Senior Strategic Sourcing and Contracts Specialist

LightForce Orthodontics•Wilmington, MA

About The Position

The Senior Strategic Sourcing and Contracts Specialist develops and executes sourcing strategies, negotiates supplier commercial terms, and manages strategic supplier relationships supporting LightForce’s additive manufacturing operations. This senior individual contributor works across Supply Chain, Engineering, Manufacturing, Finance, Quality, and Legal to drive cost optimization, supplier risk mitigation, contract coordination, and capital equipment procurement. Legal retains oversight of legal provisions and contract approvals; Quality owns formal supplier quality-system audits and technical qualification decisions. Transactional purchasing and routine purchase order management remain with the Purchasing team. The role leads sourcing and supplier management for materials, components, equipment, and services; owns key supplier relationships and performance; leads complex commercial negotiations; coordinates supplier agreements with Legal; and supports capital equipment sourcing and broader supply chain strategy. It also contributes to supplier qualification, production readiness, new product introduction, manufacturing expansion, and procurement process improvements. Travel to supplier locations may be required.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Engineering, Finance, or a related field.
10+ years of progressive experience in strategic sourcing and supplier management within a technically complex manufacturing environment.
Proven experience managing strategic supplier relationships, leading complex negotiations, and resolving supplier performance issues.
Experience evaluating supplier manufacturing capabilities, conducting operational assessments, and driving supplier improvements.
Strong commercial, analytical, negotiation, and cross-functional leadership skills.
Experience with supplier qualification, sourcing strategy, and supply chain risk management.
Ability to work independently and engage effectively with supplier executives and senior management.
Willingness to travel to supplier locations as required.

Nice To Haves

Experience in medical devices, additive manufacturing, or advanced manufacturing.
Experience sourcing specialized raw materials, precision components, and capital equipment.
Familiarity with ISO 13485, supplier qualification processes, and regulated manufacturing environments.
Experience supporting new product introduction and manufacturing scale-up.
CPSM, CSCP, or similar certification.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute sourcing strategies for materials, components, equipment, and services.
Lead supplier identification, evaluation, selection, RFQs, and commercial negotiations, including total-cost-of-ownership analyses.
Own key supplier relationships, including executive-level engagement and business reviews, and develop partnerships supporting cost competitiveness, operational flexibility, and long-term growth.
Manage supplier performance across delivery, quality, cost, capacity, and responsiveness; serve as the senior escalation point for significant supplier issues.
Lead supplier operational assessments and onsite visits to evaluate capabilities, capacity, and business continuity.
Drive supplier improvement plans and hold suppliers accountable for performance commitments.
Partner with Quality and Engineering on supplier audits, corrective actions, and qualification activities.
Negotiate pricing, payment terms, capacity, delivery, warranties, and performance commitments.
Coordinate MSAs, SOWs, and supply contracts with Legal, and manage commercial contract performance, renewals, and amendments.
Deliver measurable cost improvements through negotiations and strategic sourcing initiatives.
Lead commercial sourcing and negotiations for manufacturing capital equipment and specialized technologies.
Partner with Engineering, Manufacturing, and Finance to evaluate capital equipment proposals and total cost of ownership; negotiate pricing, delivery, payment milestones, installation, warranty, and service terms.
Support Engineering through equipment delivery and acceptance.
Evaluate supplier capabilities, financial stability, capacity, and supply chain considerations.
Develop sourcing initiatives that support manufacturing scalability, supply continuity, and operational flexibility.
Partner with Engineering, Manufacturing, and Quality on new supplier qualification and production readiness.
Support new product introduction, manufacturing expansion, and procurement process improvements.
Provide sourcing recommendations, supplier performance updates, and commercial escalation support to Supply Chain leadership.