Senior Manager, Procurement Policy and Process

Otsuka•Princeton, NJ

About The Position

The Senior Manager, Procurement Policy and Process maintains and enhances Otsuka’s North America procurement operations, processes, and policies. Reporting to the Senior Director, Commercial Strategic Sourcing, the role works across Sourcing, Finance, Technology, Legal, Compliance, Information Security, Quality, and business partners to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and compliance of procurement activities. It supports procurement strategy and transformation across the Source to Pay (S2P) process, including supplier relationships, contracting, purchasing, reporting, technology, and regulatory controls. The position develops and maintains policies, procedures, approval workflows, templates, and controls; identifies opportunities to streamline and automate S2P; supports supplier and contract compliance; and provides training and change-management support. It also collaborates with IT on procurement platforms and system enhancements, maintains procurement master data and audit trails, develops KPIs and dashboards, and supports integrations across affiliated companies and acquisitions. The role requires a customer-focused, strategic approach and a strong understanding of procurement in the pharmaceutical industry.

Requirements

At least 6 years of diverse experience in procurement roles.
Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, or relevant technical expertise.
Strong procurement operations and process-management experience, including the ability to communicate insights and influence organizational direction.
Strategic thinking, including anticipating trends and translating implications into actionable plans.
Excellent communication skills, including the ability to explain complex technical topics in clear business terms.
Strong customer-service focus and ability to work at the enterprise rather than solely functional level.
Experience listening to client needs and partnering to deliver mutually beneficial results.
Strong background in S2P processes, strategic sourcing, ERP systems, and procurement analytics, including leadership experience in operational excellence.
Superior analytical skills and ability to synthesize disparate data to support business decisions.
Strong understanding of the pharmaceutical industry and the development and commercialization of new drugs.
Deep knowledge of Source to Pay processes and best practices, including the technology landscape and SAP Ariba.
Strong understanding of procurement compliance, risk management, and regulatory requirements in the pharmaceutical industry.
Familiarity with procurement technology platforms.
Strong stakeholder-management, communication, and training skills.
Ability to design and implement metrics, SLAs, and scorecards.
Proficiency with AI and analytics tools, Generative AI platforms, and digital storytelling.
Demonstrated successful delivery of transformative projects.
Strategic mindset and financial acumen to assess ROI and cost-benefit for process improvements.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree (MBA or MS).

Responsibilities

Support development and implementation of procurement strategies aligned with organizational goals, including forecasting needs and managing procurement planning.
Ensure compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and organizational procurement policies, including knowledge of taxability for goods and services.
Develop, update, and enforce procurement policies, procedures, and standard operating guidelines in accordance with regulatory requirements, corporate governance, and best practices.
Support maintenance and administration of procurement-related compliance matters.
Partner with Sourcing, Legal, Compliance, Information Security, Finance, and Quality to embed regulatory risks and controls into purchasing processes.
Identify and recommend improvements across the end-to-end Source to Pay process, including sourcing, contracting, purchasing, and supplier management.
Partner with Sourcing and Vendor Management professionals to identify, evaluate, and manage supplier relationships and ways of working.
Administer approval workflows and evaluate and implement delegation-of-authority thresholds and controls.
Implement standardized templates, RACI matrices, and playbooks across companies and purchasing categories.
Promote innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning.
Develop and distribute monthly success metrics across the S2P process.
Handle ad hoc responsibilities in response to emerging business needs and leadership requests.
Train and guide Procurement team members and business partners on policies and procedures and answer procurement-related questions.
Collaborate with business stakeholders to align procurement processes with business objectives and operational needs.
Support change-management efforts to encourage stakeholder adoption.
Collaborate with IT to prioritize and define procurement-platform system requirements, workflows, and controls.
Support operational excellence across S2P, emphasizing automation, lean processes, and continuous improvement with IT.
Build business cases and success measures for major system enhancements.
Maintain clean procurement master data and develop compliance reporting and adequate audit trails.
Establish KPIs and analytics-powered dashboards for spend, performance, cycle times, and savings tracking.
Support adoption of Generative AI and advanced analytics to automate purchasing processes and performance reporting.
Manage transitions and process integrations, particularly across affiliated companies and acquisitions.
Monitor supplier and contract compliance with company policies and regulatory requirements.
Support internal and external audits by ensuring documentation, approvals, and governance controls are in place.
Identify gaps and emerging risks in procurement practices and recommend corrective actions.