Lead Global Supply Manager - Interior & Exterior

Rivian; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Rivian is seeking a Lead Global Supply Manager in Irvine, CA to own strategic sourcing and lifecycle management for vehicle programs such as R1, R2, R3, and E-DVs. You will lead complex projects, optimize supplier relationships, and drive cost targets with minimal oversight.

You will partner with Interiors, Seating & Restraints, Exteriors & Lighting, or Closures teams, ensuring on-time delivery while mitigating risk in a fast-paced, high-spend environment. Travel up to 25% may be required.

Qualifications

• Education and Experience: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain or Engineering and a minimum of 6 years of direct procurement experience.
• Domain Expertise: Significant experience managing end-to-end procurement lifecycles; proven ability to drive commodity strategies for next-gen platforms.
• Commodity-Specific Experience: 6 to 10 years in automotive commodity groups, Interiors/Seating/Restraints/Exteriors within high-volume manufacturing.
• Technical Skills: SAP and analytical tools; identify should-cost opportunities prior to cost estimation.
• Communication: Exceptional interpersonal skills with clear vision and buy-in.
• Execution: Resolve complex problems involving multiple variables and stakeholders; mitigate risks.
• Operational Style: Manage complex workloads with little supervision; act as cross-functional advisor.
• Travel Requirements: Willingness to travel 10-25% as needed.

Responsibilities

• Sourcing: Lead large projects with medium-high vehicle spend for interiors, seating & restraints, exteriors, or closures.
• Systems & Process: Use procurement systems and onboard/train new team members.
• Technical Understanding: Manage complex assemblies and high-cost commodities to support next vehicle program.
• Negotiations: Negotiate terms with limited legal involvement and use non-monetary tradeoffs.
• Supplier Management: Maintain relationships at supplier Senior Management level and manage sub-suppliers.
• Stakeholder Management: Communicate risk and enable timely decision-making.
• Project Management & Risk Mitigation: Lead projects autonomously and map/mitigate risks to completion.

Skills

Negotiation

Supplier management

Stakeholder management

Project management

Risk mitigation

Execution

Communication

Travel readiness

Analytical thinking

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, or Engineering

6+ years procurement experience

Tools

SAP

Analytical tools

Job description

The Rivian Supply Chain team is looking for highly motivated and strategic purchasing leaders to bring Rivian’s engineered products to life. As a Lead Global Supply Manager, you are an advanced individual contributor and subject matter expert responsible for the strategic sourcing, supplier selection, and multi-generational lifecycle management for our vehicle programs, including R1, R2, R3, and Electric Delivery Vehicles.

In this role, you lead the commercial relationship for our most complex domains, partnering closely with cross-functional leadership to architect the future of our innovative technical requirements. You act autonomously to manage several large projects with significant spend, navigating changing economic and political landscapes to prevent production risks. You are responsible for ensuring Rivian meets aggressive cost targets and timelines while solving systemic challenges that affect long-term project health. We are looking for an expert thinker who is passionate about optimizing the sourcing process and driving organizational stability through advanced negotiation and risk prevention.

This onsite position is located in Irvine, CA, with multiple openings available across four distinct teams within the Interiors & Exteriors department. Depending on your skills and experience, this role will report directly to the Group Manager for one of the following areas: Interiors, Seating & Restraints, Exteriors & Lighting, or Closures.

Responsibilities:

• Sourcing: Concurrently lead several large projects with medium-high vehicle spend for one of the following commodity teams; Interiors, Seating & Restraints, Exteriors & Lighting, or Closures. Drive the competitive bid process with little to no leadership direction and lead Director-level communications and reviews.
• Systems & Process: Act as an expert user of supply chain systems to support business needs. Lead the onboarding and training of new team members to procurement systems.
• Technical Understanding: Apply significant experience managing complex assemblies and/or multiple high cost commodities to drive a strategy that supports the next vehicle program. Identify risks proactively to maintain a neutral position for the organization.
• Negotiations: Negotiate most commercial terms with very limited legal involvement. Actively apply creative thinking in negotiations by utilizing non-monetary tradeoffs to achieve Rivian targets.
• Supplier Management: Maintain strong relationships at the supplier Senior Management level. Drive accountability and resolve conflicts with minimal escalation while maintaining a robust understanding of sub-suppliers through raw materials.
• Stakeholder Management: Leverage industry knowledge to build strong internal and external relationships. Proactively communicate valuable information to stakeholders to mitigate risk and enable timely decision-making.
• Project Management & Risk Mitigation: Lead large-scale projects with autonomy. Proactively identify and mitigate risks through detailed risk mapping and see resolutions through to completion.

Qualifications:

• Education and Experience: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, or Engineering and a minimum of 6 years of direct procurement experience.
• Domain Expertise: Significant experience managing end-to-end procurement lifecycles; proven ability to drive commodity strategies for next-gen platforms.
• Commodity-Specific Experience: 6 to 10 years of demonstrated experience managing complex automotive commodity groups, with specialized expertise across interiors, seating and restraints, exteriors, glazing, and closures within a high-volume manufacturing environment.
• Technical Skills: Expert user of SAP and analytical tools; ability to identify should-cost opportunities prior to engaging cost estimation groups.
• Communication: Exceptional interpersonal skills; ability to facilitate productive conversations and gain buy-in with a clear vision.
• Execution: Proven ability to resolve complex problems involving multiple variables and stakeholders; implements comprehensive risk mitigation.
• Operational Style: Acts instinctively to manage and prioritize complex workloads with little manager input; serves as a cross-functional advisor.
• Travel Requirements: Ability and willingness to travel as needed based on business needs, expected to average between 10-25 % .