The Chemical Show: Where Leaders Talk Business

Q4 2025 Priorities: How Chemical Leaders Can Position For 2026 Success - Ep. 234

11 snips

Sep 23, 2025

Leaders in the chemical industry face major shifts as 2025 closes. Key trends include permanent asset shutdowns, trade volatility, and tighter capital leading to a new era of disciplined operations. The conversation highlights the importance of targeting investments and managing cash amidst fluctuating demands. Decarbonization projects are scaled back as firms focus on incremental changes. Victoria Meyer emphasizes the need for strong customer relationships and operational resilience to thrive in a chaotic market, urging leaders to act decisively for a successful transition into 2026.

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INSIGHT

Structural Asset Closures Reshape Supply

Permanent asset shutdowns are reshaping global supply security and trade flows.
Structural energy and policy differences are driving long-term industry restructuring.

INSIGHT

Volatility Rewards Prepared Players

Trade and tariff volatility is creating uncertainty that changes commercial behavior across the value chain.
Companies with scenario plans can capture share and margin during volatile periods.

ADVICE

Prioritize Cash To Fund Future Wins

Tighten cash and cost discipline because capital is scarcer and more expensive.
Preserve cash to fund innovation, M&A, and strategic growth when opportunities arise.

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As the chemical industry closes out a turbulent 2025, leaders are facing another critical inflection point. In this solo episode, host Victoria Meyer lays out the key market trends, leadership strategies, and execution tactics that matter most for finishing the year strong and setting up for success in 2026.

Victoria unpacks how permanent asset shutdowns, trade and tariff volatility, tighter capital, the evolving business case for decarbonization, and uneven demand are reshaping industry decision-making. She dives into the practical steps that chemical leaders—from the C-suite to frontline managers—can take now to sharpen operational discipline, drive portfolio value, and protect strategic growth opportunities amid uncertainty.

From capital allocation and supply chain resilience to customer partnership and talent management, Victoria emphasizes the importance of strategic discipline and a focus on the fundamentals. Leaders need to navigate today’s challenges but also position their business to capture opportunities as the landscape evolves.

Victoria highlights:

Five top market trends defining Q4 2025: asset shutdowns, trade/tariff uncertainty, capital constraints, shifting decarbonization priorities, and uneven demand.
How permanent structural change is creating risk—but also new opportunities for those who are prepared.
The importance of scenario planning and stress-testing supply chains to create resilience and competitive advantage.
Why operational discipline and cash management are essential to fund innovation, M&A, and growth.
Portfolio discipline: knowing when to prune non-core businesses and selectively invest for transformation.
The impact of delayed decarbonization projects, but also where incremental progress and the business case still hold strong.
How to approach talent and culture as drivers of transformation—especially amid layoffs and restructuring.
Practical actions for leaders to close out 2025: tighten operations, protect growth capital, focus supply chain strategy, engage customers on value, and build high-performance teams.

Killer Quote: “This is the quarter where strategic discipline really differentiates those who are merely surviving from those who are positioning to grow into 2026.” – Victoria Meyer