Sourcing Lead - Supply Chain

The Sourcing Lead plays a critical role in developing and executing strategic sourcing and category management plans for assigned spend categories. This position focuses on delivering cost savings, enhancing supplier performance, optimizing working capital, and mitigating supply chain risks. The role involves managing end-to-end sourcing activities such as spend analysis, market intelligence, supplier selection, negotiations, contract management, and supplier relationship development. The Sourcing Lead collaborates closely with Operations, Finance, Legal, and other stakeholders to ensure sourcing strategies align with business goals, procurement governance, quality standards, sustainability, and operational needs.

Key Responsibilities:
- Develop and continuously refine spend, cost, and category sourcing strategies based on business needs, market insights, demand forecasts, and company objectives.
- Analyze spend data, supplier markets, and category trends to identify opportunities for cost optimization, supplier consolidation, quality improvements, and efficiency gains.
- Establish and execute sourcing roadmaps and project pipelines aligned with cost, quality, delivery, sustainability, and risk management targets.
- Conduct make-or-buy assessments and total cost of ownership (TCO) analyses to inform sourcing decisions.
- Lead comprehensive local RFI, RFQ, and RFP processes, including specification alignment, supplier evaluation, competitive bidding, benchmarking, and award recommendations.
- Negotiate pricing, commercial terms, payment conditions, service-level agreements, and contracts to secure best-value outcomes.
- Support supplier onboarding, qualification, compliance, performance improvement, and issue resolution efforts.
- Develop supply continuity and risk mitigation strategies, including dual sourcing arrangements where appropriate.
- Build and maintain strategic relationships with key suppliers to enhance performance, service delivery, quality, and cost competitiveness.
- Monitor supplier KPIs covering cost, delivery, quality, service levels, and compliance; lead corrective actions and supplier development initiatives.
- Lead quarterly business reviews with critical suppliers and participate in supplier audits, HSE assessments, quality reviews, and inspections.
- Collaborate with Legal and relevant stakeholders to negotiate, establish, administer, and renew contracts and master service agreements (MSAs).
- Maintain accurate sourcing records, contract documentation, renewal schedules, and category contract repositories.
- Partner with Operations, Finance, and other functions to align sourcing priorities with business requirements and drive adoption of category strategies.
- Deliver annual cost-saving targets through strategic sourcing, supplier rationalization, productivity improvements, and process efficiencies.
- Track and report on sourcing performance, managed spend, savings realization, working capital improvements, contract compliance, and sourcing pipeline progress.
- Support budgeting, forecasting, business estimates, and spend planning, ensuring ownership and validation of cost reductions.
- Ensure sourcing activities comply with company policies, regulations, ethical standards, and audit requirements.
- Drive standardization, automation, digital sourcing adoption, and continuous improvement across sourcing processes.
- Lead, coach, and mentor procurement team members, fostering accountability, collaboration, and best practices.

Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration, Engineering, or a related field.
- 8–10+ years of experience in strategic sourcing, procurement, category management, or supplier management.
- Proven track record managing complex spend categories and delivering measurable cost savings and supplier performance improvements.
- Strong knowledge of sourcing methodologies, category management, supplier development, and contract execution.
- Demonstrated experience leading complex negotiations, tender processes, supplier performance reviews, and contract management.
- Experience managing sourcing KPIs, cost-saving initiatives, budgets, forecasts, and sourcing pipelines.
- Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver results in a dynamic environment.

Preferred Qualifications and Benefits:
- Experience working in multinational organizations and managing suppliers across diverse markets is preferred.
- Professional certifications such as CIPS, CPSM, PMP, or Lean Six Sigma are advantageous.
- Previous experience leading, mentoring, or developing procurement team members is desirable.

This role offers the opportunity to lead strategic sourcing initiatives that directly impact business performance, supplier relationships, and operational excellence within a collaborative and dynamic environment.