Sr. Director, Procurement

About the Role

This position is responsible for approximately $200M spend associated with food ingredients. The Senior Director of Procurement will work closely with plant leadership, Transportation, Finance, Quality, and Regulatory to reduce costs and source quality products. The role requires experience in procurement strategy and strong business acumen to drive gross margin expansion through direct material negotiated purchase price variance, payment terms, and contract negotiation while ensuring high performance on lead times, supplier quality, and on-time delivery.

Responsibilities

• Strategically develop and implement category and supply chain strategies to deliver maximum value, leverage, and standardization.
• Build and drive Supplier Relationship Management, including Quarterly Business Reviews (QBR), scale-up opportunities, and cost modeling.
• Demonstrate a strong understanding of commodities and their impact on overall product margins.
• Drive cost reductions within the strategic sourcing process by managing:
  • Category and negotiation strategies, including Terms and Conditions.
  • Supplier selection, de-selection, evaluation, and rationalization.
  • Supply chain solutions such as vendor-managed inventory (VMI), supplier consignment, and safety stock levels.
• Employ total cost of ownership (TCO), should-costing, commodity benchmarking, and low-cost country sourcing methodologies to drive materials savings aligned with gross margin plans.
• Create a 3-year pipeline of strategic savings projects and deliver year-over-year cost savings and productivity.
• Lead product development category strategies to improve supply chain efficiencies and reduce total cost.
• Provide category support to New Product Teams to meet target costs and establish program cost models.
• Monitor macro-economic, geo-political, supply/demand, and technology trends as influencers to commodity supply and cost, and adjust planning accordingly.
• Negotiate and execute purchase orders or supplier contracts to support critical business needs.
• Establish and maintain measurable key performance metrics for procurement activities, including supplier performance, quality, internal order placement, buyer activity, financial (AP) performance, and material shortage elimination.
• Manage material flow to maintain optimal inventory levels supporting on-time customer deliveries while controlling inventory costs.
• Develop and sustain a competitive supplier base through market exploitation, spend leveraging, and technology adoption.
• Qualify new and existing vendors (via RFPs) to ensure competitive pricing, credit terms, and quality.
• Provide strategic and tactical leadership of direct material procurement through project coordination, effective negotiations, and procurement best practices.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Purchasing, Production/Operations Management, Engineering, or equivalent business experience.
• 7–10 years of progressive experience in Purchasing & Sourcing, with extensive experience in fresh products and ingredients, preferably in a strategic setting within a mid-to-large organization.
• SAP knowledge and understanding of operational reporting.
• Solid track record of meeting substantial material cost reduction targets.
• ISM (A.P.P., C.P.M.) or APICS (CPIM, CIRM) certification preferred.
• Proficiency in MS Office Suite, with advanced Excel and PowerPoint skills.
• Ability to coordinate multiple group efforts to achieve objectives.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong organizational and problem-solving skills, with the ability to handle multiple tasks and deadlines.
• Ability to identify and recommend process improvements.
• Excellent contract development and management skills.
• Strong negotiation, financial analysis, and project management abilities.
• Functional understanding of national and international law related to country-of-origin, trade compliance, and responsible sourcing.