Materials & Supply Chain Manager
Materials & Supply Chain Manager
Location: Marietta, OH
Job Type: Full-Time, Direct Hire
Starting Salary: $95,000/year, with higher compensation available based on experience
Travel: Up to 20%
Position Overview
Seeking an experienced Materials Manager to lead supply planning, purchasing, inventory, and supplier performance for a power distribution manufacturing operation. This hands-on leadership role manages the Buyer Planner team while partnering with Project Management, Sales, Engineering, Production, Quality, and Supply Chain leadership to keep materials available and projects moving.
The position combines daily material and shortage management with longer-term supplier strategy, inventory planning, risk mitigation, and continuous improvement.
Key Responsibilities
Team Leadership
- Supervise, coach, and develop Buyer Planners.
- Set performance expectations, conduct regular 1:1s, and manage performance against KPIs.
- Balance workloads across commodities, projects, and production requirements.
- Ensure disciplined use of ERP/MRP systems and accurate planning data.
- Develop cross-training and professional development plans, including APICS CPIM/CSCP opportunities.
- Maintain coverage plans for absences and staffing changes.
- Work with Senior and Junior Project Managers to align material plans with project schedules and production releases.
- Participate in ETO project kickoffs to review BOMs, identify long-lead components, assess supply risk, and establish material commitments.
- Provide material availability and lead-time information for customer delivery planning.
- Lead shortage escalations and coordinate supplier alternatives, recovery plans, and internal responses.
- Review the active project portfolio and protect material critical paths.
- Support quick-ship and CTO programs through appropriate finished-goods and material availability.
- Provide Sales with lead-time, supplier capacity, and material availability information during the quoting process.
- Participate in SIOP meetings and provide supply chain input on forecasts, backlog, and capacity.
- Use sales pipeline information to anticipate demand and position strategic materials.
- Support customer-specific stocking, blanket order, and consignment programs.
- Develop positioning plans for critical and long-lead materials.
- Manage inventory strategies for specialty breakers, bus assemblies, power electronic modules, custom enclosures, transformers, and other critical components.
- Identify single-source risks and develop mitigation strategies such as dual sourcing, safety stock, supplier-managed inventory, and LTAs.
- Support commodity strategy and preferred supplier programs.
- Lead facility-level make/buy analysis and present recommendations to leadership.
- Monitor commodity pricing, supply constraints, geopolitical risks, and tariff impacts and recommend appropriate actions.
- Own inventory performance, including turns, days of supply, E&O inventory, and working capital.
- Drive toward a target of 10 inventory turns per year.
- Lead monthly excess and obsolete inventory reviews and track disposition actions.
- Establish safety stock, reorder point, lot-sizing, and cycle-count policies.
- Lead the annual physical inventory process.
- Balance material availability with inventory investment and working capital objectives.
- Monitor supplier SOTD, PPM, lead-time accuracy, and responsiveness.
- Conduct quarterly business reviews with key suppliers and establish measurable improvement plans.
- Escalate supplier issues that could affect production.
- Work with Quality Engineering on SCARs, root cause analysis, corrective actions, and supplier recovery.
- Support qualification of new suppliers with Quality Engineering and Application Engineering.
- Negotiate or oversee pricing agreements, blanket POs, and LTAs with strategic suppliers.
- Maintain accurate item masters, BOMs, supplier lead times, and planning parameters.
- Establish ERP/MRP usage standards and eliminate off-system planning practices.
- Review MRP results and correct issues involving parameters, demand signals, and BOMs.
- Partner with IT and ERP administrators on system improvements and reporting.
- Prepare weekly supply chain dashboards and monthly KPI scorecards.
- Lead improvements involving ERP parameters, supplier lead times, receiving, inventory, and material flow.
- Apply Lean principles and 5S throughout warehouse and stockroom operations.
Material & Project Planning
Sales & Demand Planning
Strategic Supply Management
Inventory Management
Supplier Management
ERP / MRP & Reporting
Performance Measures
The role will be measured against key supply chain metrics, including:
- Inventory Turns: Target of 10+ turns annually.
- Material On-Time Availability: Target of 98% available by required-on-floor date.
- Supplier On-Time Delivery: Target of 95% or better.
- Purchase Price Variance: Favorable or neutral versus standard cost.
- Excess & Obsolete Inventory: Reduction quarter over quarter.
- Shortages: Zero production interruptions caused by preventable material shortages.
- Supplier Quality: Improving incoming quality and SCAR closure within 30 days.
- Strategic Material Positioning: Critical long-lead components maintained at approved safety levels.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Operations Management, Engineering, or related field; advanced degree a plus.
- 7–10+ years of progressive supply chain experience in manufacturing, including at least 3 years supervising buyers, planners, or Buyer Planners.
- Experience with material planning and procurement in an electromechanical, electrical equipment, or industrial manufacturing environment; power distribution experience strongly preferred.
- Advanced ERP/MRP experience with systems such as SAP, Oracle, Epicor, Infor, IFS, or comparable platforms.
- Ability to diagnose and resolve MRP planning issues.
- Proven success improving inventory turns while maintaining or improving material availability.
- Experience with supplier performance programs, including QBRs, SCARs, and supplier development.
- Ability to manage both tactical material issues and strategic supply chain initiatives.
- Strong cross-functional experience with Project Management, Sales, Engineering, Production, and Finance.
- Excellent communication and executive reporting skills.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Excel and data analysis tools.
Preferred Qualifications
- APICS CPIM or CSCP, ISM C.P.M., or CPSM certification.
- Experience with power distribution products such as PDCs, STS, RPPs, switchgear, UPS systems, and related electromechanical components.
- Familiarity with UL, ANSI, NEMA, NEC, and IEC standards relevant to power distribution equipment.
- Experience developing commodity strategies for breakers, bus duct, transformers, enclosures, and power electronics.
- Lean/Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt experience.
- Experience leading Kaizen events in supply chain or warehouse operations.
- Experience with VMI, consignment, supplier-stocked buffers, blanket POs, or call-off arrangements.
- Experience with import compliance, customs, and international suppliers.
Core Skills
- Supply Chain Leadership
- Material Planning & Risk Management
- MRP/ERP & Data Governance
- Inventory Optimization
- Supplier Performance Management
- Project-Aligned Planning
- Demand & Capacity Planning
- Escalation & Problem Solving
- Continuous Improvement
- Cost & Commercial Management
- Executive Communication
Work Environment
- Daily on-site presence is required; this is not a remote or hybrid position.
- Regular time in manufacturing, warehouse, and receiving areas with exposure to moderate noise, industrial equipment, and electrical assemblies.
- Up to 20% travel for supplier visits, sourcing reviews, industry conferences, and occasional customer engagement.
- Must be available to assist with escalated supply issues outside normal business hours when production continuity is at risk.
- Must be able to walk manufacturing areas, access storage locations, and participate in physical inventory activities.