Senior Manager, Supply Chain – Solar

Apex Clean Energy•Charlottesville, VA

26d•Onsite

About The Position

Apex's Strategic Procurement team selects, contracts, and manages the major equipment behind our utility-scale wind, solar, and storage projects. In solar, we are expanding our role by taking more direct ownership of technology selection and supply agreements for key equipment, and we are building new programs to do it. This role will help build that capability. You will lead procurement for major solar equipment categories, from technology selection and supplier negotiations through delivery, and work alongside teammates across other technologies as priorities shift. It suits someone who wants to build something, not just run an established process, and who enjoys working at the intersection of engineering, commercial negotiation, and supply chain.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Supply Chain Management, Economics, Business, or a related field.
Minimum 5 years of relevant work experience, including at least 2 years in utility-scale renewable energy (developer, IPP, EPC, or equipment manufacturer).
Working knowledge of utility-scale solar equipment (such as trackers, modules, and inverters) and how it interacts with site design, energy yield, and construction.
Experience negotiating or supporting equipment supply agreements, including commercial and legal terms.
Strong financial and analytical skills (advanced Excel; ability to build bid comparisons and evaluate cost, schedule, and risk tradeoffs).
Clear written and verbal communication, and comfort influencing stakeholders and senior leaders without direct authority.
Self-starter who is comfortable with ambiguity, shifting priorities, and building processes where none exist.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree or MBA in Engineering, Supply Chain, Economics, or a related field.
5+ years in renewable energy, including direct experience procuring or supplying solar equipment through a developer, IPP, EPC, or manufacturer.
Experience with solar tracker or racking systems.
Experience leading technology review and contracting for utility-scale renewable energy equipment, including owner-furnished equipment or multi-project framework agreements.
Experience with solar module procurement, testing, or quality assurance.
Familiarity with Domestic Content, FEOC, and tariff compliance for solar equipment.
Structural, mechanical, or civil engineering background, or experience with geotechnical and pile considerations.
Experience with coding, data tools, or building AI-enabled tools.

Responsibilities

Build and run solar equipment procurement programs: Turn high-level procurement strategy into working programs: decision workflows, roles and ownership, stage-gate timing, templates, and tools.
Develop weighted vendor selection frameworks covering bankability, supply chain compliance, price and payment terms, technology, reliability, warranty, and engineering support.
Build supplier risk-ranking methods and vendor engagement models with defined touchpoints and cadence.
Define and track a small set of program metrics and report progress to procurement leadership.
Lead commercial negotiation and contracting: Negotiate and execute volume commitment agreements, framework or master supply agreements, and purchase orders for solar equipment such as modules, trackers, and inverters.
Structure key commercial terms, including volume and capacity reservation, deposits, price locks and commodity indexation, payment schedules, delivery flexibility, liquidated damages, and warranties.
Ensure Apex's equipment terms and pricing flow down cleanly into EPC agreements.
Partner with Legal, Tax, Finance, and Insurance on contract structure, compliance exhibits, and risk allocation.
Lead solar tracker procurement: Help establish and run Apex's tracker procurement program, in which Apex selects the tracker technology and negotiates terms directly with manufacturers while the EPC manages purchasing and logistics.
Negotiate and manage volume commitment and framework agreements with leading tracker suppliers.
Select site-specific tracker technology based on terrain, wind, hail, geotechnical conditions, and automation, in alignment with Solar Design, Engineering & Construction, Asset Management, and EPC partners.
Drive site-specific technology selection: Work with Solar Design, Engineering & Construction, and Asset Management to select the right equipment for each project based on terrain, wind, hail, geotechnical conditions, constructability, and long-term performance.
Coordinate design iterations with suppliers from early layout through final design, including extreme-weather mitigation and yield-enhancing technologies.
Support equipment compatibility reviews, bankability, independent engineer, and insurance diligence.
Own compliance, market intelligence, and risk: Support the team in sourcing equipment that meets Domestic Content and FEOC requirements, including supplier documentation and compliance exhibits.
Track solar equipment markets, steel and commodity pricing, tariffs, trade cases, and policy changes, and translate them into procurement recommendations.
Monitor supplier financial health, manufacturing footprint, and capacity.
Manage suppliers through delivery: Build and maintain relationships with established and emerging solar suppliers at operational, commercial, and executive levels.
Oversee production schedules, factory QA/QC and third-party audits, delivery logistics, and resolution of supply issues from contracting through commissioning.
Manage purchase requisitions, change orders, invoice reconciliation, and warranty or technical support escalations.
Support the broader Strategic Procurement team: Support solar module procurement, including supply agreements, technical exhibits, testing requirements, and delivery coordination.
Assist teammates on other technologies and initiatives as needs arise, such as inverters, storage, and project assurance.
Help build shared processes, playbooks, and document libraries (Smartsheet, Procore), and look for opportunities to apply automation and AI tools.