Vice President of Strategic Sourcing

About the Role

The Vice President of Strategic Sourcing is a senior leadership position responsible for formulating and executing global sourcing strategies aimed at maximizing supplier performance, minimizing total cost of ownership, enhancing supply chain resilience, and facilitating sustained business growth. This role manages comprehensive procurement activities including category management, supplier partnerships, contract negotiations, sourcing transformation, and governance across the organization.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and implement enterprise-wide strategic sourcing strategies aligned with overall corporate goals.
• Create long-term sourcing plans that secure supply continuity, drive supplier innovation, and increase operational effectiveness.
• Guide sourcing transformation initiatives supporting international business growth.
• Oversee strategic sourcing for direct materials, indirect goods, capital expenses, logistics, and services, while developing category management strategies to optimize supplier selection and purchasing advantages.
• Standardize procurement processes and enforce governance and policy compliance across global units.
• Establish and maintain executive-level relationships with key global suppliers, managing their performance and development.
• Conduct comprehensive evaluations of supplier capabilities, innovations, financial robustness, and operational efficacy.
• Lead complex multi-year contract negotiations, optimizing terms to deliver maximum value and mitigate risks.
• Collaborate with Legal and Finance teams to ensure alignment with corporate governance and contractual compliance.
• Develop sourcing approaches that enhance supply chain risk management, including geopolitical and operational risks, and drive supplier diversification.
• Advance ethical procurement, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards, and sustainability efforts within sourcing practices.
• Champion digital procurement initiatives through AI, automation, analytics, and eProcurement systems; develop dashboards and KPIs to monitor procurement savings, supplier quality, delivery, inventory, and working capital.
• Lead and mentor strategic sourcing leadership teams and manage budgets and technology investments related to procurement.
• Communicate sourcing strategies, supplier outcomes, cost-saving measures, and risk evaluations to executive leadership and the board.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration, Engineering, Operations Management, Finance, or related discipline.
• Advanced degrees such as MBA or Master’s preferred.
• Professional certifications including CPSM, CSCP, CIPS, ISM, CPM, Lean Six Sigma, or equivalent favored.
• Minimum of 12–18 years of progressive experience in strategic sourcing, procurement, supply chain, or global operations leadership roles.
• Demonstrated success managing enterprise sourcing divisions and global supplier negotiations.
• Expertise in procurement strategy, category management, supplier relationship and risk management, and financial analytics.
• Strong leadership, negotiation, communication, and strategic planning capabilities.

Core Competencies

• Strategic sourcing
• Global procurement management
• Category management
• Supplier relationship development
• Contract negotiation and risk mitigation
• Supply chain resilience and risk management
• Procurement transformation and digital innovation
• Cost reduction strategies
• Sustainable sourcing and ESG practices
• Executive leadership and succession planning