Strategic Sourcing Leader, Go-to-Market

OpenAI•San Francisco, CA

1d•$266,000 - $295,000

About The Position

The Strategic Sourcing & Procurement function at OpenAI plays a critical role in enabling the organization's long-term success by supporting research, product development, technology infrastructure, and services. This function helps OpenAI scale responsibly, securely, and with strong commercial discipline. The team operates at the intersection of innovation and execution, partnering with internal teams to translate evolving business needs into scalable, compliant, and economically sound external partnerships. As OpenAI grows, services sourcing becomes increasingly strategic, with every business unit relying on external providers for capacity, expertise, operations support, and accelerated execution. Effective Procurement serves as a source of trust and momentum, enabling faster progress with the right partners, stronger commercial outcomes, and appropriate protection. This role is for an experienced Strategic Sourcing (GTM) Leader to spearhead strategic sourcing and commercial enablement for OpenAI’s Go-to-Market organization across both B2B and B2C channels. The leader will manage significant and growing spend, develop sourcing strategies, and establish scalable commercial pathways for suppliers in Media, Creative, Production, Influencer, Agency, Sponsorships, Analytics, Communications, and Events. The goal is to transform the GTM procurement function from reactive deal support into a speed-enabling, scalable commercial engine that delivers cost efficiency, launch readiness, and strong governance in a dynamic environment.

Requirements

12+ years of progressive procurement experience.
10+ years of experience in strategic sourcing across marketing, advertising, communications, media, creator/influencer, sponsorships, partnerships, production, and events within major consumer or business brands.
5+ years of people leadership experience.
Deep knowledge of both B2B and B2C GTM channels, supplier landscapes, and the commercial dynamics of paid media, production, creator ecosystems, agencies, and partnerships.
Proven expertise supporting large and fast-growing GTM budgets and enabling high-impact campaigns, partnerships, activations, and events rapidly and effectively.
Experience managing a broad GTM supplier landscape, including identifying, evaluating, and scaling relationships with key suppliers across media, production, creator/influencer, agencies, sponsorships, partnerships, and insights/analytics.
Strong negotiation and cross-functional stakeholder management skills, with a track record of securing high-value, favorable agreements in ambiguous and fast-moving environments.
Excellent analytical abilities to generate strategic insights from spend data, supplier performance, market trends, cycle times, and the effectiveness of GTM investment decisions.
Superior organizational and project management skills, with the ability to manage both strategic negotiations and high-throughput execution across multiple complex priorities.
A proactive approach to problem-solving and a strong instinct for designing scalable processes, templates, and workflows that improve speed and reduce friction in GTM procurement.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute sourcing strategies across GTM, Brand, Global Affairs, Events, Growth, and Partnership activities—spanning both B2B and B2C channels—that align with our mission and business objectives.
Lead the strategic sourcing, procurement, and supplier relationship management of key partners across media planning and buying, creative and production, creator/influencer, agencies, communications, sponsorships, partnerships, events, research, and analytics.
Lead and develop a lean, high-performing team of direct reports and contractors while remaining deeply hands-on in complex negotiations and high-volume deal execution; accountable for team output, execution quality, stakeholder experience, and scaling the function effectively.
Negotiate high-value and high-visibility commercial agreements that optimize cost, improve flexibility, and support time-sensitive launches, campaigns, placements, and partnerships.
Partner closely with Marketing, Creative & Production, Growth, Partnerships, Finance, Legal, and other cross-functional stakeholders to understand business priorities and align sourcing strategies accordingly.
Oversee a complex GTM supplier ecosystem, ensuring supplier scalability, rapid onboarding, seamless activation, and timely service delivery across multiple concurrent workstreams.
Identify and implement cost and commercial optimization strategies without compromising quality, speed, business impact, or launch readiness.
Enable major campaigns, brand moments, partnerships, and events by building sourcing approaches that can operate effectively under compressed timelines and evolving business requirements.
Monitor market trends, supplier capabilities, and emerging GTM commercial models to inform sourcing decisions and maintain a competitive advantage.
Provide strategic insights on spend, supplier performance, cycle times, savings, and sourcing initiatives to senior leadership to support fast, informed decision-making.
Ensure compliance with internal policies and external regulations while designing fit-for-purpose procurement pathways that reduce friction and maintain appropriate risk controls.
Build repeatable commercial pathways, templates, and approval mechanisms that reduce cycle time and minimize repeated Legal, Finance, and Procurement review.
Standardize sourcing and contracting approaches for recurring GTM motions such as media activations, production SOWs, creator/influencer engagements, and partnership structures.
Manage a portfolio that includes both large strategic negotiations and high-throughput transaction volume, balancing speed, rigor, and stakeholder experience.
Support executive-priority GTM and brand initiatives that may involve nontraditional suppliers, culturally relevant activations, and bespoke commercial structures.