Job Description Summary

Job Description

Roles and Responsibilities

• Define and execute supplier strategy; build, qualify, and manage the global supplier panel across Eastern Europe, Turkey, India, Indonesia, and East Asia (including China). Lead negotiations, capacity allocations, contract terms, claims management, and purchasing activities; oversee commercial analytics and negotiation support.

• Develop specialized expertise in sourcing; serve as a best-practice resource and contribute to policy and strategy within scope.

• Influence and communicate effectively across functions; lead cross-functional initiatives and manage projects with moderate risk and resource requirements.

• Partner with key business stakeholders to ensure sourced materials and services meet business, quality, cost, and delivery needs.

• Lead development and execution of sourcing strategic initiatives to drive cost productivity, fulfillment, and lifecycle/obsolescence management using standardization and leading practices.

• Build deep strategic supplier relationships, driving early supplier engagement in NPI and long-term partnerships across the product lifecycle.

• Apply risk management and problem-solving methodologies (FMEA, PSR/A3, 8D/8D-Light).

• Provide executive reporting and consulting with spend analytics, market intelligence, sourcing strategy validation, KPI performance, and risk posture/mitigation plans.

• Own multi-year category strategies for your commodities, transformer tanks, radiators, and insulation materials (e.g., pressboard, laminated board/wood, machined and molded components).

• Establish index-based pricing and long-term agreements aligned to key cost drivers (raw materials, inflation, labor, energy, FX); use should-cost modeling to improve total cost of ownership and mitigate inflation.

• Align Standard Material Specifications and testing protocols with Engineering, R&D, and Quality; lead VA/VE and redesign-to-value initiatives.

• Ensure compliance with applicable standards, regulations, and sustainability objectives.

• Drive supplier performance on OTD, quality (CoPQ/NCs/DPPM), responsiveness, and continuous improvement; implement corrective actions and development plans.

• Maintain an ongoing geopolitical and geoeconomic risk view (sanctions/export controls, tariffs/duties, trade shifts, logistics disruptions, energy/FX volatility, labor/human-rights). Develop scenario plans with trigger points and strategies on, indexation, FX/hedging, and firming decisions.

• Translate risk insights into actionable sourcing strategies, including dual/multi-sourcing, regionalization/nearshoring, continuity planning, and logistics/inventory contingencies.

• Support NPI and program milestones with sourcing strategies, supplier/material qualifications, and launch readiness.

• Plan and execute supplier engagements and site visits for development, qualifications, corrective actions, and executive negotiations (travel up to 30%).

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Sourcing, or Business Administration; MBA preferred.

• 8–10 years’ experience in sourcing.

• Broad competence in sourcing analyses.

• Strong negotiation skills, including complex contract negotiations.

• Experience defining and executing commodity strategies.

• Working knowledge of supplier auditing and performance evaluation.

• Influence/communication — builds strong relationships; drives change across functional and global boundaries.

• Demonstrated experience managing annual category budgets in excess of US$120M across multiple commodity families and regions.

• Direct experience with transformer components, fabrications, cooling, and insulation materials or closely related commodities.

• Proficiency in should-cost modeling, index-based contracting, and long-term agreements linked to cost indices (raw materials, inflation, labor, energy, FX).

• Experience leading supplier qualification, process audits, and industrialization/launch readiness with Engineering and Supplier Quality.

• Working knowledge of relevant standards and regulations (IEC/IEEE transformer standards; REACH/RoHS where applicable).

• Practical familiarity with global trade compliance and country risk (sanctions/export controls, customs/tariffs, FX/commodity volatility, logistics/security) and how these shape sourcing and contracting decisions.

• Willingness to travel up to 30% internationally.

Desired Characteristics

• 10 years of sourcing, supply chain, or commercial experience, including 6 years in a leadership capacity.

• Extensive global experience leading cross-functional and geographically dispersed teams.

• Demonstrated ability to lead courageously, resolve complex issues, and navigate large matrixed organizations.

• Quality leadership experience.

• Track record in developing a global supplier base and reducing single-source risk via dual/multi-sourcing and regionalization.

• Strong cross-functional leadership delivering VA/VE and redesign-to-value across multiple commodities.

• Advanced data fluency building spend analytics, market intelligence, and KPI dashboards for a US$120M+ portfolio.

• Experience implementing working-capital levers (payment terms, VMI/consignment) and indexation strategies to manage commodity volatility.

• Ability to convert geopolitical and geoeconomic insights into actionable sourcing playbooks (localization, nearshoring, duty/tariff management, rapid risk mitigation).

Additional Information