Category Manager - Construction, CAPEX & Tooling

Zipline • South San Francisco, CA

2d • $135,000 - $265,000 • Onsite

About The Position

Does the prospect of a society-altering challenge—building and owning the end-to-end category strategy for construction, capital equipment, and production tooling to enable Zipline’s rapid global manufacturing expansion—sound like the type of work that gets you out of bed in the morning? Can you create sourcing strategies and supplier relationships from the ground up while driving aggressive negotiations, contract performance, and measurable outcomes in a fast-moving, high-stakes environment? Are you energized by the authority and responsibility of shaping an entirely new indirect procurement category in a mission-critical leadership role? If this excites you, you’re who we’re looking for!This is an in- person role based out of our HQ in South San Francisco requiring 30-50% travel to manage suppliers, construction partners, equipment vendors, and key stakeholders across North America, Asia, and other regions.

Requirements

• You have 5-12+ years of experience in a fast-paced, high-growth environment in roles such as Category Manager, Strategic Sourcing Manager, Procurement Manager, or Capital Equipment/Construction Buyer, ideally within manufacturing, technology, aerospace, automotive, or industrial sectors.
• You have a proven track record of building category strategies from the ground up, leading complex sourcing initiatives, and delivering strong results in construction, CAPEX, or tooling procurement.
• You excel at high-stakes commercial negotiations, contract development, and managing supplier performance for high-value, technical, or project-based purchases.
• You have successfully established KPIs, governance frameworks, and best practices for indirect procurement categories.
• You are skilled at building strong cross-functional relationships and influencing stakeholders across engineering, operations, facilities, and finance.
• You thrive in ambiguous environments and are comfortable making tough decisions on priorities, trade-offs, and supplier strategies with limited existing processes or data.
• You bring strong analytical and project management skills with the ability to drive measurable cost savings, risk reduction, and operational improvements.

Nice To Haves

• Advanced degree in Supply Chain, Business, Engineering, or related field.
• Experience in high-growth manufacturing or technology companies scaling production facilities and infrastructure.
• Deep knowledge of construction project sourcing, capital equipment procurement, or precision tooling categories.
• Familiarity with regulated or high-reliability environments and global supplier networks.
• Demonstrated ability to build and develop high-performing procurement processes and supplier relationships from scratch.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute comprehensive category strategies for construction projects, capital equipment (CAPEX), and production/maintenance tooling, including market analysis, supplier segmentation, sourcing roadmaps, and risk mitigation plans.
• Lead end-to-end sourcing processes: supplier investigation, RFx development and execution, due diligence, selection, and competitive bidding to secure optimal value, quality, lead times, and innovation.
• Negotiate and manage complex commercial contracts, pricing agreements, service levels, and long-term partnerships with contractors, equipment manufacturers, and tooling suppliers.
• Own supplier relationship management, performance monitoring, quarterly business reviews, scorecards, and continuous improvement programs to drive excellence in cost, quality, delivery, safety, and responsiveness.
• Build and establish category KPIs, governance processes, and best-in-class procurement practices in close collaboration with internal stakeholders and suppliers.
• Partner closely with Engineering, Manufacturing, Facilities, and Finance to align sourcing strategies with project requirements, CAPEX budgets, tooling needs, and long-term manufacturing footprint expansion.
• Manage supplier claims, disputes, and performance issues while protecting Zipline’s interests and ensuring contractual compliance.
• Identify opportunities for cost savings, process improvements, standardization, and supply chain resilience across the category.
• Provide strategic insights and recommendations to leadership on market trends, sourcing decisions, budgeting, and category performance.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: No Education Listed