Purchasing Category Manager

About the role

The Category Manager is responsible for developing, sourcing, negotiating, and managing assigned ingredient categories that support Reser's procurement, food safety, product development, and manufacturing strategies. This role leads domestic and international ingredient sourcing efforts, evaluates supplier capability and risk, supports R&D and commercialization projects, and ensures reliable supply, competitive cost, compliant documentation, and consistent material performance across Reser's facilities. The position requires strong supplier management, assertive negotiation, project ownership, forecasting discipline, and the ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced corporate food manufacturing environment.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute sourcing strategies for assigned ingredient categories, including domestic and international suppliers, brokers, importers, and manufacturers.
• Identify, evaluate, qualify, and onboard new and alternate ingredient suppliers to support cost savings, innovation, business continuity, risk mitigation, and supply assurance.
• Partner closely with R&D, Food Safety, Regulatory, Quality, Operations, Plant Purchasing, Commercialization, and suppliers to source ingredients that meet product performance, food safety, labeling, compliance, specification, and production requirements.
• Lead supplier discovery, RFQs, RFPs, bid analysis, supplier comparisons, and award recommendations using cost, quality, service, risk, lead time, capacity, documentation, and total value as decision criteria.
• Negotiate pricing, contracts, payment terms, freight terms, lead times, minimum order quantities, stocking agreements, service expectations