Director, Global Supply Chain

We are seeking a strategic, globally minded Director, Global Supply Chain to lead supply chain strategy and execution across our global manufacturing operations. Reporting directly to the Vice President of Operations, this leader will drive performance across inventory management, planning, strategic sourcing, supplier management, and logistics.

A key priority will be improving planning effectiveness, reducing inventory and E&O, and improving working capital while maintaining customer service and supply continuity. The Director will establish greater discipline around demand and supply planning, inventory policies, safety stock, ERP parameters, and supplier lead times, while leading global sourcing initiatives that reduce cost, mitigate risk, localize supply, and improve supplier performance.

The Director will directly lead the global sourcing team while providing functional leadership, standards, and guidance to planning, purchasing, materials, and logistics teams across manufacturing sites. This leader must be highly data-driven and hands-on, using analytics to identify root causes, challenge assumptions, establish accountability, and translate supply chain strategy into measurable operational and financial results.

Key Responsibilities:

Global Supply Chain Leadership

Develop and execute global supply chain strategies that deliver measurable improvements in customer service, inventory, working capital, material cost, supplier performance, and lead times.

Provide functional leadership and governance across global planning, purchasing, inventory, materials, and logistics activities, establishing common processes, metrics, and accountability across sites.

Partner with site leaders and Operations, Finance, Sales, Engineering, and Quality to identify supply chain risks, resolve performance gaps, and drive execution.

Inventory, E&O & Planning

Lead global inventory and working-capital initiatives, establishing clear targets and driving sustainable reductions while protecting customer service and production continuity.

Establish disciplined inventory management across raw materials, WIP, finished goods, safety stock, and strategic inventory, with particular focus on preventing and reducing excess, obsolete, and slow-moving inventory.

Establish structured E&O reviews that identify root causes, assign ownership, drive disposition and consumption actions, and prevent recurrence through improvements in planning, sourcing, engineering, and commercial processes.

Strengthen SIOP, demand, supply, and material planning processes to improve forecast accuracy, capacity alignment, material availability, and visibility to supply-demand gaps.

Improve ERP planning discipline and parameters, including supplier lead times, safety stocks, reorder points, minimum order quantities, and order policies, using actual performance and data to appropriately balance inventory and service.

Establish and routinely review data-driven supply chain metrics, including inventory turns, E&O, forecast accuracy, supplier lead times, material availability, past-due demand, and customer service, translating gaps into clear corrective actions.

Strategic Sourcing & Supplier Management

Lead and develop the global sourcing team with clear objectives and accountability for cost, quality, delivery, lead-time reduction, supply continuity, and supplier performance.

Develop and execute sourcing strategies, supplier negotiations, alternate-source qualifications, and localization initiatives that reduce total landed cost, shorten lead times, reduce inventory requirements, and strengthen supply-chain resilience.

Establish structured supplier scorecards and reviews, using performance data to drive improvements in delivery, quality, cost, lead time, capacity, and responsiveness.

Lead supplier selection, qualification, contracting, development, and performance improvement, partnering with Engineering and Quality on technical qualifications, supplier audits, corrective actions, and new-product introduction.

Logistics & Global Material Flow

Lead global inbound, outbound, and intercompany logistics strategy, driving measurable improvement in freight cost, transit time, premium freight, reliability, and inventory in transit.

Optimize transportation modes, consolidation, routing, freight-forwarder performance, and material flows between suppliers, manufacturing sites, and customers.

Ensure sourcing and logistics decisions consider total landed cost, tariffs, supplier and transit lead times, inventory implications, trade requirements, and business continuity.

Operational & Footprint Strategy

Provide supply chain leadership for manufacturing transfers, localization initiatives, facility moves, new-product launches, and other major operational programs.

Develop data-driven supply, inventory, sourcing, and logistics plans that protect customer continuity while avoiding unnecessary inventory buildup during transitions.

Assess supplier capacity, material readiness, lead times, inventory requirements, logistics, and supply-chain risks before significant operational changes are implemented.

Team & Capability Development

Hire, develop, and mentor a high-performing global sourcing team while providing strong functional coaching and direction to supply chain professionals across the global manufacturing network.

Build stronger organizational capabilities in planning, inventory management, analytics, sourcing, supplier management, negotiation, and problem solving.

Establish a culture of ownership, accountability, urgency, fact-based decision-making, and continuous improvement.

Qualifications & Experience:

Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Engineering, Business, Operations, or related field; MBA or advanced degree preferred.

10+ years of progressive supply chain experience within a manufacturing environment, including significant experience across planning, inventory management, and strategic sourcing.

3+ years directly leading teams, with demonstrated success developing global or cross-regional talent.

Proven experience leading supply chain activities across multiple manufacturing sites and geographic regions.

Demonstrated success reducing inventory and E&O while improving working capital without compromising customer service or material availability.

Strong knowledge of SIOP, demand and supply planning, MRP/ERP systems, inventory optimization, supplier lead-time management, and materials planning.

Strong sourcing and supplier-management background, including negotiations, cost reduction, supplier development, localization, alternate-source qualification, and performance management.

Experience with international logistics, freight optimization, global trade considerations, and total-landed-cost analysis.

Experience supporting manufacturing transfers, footprint changes, or supply-chain localization initiatives preferred.

Strong analytical, financial, communication, negotiation, and leadership capabilities.

Experience working across Eastern and Western business cultures and multinational manufacturing organizations.

Fluency in English required.

Ability to travel domestically and internationally approximately 30% of the time.

Demonstrated ability and willingness to use AI tools to improve productivity, decision-making, work quality, and cost performance, including identifying appropriate AI use cases and critically evaluating AI-generated outputs.

Leadership Profile:

We are looking for an energetic, hands-on and commercially savvy supply chain leader who is equally comfortable setting global strategy and working directly with site teams to solve problems and drive execution. The successful candidate will:

Be highly analytical and data-driven, able to turn ERP, inventory, demand, supplier, and financial data into clear insights, priorities, and actions.

Operate with a strong sense of ownership and urgency, following issues through to measurable results rather than simply establishing process.

Be a hands-on leader who is comfortable going into the details when necessary while maintaining a strategic global perspective.

Demonstrate strong business and financial acumen, understanding the relationship between inventory, working capital, lead time, sourcing decisions, cost, and customer service.

Be comfortable challenging established assumptions and processes using facts and data while building alignment across functions and sites.

Possess exceptional multicultural communication and influencing skills, with the ability to build trust and drive change across different regions, cultures, functions, and organizational levels.

Develop talent and create accountability without relying solely on direct reporting relationships.

Balance strategic thinking with practical execution and demonstrate a continuous-improvement mindset.

#LI-JT1