Senior Manager, Supply Chain

FreightCar America, Inc.•Chicago, IL

1d•$125,000 - $145,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Manager of Supply Chain will lead procurement and Supply Chain management for our Aftermarket business unit, for both fabrication manufacturing and component distribution across all warehouses. This role is responsible for end-to-end Supply Chain performance, including procurement, supplier management, distribution network optimization, Supply Chain related company growth and integration support, and team development. Essential duties and responsibilities are as follows. Other duties may be as assigned.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in supply chain management, Business Administration, or a related field
15+ years of experience in Supply Chain Management
Strong understanding of Supply Chain processes, project management, and inventory management in a manufacturing and distribution environment
Proficiency in Supply Chain software and ERP tools, i.e. Oracle, SAP
Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills
Strong leadership and team management abilities
Exceptional communication and negotiation skills

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree a plus
Knowledge of Lean, Six Sigma, or other continuous improvement methodologies is a plus

Responsibilities

Manage day-to-day purchasing activities to support operations and business requirements.
Ensure purchase orders are placed accurately, timely, and in alignment with approved suppliers, contracts, pricing, and lead times.
Develop and maintain price lists to ensure current supplier pricing, contract terms, and approved cost structures are accurate and accessible.
Identify cost savings and total cost of ownership opportunities through supplier negotiations, sourcing, and process improvements.
Maintain strong communication with Sales to confirm requirements, recognize shortages, and support changing business priorities.
Support supplier selection and onboarding to ensure the supply base is reliable, competitive, and aligned with company standards.
Develop and maintain supplier scorecards to evaluate supplier performance across key areas such as on-time delivery, quality, responsiveness, cost competitiveness, and corrective action closure.
Review scorecard results with strategic suppliers quarterly to drive accountability, continuous improvement, and responsiveness.
Use supplier performance data to support sourcing decisions, supplier development plans, and escalation of chronic performance issues.
Collaborate with Operations, Sales, Finance, and other departments to ensure supplier performance metrics reflect business needs.
Coordinate forecasting activities to align supply plans with production schedules, customer demand, inventory strategies, and supplier lead times.
Review open requisitions and open purchase orders to ensure forecasted demand, required dates, quantities, and supplier commitments are accurate and aligned with business needs.
Use historical usage, open orders, customer forecasts, seasonal trends, market trends, and internal business inputs to improve planning accuracy.
Identify supply gaps, excess inventory risks, and material constraints early so corrective action can be taken before they impact operations.
Support cross-functional forecast reviews with Sales, Operations, Finance, and Production to improve visibility and decision-making.
Ensure all site inventory is rationalized according to customer need and business goals.
Establish and monitor both key performance indicators and targets that measure supply chain effectiveness and efficiencies.
Recommended measures include on-time delivery, lead time variance, supplier quality, purchase price variance, cost savings, inventory turns, stockout, obsolescence, sourcing cycle time, and spend under management, including category growth.
Review performance trends routinely and develop action plans when performance falls below target.
Use performance indicator outputs to communicate both progress and areas of opportunity, prioritize improvement projects, and support leadership decision-making.
Continue to build a capable, accountable, and cross-trained Supply Chain team through coaching, skills development, process documentation, and knowledge sharing.
Define clear roles, responsibilities, backup coverage, and expectations for supply planning, supplier management, and reporting activities.
Support professional development in areas such as supplier relationship management, forecasting, analytics, ERP usage, inventory management, and root-cause problem solving.
Encourage continuous improvement by involving team members in process reviews, supplier meetings, KPI analysis, and corrective action planning.
Support additional company integration activities by aligning Supply Chain processes, supplier data, price lists, forecasting practices, and reporting standards across locations.
Identify supply chain gaps, risks, and opportunities during integration efforts, and develop action plans to ensure continuity of supply and service.
Support company growth by scaling or dual sourcing supplier portfolios, improving planning processes, strengthening supplier partnerships, and ensuring the supply chain can meet increased business demand.
Collaborate with leadership and cross-functional teams to standardize processes, share best practices, and support successful business expansion.