Senior Director, Supplier Strategy

HemaSource•Salt Lake City, UT

16h•Hybrid

About The Position

The Senior Director, Supplier Strategy leads HemaSource's category management and supplier relationship functions across all product lines. This role owns the supplier base's overall health, performance, and competitive positioning, supporting the company's five-DC distribution network. The Senior Director oversees sourcing, vendor contracting and negotiations, procurement, and supplier relations and management. The role is the primary executive interface to commercial sales leadership on product strategy, the new-item pipeline, and customer-facing commitments. It is accountable for category margin performance, preferred supplier program integrity, supply continuity, and governance gate co-signing for catalog adds, sunsets, exclusive or private-label offerings, and volume commitments. The role turns supplier relationships into competitive advantage by ensuring HemaSource has the right products at the right cost from the right suppliers. It leads category strategy and P&L performance; manages strategic supplier relationships, contracts, and supply risks; and coordinates with commercial, demand planning, quality, regulatory, and warehouse teams. The position also leads and develops Supplier Strategy Managers and Supplier Analysts. The position is office-based at HemaSource's Salt Lake City headquarters with hybrid flexibility and regular presence required; remote work may be possible. Travel to distribution centers is estimated at 10–15%, in addition to an estimated four to six annual trips for industry trade shows and supplier facility visits. The role also attends regular customer-facing meetings, including weekly standing meetings with key plasma accounts.

Requirements

15 or more years of progressive experience in strategic sourcing, category management, or procurement in a medical supply, healthcare distribution, or regulated product environment.
Demonstrated track record in supplier contract negotiation, preferred supplier program management, and category P&L ownership.
Experience managing and developing direct reports in a sourcing or procurement function.
Proficiency in ERP purchasing systems and supplier scorecard methodologies.
Strong analytical skills, including comfort with margin analysis, cost benchmarking, RFQ evaluation, and business case development.
Demonstrated ability to build and sustain executive-level supplier relationships.
Familiarity with FDA facility registration requirements, DSCSA lot traceability, and medical product regulatory standards.

Nice To Haves

Experience in specialty distribution, medical supply categories, or alternate site healthcare end markets.
APICS CSCP, CPIM, or equivalent supply chain certification.
Experience with GPO contract compliance and multi-tier pricing structures such as Premier, Vizient, or Provista.
Private-label or exclusive product development experience, including supplier qualification, product validation, packaging, and go-to-market.
Trade show attendance and supplier market development experience.
Bachelor's degree in Business, Supply Chain Management, or a related field; MBA preferred.

Responsibilities

Co-enforce the joint sign-off process with the CFO and Commercial Leader for catalog adds, product sunsets, and volume commitments; no item enters or exits the catalog without this gate.
Co-sign governance gate decisions with Demand Planning for exclusive and private-label arrangements.
Approve non-standard sourcing decisions escalated by Supplier Strategy Managers.
Own category-level margin performance, including COGS trends, cost savings targets, and gross margin contribution by product line.
Develop and execute annual category strategies aligned with HemaSource's commercial growth objectives and customer mix.
Identify and pursue cost reductions, alternative sourcing options, and margin expansion initiatives across assigned categories.
Evaluate make/buy and private-label opportunities and lead supplier development for exclusive product programs.
Own executive-level relationships with Tier 1 and strategic suppliers, conduct business reviews, and hold suppliers accountable to contracted performance.
Serve as the single point of contact for Vanguard interactions and catalog expansion.
Place underperforming Tier 1 suppliers on 90-day performance improvement plans.
Coordinate with the Plasma Core Supplier Strategy Manager to avoid conflicting volume commitments to shared suppliers.
Attend trade shows to identify new product offerings and market opportunities.
Maintain dual-source coverage for critical plasma product categories and flag and remediate single-supplier dependencies within 30 days.
Monitor supplier financial health, regulatory compliance, and operational stability, and proactively escalate risks.
Develop and maintain supply continuity contingency plans for high-volume and high-risk product lines.
Own supplier qualification standards and ensure active suppliers meet FDA, DSCSA, and HemaSource internal quality requirements.
Monitor GPO contract compliance where applicable, including contract utilization and tier thresholds.
Manage the supplier contract lifecycle, track expiration dates, initiate renewals with defined lead time, and escalate amendment needs to the CFO.
Ensure pricing agreements are enforced at purchase-order execution and Buyers operate within contracted terms.
Serve as the primary peer-level interface to commercial sales leadership for product strategy, the new-item pipeline, and customer-facing product commitments.
Attend regular customer meetings alongside the Supplier Strategy Manager or Buyer.
Coordinate with commercial sales to avoid customer commitments that exceed current sourcing capability or contracted supply.
Provide COGS data and sourcing constraints to support customer contract negotiations.
Own the executive escalation path for systemic supplier issues affecting multiple distribution centers.
Coordinate with Quality and Regulatory on CAPA for quality and lot-traceability events.
Lead, develop, and performance-manage Supplier Strategy Managers and Supplier Analysts; set expectations, conduct regular one-on-ones and formal performance reviews, and build team capability in negotiation, supplier scorecard management, and category strategy.
Participate in hiring decisions for procurement team roles.