Senior Buyer: Strategic Sourcing & Supplier Leadership

Steele Solutions; Milwaukee (WI); On-site; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Collaborative culture

Impactful growth opportunities

Competitive pay & benefits

Volunteer days

Job summary

Steele Solutions Inc. is seeking a Senior Buyer to drive strategic sourcing, purchasing execution, and supplier performance across the supply chain. You will collaborate with Production, Inventory, Quality, Engineering, and Accounting to meet production schedules and customer commitments.

The role emphasizes mentoring junior buyers, improving forecasting, and reducing costs through supplier relations, data analysis, and process improvements in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in supply chain or a related field required.
• 3–5 years of previous supply chain experience required.
• Demonstrated experience negotiating supplier pricing, contracts, lead times, and commercial agreements.
• ERP/MRP system experience required; Epicor experience preferred.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel.

Responsibilities

• Review MRP requirements and procure materials, components, and outsourced services to support production schedules and customer commitments.
• Develop, maintain, and strengthen supplier relationships through effective communication, collaboration, accountability, and performance management.
• Lead supplier negotiations related to pricing, lead times, service levels, and commercial terms while identifying opportunities for cost savings and supply chain optimization.
• Monitor supplier performance and proactively manage delivery commitments, shortages, capacity constraints, quality concerns, and other supply risks to ensure continuity of operations.
• Analyze supplier and purchasing data to identify trends, mitigate risks, and support continuous improvement initiatives that enhance purchasing processes, supplier performance, and operational efficiency.
• Develop and maintain accurate forecasts in partnership with the Supply Chain team to improve material availability, inventory performance, and production planning.
• Resolve supply chain issues by expediting deliveries, coordinating quality concerns, and addressing purchasing, receiving, and invoice discrepancies in collaboration with suppliers and internal stakeholders.
• Maintain accurate purchasing, supplier, lead-time, pricing, planning, and forecasting data within the ERP system to support operational and inventory objectives.
• Partner cross-functionally with Production, Inventory, Quality, Engineering, Accounting, and other departments to support business needs, improve processes, and achieve organizational goals.
• Support supplier qualification, evaluation, and development efforts to improve supplier reliability, quality, and overall performance.
• Serve as a subject matter expert for procurement processes and best practices while assisting with the onboarding, training, and mentoring of buyers and other Supply Chain team members.
• Support organizational objectives by balancing cost, quality, delivery, inventory, and service requirements while driving supply chain performance improvements.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Purchasing Manager or other operational leaders.

Skills

Analytical skills

Strong communication

Problem solving

Organizational skills

Attention to detail

Cross-functional collaboration

Time management

Education

Bachelor's degree in supply chain or related field

Tools

Epicor ERP

Excel

Job description

Steele Solutions Inc. is seeking a Senior Buyer to drive strategic sourcing, purchasing execution, and supplier performance across the supply chain. You will collaborate with Production, Inventory, Quality, Engineering, and Accounting to meet production schedules and customer commitments.

The role emphasizes mentoring junior buyers, improving forecasting, and reducing costs through supplier relations, data analysis, and process improvements in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.