Supply Chain Director

About the role

Forney Industries, Inc., one of America’s longest operating family-owned welding and metal working product companies, seeks a Supply Chain Director to lead its global sourcing and procurement operations from its Fort Collins, Colorado headquarters. Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, this role oversees a four-person Procurement Division and serves as the primary liaison to Forney Asia, a five-person team sourcing and managing vendor relationships across Asia. The Director will develop and execute a global sourcing strategy that supports fast-growing sales, negotiate contracts, and drive Lean process improvements to optimize inventory, reduce costs, and maintain high product quality.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Procurement Division, including purchase order creation, supplier vetting, contract negotiations, and supplier relationship management.
• Develop and maintain a global sourcing strategy to support sales growth and new product introductions.
• Oversee manufacturer/supplier vetting, contract negotiations, and selection; manage approved supplier relations and ensure adherence to contract terms.
• Lead Lean implementation efforts by planning and facilitating Kaizen events, applying 5S and value stream mapping, and fostering a continuous-improvement culture across the Procurement team.
• Collaborate with sales, product management, and engineering to support promotions, new customer opportunities, and new product launches.
• Right-size inventory levels, ensure optimal inventory turns, and minimize product costs without compromising quality; maintain a customer service level above 95%.
• Prepare transfer orders to balance inventory across Forney’s warehouses and issue requests for proposals/quotes for new product introductions.
• Work with the Director of Logistics to ensure timely and cost-effective delivery of overseas and domestic products.
• Drive continuous product quality improvement by participating in quality improvement teams and assisting in the development of quality improvement methodologies.
• Direct off-shore resources for supplier management and ensure on-time supplier compliance.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Material Management, Operations Management or equivalent with 10 years of experience in Supply Chain/Procurement and 6 years of supervisory leadership; OR 20 years of experience in Supply Chain/Procurement with 10 years of supervisory leadership.
• Demonstrated experience leading Lean/Continuous Improvement implementations (e.g., Kaizen events, 5S, value stream mapping) within a supply chain or procurement organization; Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification preferred.
• Minimum 5 years of experience sourcing and managing suppliers internationally (e.g., Asia-Pacific, Europe, and/or other overseas manufacturing regions), including direct experience with import/export logistics, overseas supplier negotiations, and off-shore supplier management.
• Experience with NetSuite Enterprise Resource Planning preferred.

Skills

• Proficient knowledge of Microsoft Office applications; computer literacy required.
• Ability to implement and improve lean practices while reducing waste.
• Demonstrated ability to multi-task, analyze technical and financial data, and make decisions autonomously.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills; attention to detail and professional demeanor.
• Basic office experience such as typing, filing, and proofreading.

Benefits

• Base salary and generous bonus potential.
• Employee benefits including 401(k) and profit sharing.
• Medical, dental, vision, life, and pet insurance.
• Flexible spending accounts and other optional plans.

Pay

$130,000 – $150,000