Global Germanium Sourcing Leader

Rocket Lab USA

Long Beach (CA)

On-site

USD 110,000 - 150,000

Full time

14 days+

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Benefits offered by this job

Employee Stock Purchase Program

Comprehensive medical plans (HMO/PPO/H

HDHP with HSA company contribution

Dental and vision coverage

Paid vacation and sick time

11 paid holidays

Flexible spending accounts

Dependent care accounts

Paid parental leave

Disability and life insurance

401(k) with company match

EV charging subsidy

Onsite fitness centers

Discounted gym memberships

Snacks and beverages

50% merch store discount

Employee discounts

Job summary

Rocket Lab USA is seeking a Senior Global Supply Manager II for Germanium, based on-site at Long Beach, CA. You will own the end-to-end Germanium strategy, lead supplier negotiations, and drive resilience across a geopolitically sensitive supply chain to power our Electron/Neutron programs.

You will build market intelligence, manage RFI/RFP processes, and partner with Engineering, Finance, and Legal to optimize sourcing, contracts, and stockpiling strategies, including government and industry

Qualifications

8+ years of experience in procurement, sourcing, supplier management, or commodity management, with direct exposure to critical minerals or their downstream products (e.g., germanium, gallium, rare earth magnets, tungsten, antimony, lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese).
Bachelor's degree in supply chain, engineering, or related technical field—or equivalent years of work experience (9+ years of total work experience).
Demonstrated experience navigating concentrated, geopolitically sensitive supply chains.
Ability to travel domestically and internationally up to 50% of the time, including travel to mines, refiners, and processors.
U.S. citizenship is required, due to program requirements.

Responsibilities

Own the commodity strategy for Germanium, with explicit focus on supply chain resilience, geopolitical risk mitigation (concentration in mining and refinement).
Identify and mitigate risks in the supply chain, ensuring resilience and reliability.
Maintain expert-level market intelligence and deliver regular updates on pricing, disruptions, and geopolitical signals.
Conduct market research and stay ahead of industry trends to inform strategic decisions.
Host cross-functional tag-ups, lead strategy reviews, and conduct executive briefings on market conditions and mitigation plans.
Develop and execute sourcing strategies that align with program goals for cost, quality, and delivery.
Lead RFI/RFQ/RFP processes across miners, refiners, processors, and component suppliers.
Lead supplier negotiations on a first principles basis to secure best-in-class terms; perform should-cost and TCO analysis and maintain cost models to deliver on competitiveness targets.
Negotiate key agreements (offtake, pricing, capacity reservations, payment terms) suited to volatile, concentrated markets.
Evaluate and recommend strategic interventions (stockpiling, prepayments, JVs, equity investments, vertical integration), partnering with Corporate Development and Finance.
Build and maintain strong supplier relationships, from initial RFIs to contract execution and beyond.
Build trusted relationships with suppliers, industry associations, and U.S./allied government bodies (DoD, DPA Title III, DLA, DOE); represent Rocket Lab externally for germanium.
Engage with Legal/Contracts to establish the right contractual framework to support our programs and commodity strategy.
Drive continuous improvement in supplier performance through metrics, scorecards, and regular reviews.