identity, and the Heidelberg HQ functions as a sophisticated global corporate center. Across all sites, candidates who show genuine interest in the decarbonization roadmap and concrete questions about Brevik, calcined clay, or alternative fuels stand out.

What Heidelberg Materials (HeidelbergCement) Looks For

  • Demonstrable cement, building materials, or heavy process industry experience, with specifics around clinker production, kiln operation, or finished cement quality.
  • Evidence of contribution to decarbonization: lower-clinker mix designs, alternative fuel substitution, CCUS pilots, or measurable Scope 1/2/3 reductions.
  • Strong safety culture and EHS instincts; cement plants are high-hazard environments and Heidelberg Materials interviews probe for genuine ownership, not slogans.
  • Quantitative engineering judgment: comfort with energy and mass balances, plant economics, and OEE-style operational KPIs.
  • International and cross-cultural collaboration, especially for HQ, regional, and CCUS roles that span Germany, Norway, Canada, and the US.
  • For sustainability roles, fluency in disclosure frameworks (GRI, CDP, TCFD, CSRD, EU Taxonomy) and credible carbon accounting experience.
  • For digital roles, the ability to translate industrial domain knowledge into data products: predictive maintenance, kiln optimization, computer vision for quarries, MES integration.
  • Commercial maturity for B2B sales: understanding of construction cycles, infrastructure tenders, ready-mix and precast customers, and long-cycle contracting.
  • Long-term commitment: Heidelberg Materials prefers candidates who view this as a multi-year career, especially at plants and in regional leadership tracks.
  • Alignment with the von Achten-era strategy: bias for action on decarbonization, portfolio rationalization, and integrated brand identity post-2022 rename.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does compensation look like at Heidelberg Materials by geography?
At the Heidelberg, Germany HQ, professional roles typically pay €65,000-€100,000 base for mid-career engineers and specialists, with strong benefits, pension contributions, and bargaining-agreement protections at industrial sites. Senior leadership and scarce CCUS or cement chemistry experts can exceed this band materially. In the US, Lehigh Hanson plant operations roles run roughly $25-$45/hour depending on local UAW or other union agreements, while salaried engineering and corporate roles in Irving, TX track US heavy-industry benchmarks. Compensation in India and parts of Asia-Pacific is materially lower in nominal terms but locally competitive.
Is sustainability and CCS really a growth career path here, or marketing?
It is genuinely a growth area. Heidelberg Materials has committed more than €1.5 billion of capex to CCUS, with Brevik (Norway) approaching commercial operation, Edmonton (Canada) in development, and additional European projects in the pipeline. Sustainability, ESG reporting, and CCUS engineering teams have been growing visibly under CEO Dominik von Achten, and the company is one of a small number of cement majors where carbon capture is a real operational program rather than a slide-deck commitment.
How do process engineering roles compare to digital and IT roles?
Process engineering is the historical core: deep cement chemistry, kiln operation, raw mill and finish grinding optimization, and clinker production, typically based at or near plants. Digital and IT roles, organized around the SmartOps program, focus on predictive maintenance, kiln control optimization, computer vision in quarries and quality control, and MES/SCADA integration. Both tracks are valued, but process engineering has longer-tenure career ladders into plant management and regional operations, while digital roles offer faster cross-industry mobility.
Does Heidelberg Materials sponsor visas?
Sponsorship is realistic for specialized technical profiles where talent is scarce: process engineers with kiln experience, cement chemists, CCUS amine and oxyfuel specialists, and senior R&D scientists. For generalist commercial, HR, finance, or junior roles, the company strongly prefers candidates with existing work authorization. The EU Blue Card route is the most common path into the Heidelberg HQ for non-EU specialists; in the US, Lehigh Hanson sponsors selectively for senior engineering and technical leadership.
How does hiring at Lehigh Hanson in the US differ from Heidelberg HQ in Germany?
Lehigh Hanson, headquartered in Irving, TX, runs a more regional, operationally focused hiring process tightly integrated with US plant networks across cement, aggregates, and ready-mix. The Heidelberg HQ is a sophisticated global corporate center handling group strategy, finance, sustainability, and R&D, with international panels and English as the default working language. Both feed into the same SAP SuccessFactors platform, but the on-the-ground culture, compensation structure, and union dynamics differ meaningfully.
