Sr Procurement Manager - Strategic Initiatives

Senior Procurement Manager - Strategic Initiatives (Direct Materials)

Position Summary

The Senior Procurement Manager - Strategic Initiatives is responsible for leading enterpriselevel procurement efforts that strengthen supply resiliency, enhance continuity of supply, mitigate risk, support commercial growth, and drive longterm value across direct materials categories. This role functions as the lead for strategic procurement initiatives, including marketdisruption response (e.g., trade conflicts, tariffs, sanctions, and geopolitical instability), costreduction programs, process optimization, and crossfunctional valuecreation efforts. The position requires strong collaboration with Supply Chain, Operations, Finance, Engineering, Quality, Sales, Marketing, and Product Management.

What you will do:

Strategic Program Management

• Develop, maintain, and routinely test the Procurement Action Plan in response to market disruptions such as trade conflicts (tariffs/quotas), sanctions and export controls, geopolitical instability, regulatory changes, logistics constraints, and rawmaterial shortages.
• Lead crossfunctional scenario planning (e.g., tradewar escalation, regional conflict, port disruption) and define playbooks for rapid mitigation, including alternative sources, approved substitutions, and demand allocation recommendations.
• Establish and monitor supplier and country risk indicators (financial health, capacity, geopolitical exposure, compliance, and logistics), triggering escalations and executive decision points as needed.
• Establish program governance, timelines, milestones, KPIs, and reporting structures to ensure consistent execution and accountability.
• Provide executivelevel updates and recommendations based on program performance and risk assessments.

Supply Resiliency and Geopolitical Disruption Response

• Design and execute resilience strategies for critical direct materials (dual sourcing, qualified alternates, safety stock policies, and capacity/leadtime risk mitigation).
• Coordinate rapid response to trade and geopolitical events (tariffs, sanctions, export controls), including supplier communications, contract actions, and cost/availability impact assessments.
• Partner with Logistics, Compliance, and Legal to ensure sourcing decisions align with countryoforigin rules, forcedlabor regulations, and restrictedparty screening requirements.
• Build and maintain executiveready dashboards summarizing disruption exposure, mitigation status, and projected customer/financial impacts.

Direct Materials Strategy and Execution

• Partner with category managers to develop and execute sourcing strategies aligned with business objectives and market conditions.
• Identify and implement opportunities for cost reduction, value engineering, supplier consolidation, and contract optimization.
• Lead crossfunctional teams through complex sourcing events, supplier transitions, and resiliency initiatives (e.g., dual/multisourcing, nearshoring/reshoring, inventory buffering, and supplier capacity assurance) to strengthen supply continuity and responsiveness.
• Map critical materials and components to identify single points of failure; prioritize mitigation plans for highrisk items based on customer impact, lead times, and switching costs.

Growth Enablement and Commercial Support

• Support the launch of new sales channels, product lines, and customer programs by ensuring material readiness, supply continuity, and competitive cost structures.
• Collaborate with Sales, Marketing, and Product teams to identify crosssell and upsell opportunities enabled by supplier capabilities or alternative materials.
• Evaluate supplier innovations and emerging technologies that can enable new revenue streams or enhance customer value propositions.
• Align procurement strategies with commercial growth plans, pricing strategies, and customer commitments.

Process Improvement and Capability Development

• Enhance procurement processes related to direct materials, including demand planning integration, supplier performance management, risk monitoring, and escalation protocols.
• Drive standardization, documentation, and continuous improvement across sourcing workflows.
• Implement tools, dashboards, and analytics to improve visibility, decisionmaking, and operational efficiency.
• Leverage AI and advanced analytics to automate routine procurement work

CrossFunctional Collaboration

• Serve as a key liaison between Procurement and internal stakeholders, ensuring alignment on priorities, timelines, and deliverables.
• Facilitate crossfunctional meetings, steering committees, and communication forums to support project execution.
• Promote adoption of new processes, systems, and strategic initiatives across the organization.

Savings and Value Delivery

• Lead enterpriselevel costsavings programs, ensuring initiatives are clearly defined, measurable, and validated with Finance.
• Identify new valuecreation opportunities through supplier partnerships, alternative materials, and longterm strategic agreements.
• Track, analyze, and report savings performance, riskreduction outcomes, and operational improvements.

Qualifications

Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Business, Engineering, or related field required; MBA or advanced degree preferred.
• 8 years of procurement or supplychain experience, with a focus on direct materials.
• Demonstrated experience leading largescale strategic programs.
• Experience supporting commercial growth initiatives or partnering with Sales and Product teams.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strong understanding of global supply markets, risk management practices, and costmodeling methodologies.
• Excellent projectmanagement skills with the ability to manage multiple complex initiatives simultaneously.
• Strong analytical, problemsolving, and decisionmaking capabilities.
• Exceptional communication skills with the ability to influence stakeholders at all levels.
• Ability to work effectively in a matrixed environment and navigate ambiguity.
• Proficiency with ERP systems, procurement analytics tools, and projectmanagement software.
• Working knowledge of AI-enabled procurement tools and automation approaches with the ability to apply them responsibly to improve efficiency and decision quality.

Key Competencies

• Strategic Thinking
• CrossFunctional Leadership
• Program and Project Management
• Supplier Relationship Management
• Change Management
• Business Acumen
• Results Orientation

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Our Commitment to a Culture of Inclusion & Belonging

At Ecolab, we believe the best teams are inclusive. We are on a journey to create a workplace where every associate can grow and achieve their best. We are committed to fair and equal treatment of associates and applicants and recruit, hire, promote, transfer and provide opportunities for advancement based on individual qualifications and job performance. In all matters affecting employment, compensation, benefits, working conditions, and opportunities for advancement, we will not discriminate against any associate or applicant for employment because of race, religion, color, creed, national origin, citizenship status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expressions, genetic information, marital status, age, disability, or status as a covered veteran.

In addition, we are committed to furthering the principles of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) through Affirmative Action (AA).

We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles' Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the New York City Fair Chance Act.