Materials Planning & Supplier Operations Manager

SPECTRAFORCE; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 110,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

SPECTRAFORCE is seeking a Materials Planning & Supplier Operations Manager based in Indianapolis, IN. This role is crucial for ensuring the availability of materials and services to support uninterrupted manufacturing operations in a regulated environment.

The ideal candidate holds a Bachelor’s degree along with 5+ years of experience in materials planning and procurement, demonstrating strong MRP mastery. This position offers a starting pay of $55.00/hr, requiring onsite work to manage supplier performance and material readiness.

Qualifications

• 5+ years progressive experience in materials planning and procurement.
• Experience in pharmaceutical manufacturing supply operations.
• Ability to communicate effectively with stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Ensure end-to-end material and service availability.
• Own materials planning execution at site level.
• Lead root-cause analysis for production disruptions.

Skills

MRP mastery

Supplier performance management

Analytic thinking

Interpersonal skills

Education

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

Professional certification (CPIM, CSCP, PMP), or MBA preferred

Tools

ERP systems (D365, SAP)

Job description

Position Title: Materials Planning & Supplier Operations Manager

Work Location: Indianapolis, IN 46241

Assignment Duration: 18 Months

Work Schedule: 40 hours per week with flexibility required as the production site works 7 days a week.

Work Arrangement: Onsite at the manufacturing campus

Position Summary:

• The Manager, Materials Planning & Supplier Operations is accountable for ensuring end-to-end material and service availability required to support safe, compliant, and uninterrupted manufacturing operations at the Indianapolis manufacturing campus.
• This role integrates material planning, purchasing execution, supplier performance management, and site procurement for services and capital investments (CAPEX). The position plays a critical role in translating demand and investment needs into executable supply and sourcing strategies, improving planning stability, safeguarding production continuity, and enabling disciplined capital deployment across the site.
• The role is designed to operate effectively in a complex, multi-technology manufacturing environment and to scale with evolving operational scope.

Background & Context: This position supports The Organization's manufacturing operations by owning materials planning, procurement execution, and supplier management to maintain uninterrupted, compliant production in a regulated pharmaceutical environment.

Key Responsibilities:

• Materials Planning & MRP Governance: Own site-level materials planning execution, ensuring effective use of MRP logic, parameters, and planning calendars across operations.
• Drive time-phased, exception-based material planning to reduce replanning, manual overrides, and reactive purchasing.
• Lead root-cause analysis for material-driven production disruptions, including shortages, supplier constraints, and planning inaccuracies.
• Partner with Production Planning to ensure material feasibility is embedded in executable production schedules.
• Procurement Execution – Materials, Services & CAPEX: Own end to end procurement execution for Direct and indirect production materials, Site based services supporting manufacturing operations, Capital equipment and infrastructure (CAPEX).
• Ensure purchasing activities are compliant with global sourcing strategies, financial controls, and procurement policies.
• Provide governance and prioritization for CAPEX sourcing activities, ensuring alignment with project timelines, technical requirements, and budget constraints.
• Directly manage a dedicated CAPEX buyer, providing oversight, prioritization, and development.
• Supplier Performance & Risk Management: Own site level supplier performance for materials, services, and CAPEX, including delivery reliability, responsiveness, and issue resolution.
• Proactively identify and escal… supply, capacity, or commercial risks impacting production continuity or capital delivery.
• Drive corrective actions with suppliers, Engineering, Quality, and Global Procurement partners.
• Inventory Health & Asset Protection: Actively manage inventory risk, including excess, expired, blocked, slow-moving, and obsolete materials.
• Define coverage strategies and safety stocks aligned with criticality, lead times, and operational risk profiles.
• Support working capital optimization while protecting operational continuity.
• Cross Functional & Governance Leadership: Serve as the site owner for material readiness and procurement performance discussions in execution and escalation forums.
• Provide credible inputs into site S&OP processes, including material, supplier, and capacity risk scenarios.
• Establish and continuously improve planning, procurement, and supplier governance standards, KPIs, and ways of working across the site.
• Act as a capability builder for planners and buyers, reinforcing planning discipline, structured problem solving, and accountability.
• Compliance & Data Integrity: Ensure full compliance with GMP, SOX, financial controls, and procurement governance, including documentation and audit readiness.
• Maintain high data quality in ERP systems (D365, SAP), including material masters, purchasing info records, lead times, and planning parameters.

Qualification & Experience:

• Strong mastery of MRP, materials planning, and purchasing execution
• Pharmaceutical industry and GMP environment knowledge
• Proven experience managing services procurement and capital sourcing
• Supplier performance and risk management in regulated manufacturing
• Ability to operate across multiple operational interfaces (Manufacturing, Engineering, Quality, Finance)
• Structured decision-making under operational pressure
• Experience managing direct reports with distinct execution scopes (e.g., CAPEX)
• Ownership mindset with bias for prevention over reaction
• Clear, concise communication with technical and senior stakeholders
• Continuous improvement and standardization orientation
• Analytic thinker and problem solver.
• Sense of priorities and capacity to work under pressure
• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Engineering, Business, or related field. Professional certification (CPIM, CSCP, PMP), or MBA is preferred
• +5 years progressive experience in materials planning and procurement, in pharmaceutical manufacturing supply operations. Knowledge of nuclear medicine industry, including industry-specific supply chain challenges is a plus.
• Proven experience in driving Operational Excellence initiatives, including implementing systems and processes that enhance efficiency, quality, and cost optimization.
• Demonstrated ownership of end-to-end procurement execution, including suppliers, services, and/or capital equipment
• Proven ability to scale processes, governance, and teams as operational scope increases
• Highly proficient in organizational skills, with a strong orientation toward process management and project management to ensure seamless execution of supply chain activities.
• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build strong relationships and collaborate effectively across diverse teams and stakeholders.
• Preferred: Exposure to capital project environments; Experience supporting multiple manufacturing technologies or processes; Participation in site transformation or growth initiatives

Additional Information: Key Performance Indicators

• Supply & Execution: Production schedule adherence attributable to material readiness
• Number and severity of material? or supplier-driven production disruptions
• Supplier OTIF / delivery confirmation adherence
• Planning Stability: Replanning frequency caused by material or supplier constraints
• MRP exception aging and resolution speed
• Planning parameter adherence (lead times, safety stocks)
• Procurement & CAPEX: CAPEX sourcing cycle time vs. project milestones
• Compliance to procurement and financial controls
• Quality and timeliness of supplier issue resolution
• Inventory & Cost: Inventory value vs. target by material class
• Inventory write-offs / expiry
• Expedite, premium freight, and unplanned procurement costs
• Direct and Indirect Annual Budget managed effectively
• For information on benefits, equal opportunity employment, and location-specific applicant notices, click here

At SPECTRAFORCE, we are committed to maintaining a workplace that ensures fair compensation and wage transparency in adherence with all applicable state and local laws. This position's starting pay is: $55.00/hr.