Are there internship and early-career programs?
Yes. In Germany, the company offers Werkstudent (working student) positions, internships (Praktikum), and structured trainee programs across engineering, finance, and sustainability. In the US, Lehigh Hanson runs summer internship programs targeting engineering and operations candidates from US universities. Italcementi sites in Italy and Hanson operations in the UK historically maintain their own early-career pipelines, all routed through SuccessFactors.
How does Heidelberg Materials compare to Holcim, Cemex, and CRH as an employer?
Holcim (Switzerland) is the larger global cement major and has been more aggressive on portfolio reshaping toward solutions and roofing. Cemex (Mexico) has a stronger Americas footprint and a recognized digital program. CRH (Ireland/US) is the largest building materials company by revenue but is more diversified across aggregates and downstream products. Heidelberg Materials sits between these as the clearest pure-play decarbonization story in cement, with Brevik CCS as a unique differentiator for technical talent.
What is it actually like working at a cement plant versus the Heidelberg HQ?
Plants are heavy industrial environments with shift schedules, strong safety culture, long tenures, and tight-knit local teams. Roles at the kiln, raw mill, and quarry are physically demanding and require comfort with dust, heat, heavy equipment, and rigorous lockout/tagout discipline. The Heidelberg HQ, in contrast, is a corporate office environment focused on strategy, finance, sustainability, group engineering, and R&D, with a more international and policy-oriented pace.
How has the von Achten era differed from the Scheifele era?
Bernd Scheifele led HeidelbergCement for roughly 15 years and built it into a global #2 cement major through major acquisitions, including Italcementi in 2016. Dominik von Achten, CEO since February 2020, has refocused the company on decarbonization, the renaming to Heidelberg Materials in September 2022, the Brevik CCS commissioning, and active portfolio rationalization including the Russia exit in 2022. Internally, the von Achten era is associated with a more sustainability-driven employer brand and a stronger pull on ESG and CCUS talent.
What is the Brevik CCS team like to work on?
Brevik in Norway is the world's first industrial-scale CCS deployment at a cement plant, with commercial operations ramping in 2024-2025. The team combines plant operations, amine capture engineering, CO2 transport and storage interfaces with the Northern Lights project, and significant external scrutiny from regulators, customers, and the broader cement industry. Roles there are highly visible, technically demanding, and considered career-defining for CCUS engineers.
How did the Russia exit and the Ukraine context affect operations?
Heidelberg Materials exited Russia in 2022 following the invasion of Ukraine, divesting its local operations. Operations in Dnipro, Ukraine continue and play a meaningful role in supplying domestic reconstruction materials. Recruitment in Ukraine has continued where conditions allow, and the company has positioned its presence there as part of long-term commitment to the region rather than a short-term posture.
What does Heidelberg Materials look for in a strong cover letter or motivation statement?
Specificity. Recruiters and hiring managers respond to candidates who can articulate why Heidelberg Materials in particular: the decarbonization roadmap, a specific plant or region, the Brevik CCS project, calcined clay or LC3 work, or the SmartOps digital program. Generic interest in cement or building materials is less compelling than a clear connection between the candidate's experience and a named program, technology, or geography.

Open Positions

Heidelberg Materials (HeidelbergCement) currently has 2 open positions.

Check Your Resume Before Applying → View 2 open positions at Heidelberg Materials (HeidelbergCement)

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Sources

  1. Heidelberg Materials - About Us —
  2. Heidelberg Materials - Career —
  3. Heidelberg Materials - Sustainability and Net Zero Strategy —
  4. Brevik CCS - World's First Industrial CCS at a Cement Plant —
  5. HeidelbergCement renamed to Heidelberg Materials (2022 announcement) —
  6. Dominik von Achten appointed CEO - Heidelberg Materials press release —
  7. Lehigh Hanson - North American Operations —
  8. HEI - Frankfurt Stock Exchange Listing (Heidelberg Materials AG) —
  9. Italcementi acquisition by HeidelbergCement (2016) —
  10. Global Cement and Concrete Association - Net Zero Roadmap —
  11. Reuters - Cement industry decarbonization and Heidelberg Materials coverage —
  12. Financial Times - Heidelberg Materials and cement decarbonization —
  13. Northern Lights CCS - Brevik CO2 transport and storage partner —
  14. Heidelberg Materials on LinkedIn —
  15. Glassdoor - Heidelberg Materials employee reviews —