Manager Vendor Master Data

Thornton Tomasetti; North Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 100,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement plan

Tuition reimbursement

Education benefits

Job summary

Abbott Park, IL seeks a Vendor Master Data Manager to lead data governance for supplier records across North America and global processes. You will manage a multidisciplinary team and third-party providers, ensuring data quality and compliance across ERP systems.

The role requires strong leadership, data management expertise, and collaboration with Procurement, Finance, IT, and business process owners to drive global initiatives and data readiness.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Accounting, Supply Chain, IS, or related field.
• 5+ years in Master Data Management or related functional area.
• 2+ years leading a team.
• Experience with ERP platforms SAP ECC, SAP S/4HANA, SAP MDG, Ariba or equivalent.
• Strong analytical, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities across geographies and functions.

Responsibilities

• Lead vendor master data analysts and a 3rd party provider; coach and mentor team members.
• Ensure accurate supplier master data across systems with governance and quality controls.
• Collaborate with Procurement, Finance, IT and ERP teams; report on data quality metrics.
• Serve as primary escalation point for vendor master issues and inquiries.
• Support data migrations, data mapping, testing, and master data readiness activities.
• Drive continuous improvement and cross-functional process changes.
• Support audits and data governance controls across regions.
• Assist in organizational changes impacting vendor master data and governance.

Skills

People Leadership

Data Governance

Data Management

Analytical Thinking

Stakeholder Management

Process Improvement

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business/Finance/Accounting/IS

Tools

SAP MDG

SAP ECC

SAP S/4HANA

Ariba

ServiceNow

Job description

Abbott is a global healthcare leader that helps people live more fully at all stages of life. Our portfolio of life-changing technologies spans the spectrum of healthcare, with leading businesses and products in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic medicines. Our 122,000 colleagues serve people in more than 160 countries.

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Working at Abbott At Abbott, you can do work that matters, grow, and learn, care for yourself and family, be your true self and live a full life. You’ll also have access to:

• Career development with an international company where you can grow the career you dream of .
• Free medical coverage for employees* via the Health Investment Plan (HIP) PPO
• An excellent retirement savings plan with high employer contribution
• Tuition reimbursement, the Freedom 2 Save student debt program and FreeU education benefit - an affordable and convenient path to getting a bachelor’s degree.
• A company recognized as a great place to work in dozens of countries around the world and named one of the most admired companies in the world by Fortune.
• A company that is recognized as one of the best big companies to work for as well as a best place to work for diversity, working mothers, female executives, and scientists.

The Opportunity

The Vendor Master Data Manager is responsible for supporting business operations within North America (US, Puerto Rico, and Canada) while also supporting MDG global processes as needed. This includes managing a team of both internal employees and external service providers and also provides hands on support for master data in multiple ERP applications. This role will ensure that vendor master governance processes and quality of the vendor master data is met; while also supporting existing data standards, business rules, and monitoring performance metrics. Our location in Abbott Park, IL currently has an opportunity for a Vendor Master Data Manager. The candidate will lead a team located in different geographies.

What You’ll Work On:

• People Leadership: Manage a team of vendor master data analysts and coordinators, as well as 3rd party provider. Coach and mentor team members in developing technical, business process and system expertise. Foster a culture of accountability, continuous improvement and customer service excellence.
• Data Management & Governance / Quality: Ensure accurate supplier master data across multiple systems while adhering to governance rules and ensuring consistency across applications. Monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) related to data quality, operational effectiveness and compliance. Partner with business and technology teams to report and monitor on data quality objectives. Review and approve complex vendor data requests and exception transactions. Oversee operational activities supporting vendor onboarding, maintenance and deactivation processes.
• Stakeholder Collaboration & Communication: Establish and maintain working relationships with internal stakeholders, including Procurement, Finance, IT, ERP support teams and business process owners. Serve as primary point of escalation for vendor master related issues and inquiries.
• System Expertise & Support: Become Subject Matter Expert for supported systems and provide guidance/consultation regarding vendor master data policies, standards and processes. Provide guidance and expertise to other vendor master leads in the organization.
• Project & Global Support: Contribute to and support local and global initiatives, ensuring alignment with business objectives and successful project execution. Support data migration, data mapping, testing and master data readiness activities are met. Participate as needed in project planning, requirements gathering, solution design, and user acceptance testing.
• Continuous Improvement: Support a culture of continuous improvement and collaborate cross functionally to raise potential process improvements and implementation efforts.
• Compliance & Audit: Participate and provide support in internal and external audit activities, ensuring adherence to policies, governance standards, and data integrity requirements. Support periodic reviews of system access and data governance controls.
• Change Management: Support implementation of organizational, process, and system changes impacting vendor master data. Facilitate stakeholder engagement, knowledge transfer, and adoption of new processes and technologies. Ensure consistent execution of vendor master data governance practices across functions and geographies.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Accounting, Supply Chain, Information Systems, Data Analytics, or a related discipline.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in Master Data Management, Vendor Master Data, Procurement Operations, Shared Services, Finance, ERP support, or a related function.
• Minimum 2 years of experience leading, supervising, mentoring, or coordinating a team.
• Experience working with ERP platforms such as SAP ECC, SAP S/4HANA, SAP MDG, Ariba, or equivalent enterprise systems.
• Experience managing operational processes, service level agreements, and performance metrics.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and work across functional and geographic boundaries.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience leading a Vendor Master Data, Customer Master Data, Material Master Data, or Data Governance function.
• Experience supporting global operations and shared services organizations.
• Experience with SAP MDG, SAP ECC, SAP S/4HANA, Ariba, ServiceNow, and related enterprise applications.
• Knowledge of supplier onboarding, procurement, accounts payable, compliance, and supplier risk management processes.
• Experience supporting ERP implementations, acquisitions, divestitures, system migrations, and business transformation initiatives.
• Lean