Global Procurement Director

Knowles Corporation•Itasca, IL

23h•Onsite

About The Position

The Global Procurement Director is responsible for the development and execution of the Company’s global direct material sourcing strategy in support of multiple manufacturing facilities across North America, Mexico, and Asia. This executive leadership role oversees a global procurement organization comprised of Category Managers responsible for strategic sourcing and a purchasing organization responsible for operational purchasing execution at manufacturing sites. The Global Procurement Director is accountable for ensuring continuity of supply, optimizing total cost of ownership, enhancing supplier performance, managing contractual relationships, and cultivating long-term strategic supplier partnerships. In close collaboration with Operations, Supply Chain Planning, Engineering, Quality, Finance, Research & Development, and Product Management, this leader will establish and maintain a resilient and scalable supply base that supports business growth, new product introductions, operational excellence, and long-term strategic objectives.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Engineering, Business Administration, Operations Management, or a related field is required.
Minimum of 12 years of progressive experience in procurement, strategic sourcing, or supply chain management within a manufacturing environment.
Minimum of 5 years of leadership experience managing global procurement and/or category management organizations.
Demonstrated expertise in managing direct material categories within industrial or manufacturing sectors.
Proven success negotiating and managing complex global supply agreements.
Experience supporting multiple manufacturing facilities across diverse geographic regions.
Strong track record of developing and implementing global sourcing and category management strategies.
Ability to travel domestically and internationally up to 10–15% as business needs require.
On-site presence required.

Nice To Haves

MBA or other advanced degree is preferred.

Responsibilities

Provide strategic leadership and direction for a global procurement organization consisting of Global Category Managers responsible for the strategic sourcing of direct materials, and Purchasing professionals supporting manufacturing operations across global production facilities.
Establish procurement objectives, key performance indicators (KPIs), and talent development plans aligned with business priorities.
Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, continuous improvement, and high performance throughout the procurement organization.
Develop and implement global sourcing strategies for key direct material categories, including category strategy development and execution, global supplier identification, evaluation, and selection, supply risk assessment and mitigation, total cost optimization, market and technology intelligence, and long-term supplier development and roadmap planning.
Develop and maintain strategic relationships with key global suppliers, lead executive-level supplier business reviews and governance processes, promote supplier innovation and continuous improvement initiatives, and establish strategic partnerships that support future capacity expansion, technology advancement, and business growth objectives.
Lead complex commercial negotiations, including long-term supply agreements, pricing strategies and cost-reduction initiatives, contract terms and conditions, capacity reservation and allocation agreements, payment terms and working capital initiatives, and risk-sharing arrangements.
Achieve measurable year-over-year cost improvements while safeguarding quality, service, and continuity of supply.
Ensure uninterrupted supply of critical materials required to support global manufacturing operations.
Develop and maintain business continuity and contingency plans for strategic suppliers.
Identify, assess, and mitigate supply chain risks, including sole-source dependencies, geopolitical exposure, logistics disruptions, and raw material constraints.
Lead supplier capacity planning initiatives to support business growth and new product introductions.
Develop and maintain a comprehensive supplier performance management framework, including on-time delivery performance, quality performance (PPM), responsiveness and service levels, cost competitiveness, capacity and operational performance, and sustainability and compliance metrics.
Conduct regular supplier performance reviews and oversee corrective and preventive action processes.
Drive procurement performance through cost savings and productivity improvements, working capital optimization, inventory reduction initiatives, supplier lead-time reduction, contract compliance and governance, and procurement KPI measurement and reporting.