Manager Procurement Distribution Services

Seattle Public Schools•John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence, WA

About The Position

Plans, manages, coordinates, and provides leadership to Procurement and Distribution Services for the District. Ensures compliance with applicable guidelines and regulations. Serves as a key contract regarding Procurement and Distribution Services matters. Provides strategic and operational leadership for the District’s Procurement and Warehouse/Distribution functions to ensure compliant, timely, and cost-effective acquisition and delivery of goods, services, and public works contracts. Establishes the vision, governance, and service model for the end-to-end procurement and supply chain lifecycle, including policy, sourcing, contract management, vendor performance, warehousing, distribution, and customer service. Leads the function’s continuous improvement roadmap and performance analytics and ensures successful enablement and adoption of SAP procurement processes and controls. Supervisory scope: This position is assigned direct and indirect reports across functional areas of Procurement/Contracting and Warehouse/Distribution including subordinate manager/supervisory staff, professional, and nonexempt represented employees. Level of autonomy: Works with broad discretion to set operating procedures, standards, and priorities for procurement and distribution services within delegated authority; elevates significant risk decisions, exceptions, and policy issues to executive leadership as appropriate.

Requirements

Five (5) years of increasingly responsible experience in a large public agency, dealing with school district and State procurement regulations large central warehouse/distribution and inventory control experience; experience must have included three (3) years of lead or supervisory experience
Bachelor’s degree in business administration or related field with emphasis in purchasing and financial accounting; equivalent work experience may substitute for the education requirement on a year-for-year basis, or completion of Purchasing Certificate Program and four (4) additional years of experience may substitute for the education requirement; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Purchasing methods and procedures including informal open-market purchasing.
Formal bidding procedures.
Local, state, and federal laws governing purchases and contract compliance.
Principles and practices of warehouse, distribution and inventory control.
City, county, state, and federal regulations and safety standards for areas of responsibility.
Warehouse, distribution, and mail service techniques for large scale operations.
Effective supervisory practices.
Research and analytical techniques.
Quality control measures.
Records management practices and techniques.
Strong oral and written communications.
Team building.
Organizing and assigning work schedules.
Collaborative processes and problem-solving.
Conceptual and analytical thinking.
Customer relations.
Proficiency with Word and Excel.
Evaluate and determine capability of vendors to perform services based on multiple variables.
Supervise negotiations with vendors.
Interpret, explain, enforce, and apply state statutes and District policies and procedures for procurement.
Effectively represent the District.
Adapt to change and remain flexible while upholding all applicable laws and District policies and procedures.
Troubleshoot complex problems and develop action plans to correct.
Coordinate multiple projects simultaneously.
Set priorities and meet deadlines.
Use time effectively and efficiently.
Make decisions in a timely manner.
Work effectively under pressure.
Maintain integrity of data and information.
Maintain effective working relationships in a multicultural environment.
Criminal Justice fingerprint and background check

Nice To Haves

Completion of Purchasing Certificate Program such as C.P.M. or C.P.P.O. preferred.

Responsibilities

Establishes the vision, strategy, and operating expectations for procurement, contracting, and warehouse/distribution functions.
Defines and enforces policies, procedures, templates, and performance standards to ensure consistency, compliance, and defensibility.
Sets the tone and expectations for the division, including service approach, risk tolerance, and customer engagement model.
Aligns functional priorities with District goals and ensures supervisors translate strategy into actionable workplans.
Serves as the primary escalation point for complex, high-risk, or sensitive procurement and operational matters.
Directly manages managerial and supervisory staff, as well as professional level employees in Procurement/Contracting and Warehouse/Distribution functions providing leadership and coaching and establishing accountability.
Provides strategic oversight and advisory support while setting expectations and enabling supervisors to manage day-to-day operations and staff.
Reviews supervisor performance, workload distribution, and decision-making to ensure alignment with District standards and priorities.
Builds leadership capacity within supervisors to independently manage complex procurements and operational challenges.
Ensures appropriate delegation, avoiding unnecessary escalation while maintaining oversight of critical work.
Reviews operational performance and supports problem-solving for systemic or escalated issues.
Provides oversight of competitive solicitations policies and contract development policies led by Procurement Supervisors and the Contract Specialist.
Establishes expectations for solicitation strategy, evaluation integrity, documentation, and contract structure.
Conducts targeted, risk-based reviews of procurements and contracts to ensure quality, consistency, and defensibility.
Coaches supervisors through complex or high-visibility procurements, enabling them to lead while ensuring strong outcomes.
Leads or directly supports select high-risk or high-impact negotiations, while building supervisor capability to manage others independently.
Ensures all procurement and distribution activities comply with state/federal laws, District policy, and competition requirements.
Establishes control frameworks, documentation standards, and review protocols to support audit readiness.
Reviews work products and processes to ensure compliance risks are proactively identified and mitigated.
Supports audit responses and ensures consistent application of corrective actions across teams.
Provides guidance on labor and policy matters as they intersect with procurement and operational practices.
Sets expectations for how procurement processes are executed within SAP, including approvals, controls, and role clarity.
Ensures supervisors and staff effectively adopt and utilize SAP-enabled workflows and tools.
Establishes performance metrics and monitors outputs (cycle time, compliance, quality, service levels).
Identifies systemic issues and drives process improvements through supervisors, rather than direct execution.
Promotes continuous improvement and standardization across both functional teams.