Director Global Procurement

Director Global Procurement - Sustainable Waxes - Mid Sized Manufacturer - Connecticut Please note that this is an on-site position in Connecticut. Applications from elsewhere in the States are welcome, and a full relocation fee can be provided. Irving Knight has partnered with a <200-year old manufacturer of natural waxes to identify a Director of Global Procurement. My client sells their waxes to a wide range of industries including (but not limited to) Personal Care, Home Care, Nutraceutical, Pharmaceutical and Food. Candidates should ideally have experience working in Chemical Manufacturing, Personal Care Manufacturing, Food Manufacturing, or similar. My clients portfolio is 100% sustainable and is mainly derived from beeswax, canola and carnauba. This role will handle spend of $25m and manage a team of ten indirectly, with one direct report. The primary goal is deliver $750,000 savings in year one. My client possesses a wonderful culture based on achieving success collaboratively, respecting each other, and and serving their customers with care and passion. It is important that the placed candidate fits well culturally. If you want to work for a company with the above core principles, have a passion for sustainability, and an innate talent for saving money, I welcome you to apply. Key Responsibilities Include: Reporting to the CFO, manage $25m in spend, and manage one Purchasing Manager directly, with a further ten indirect reports in the purchasing team across two sites in USA and Netherlands. Build the combined spend map (US and NL) within 90 days; set a three year category strategy for each major input: beeswax (by origin), sunflower wax, carnauba, candelilla, rice bran, esters and their raw materials, and all other waxes, charcoal raw materials, packaging, freight. Negotiate group contracts where one supplier serves both plants; keep local sourcing where origin, lead time or regulation require it. Own supplier qualification, risk assessment and dual sourcing for critical inputs; manage the seasonal buy cycle for crop based waxes (sunflower: India; carnauba: Brazil; candelilla: Mexico; beeswax: Africa, Asia, Americas). Manage tariff, duty and trade route decisions between the US and Europe. Partner with QA, R&D and regulatory on one global specification per product family; supplier change control; documentation for regulated markets (pharma excipients, cosmetics, food). Lead supplier audits with quality; own supplier performance scorecards. Qualifications A technical degree (at least BSc) in Chemistry, Biochemistry is preferred, but a business/supply chain degree is acceptable. Track record of delivered, audited savings on a spend of $20–100 million; comfortable being measured on them. A minimum of ten years experience in procurement or strategic sourcing in specialty chemicals, ingredients, natural products, food or personal care manufacturing. A minimum of three years experience managing a team. Self-motivated, high energy, and engaging level of enthusiasm and positive outlook. Must be willing to travel sporadically to visit global suppliers. Our offer to you: A competitive annual salary of up to $150,000 (open to negotiation), with an additional 20% in bonus potential, plus a full range of fringe benefits. Private health insurance. 401k match. Travel reimbursement in full. A young, cosmopolitan and thriving workplace with state-of-the-art facilities. A fun, ambitious and collaborative environment. Please note, if you haven't heard back within two weeks of your application, you have most probably been unsuccessful in this process. This is due to the sheer number of applicants that we experience for such adverts.

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