Senior Principal Supply Chain Engineer — HDD Innovation

Western Digital Corp.; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid vacation time

Medical/dental/vision insurance

Employee stock purchase plan

WD Savings 401(k) Plan

Tuition reimbursement

Job summary

Western Digital Corp. is seeking a Supply Chain Innovation Manager to partner with suppliers and internal teams, driving new technologies, cost reductions, and resilient supply chains.

You will lead design‑for‑manufacturability initiatives, analyze trade‑offs, and scale supplier innovations to support long‑term growth. The role sits at the intersection of supply chain, engineering, and operations, requiring data‑driven problem solving, collaboration, and strong communication across technical and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a technical field as listed (required).
• Extensive experience in supply chain engineering, manufacturing engineering, supplier development, or related roles.
• Experience working directly with suppliers on technical, operational, or cost‑reduction initiatives.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills with a data‑driven mindset.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally as needed.

Responsibilities

• Partner with suppliers to evaluate, pilot, and scale new technologies, processes, and materials that improve cost, performance, quality, and time‑to‑market.
• Serve as a technical interface between suppliers and internal engineering, manufacturing, quality, and procurement teams.
• Identify and drive supplier‑led innovation opportunities aligned with product and supply chain roadmaps.
• Lead initiatives to reduce total cost of ownership through design‑for‑manufacturability, process optimization, automation, yield improvement, and lifecycle cost analysis.
• Evaluate trade‑offs across cost, quality, risk, sustainability, and scalability to inform sourcing and technology decisions.
• Support should‑cost modeling and fact‑based negotiations through deep technical and process understanding.
• Assess and improve supplier capacity, scalability, and technical readiness to support current and future business demand.
• Drive initiatives to improve supplier operational maturity, including process capability, equipment readiness, workforce skills, and digitalization.
• Partner with supply chain and operations teams to strengthen supplier resilience, including dual sourcing, risk mitigation, and recovery planning.
• Collaborate with suppliers and internal quality teams to improve process capability, reduce variability, and prevent escapes.
• Lead root cause analysis and corrective action for systemic supplier issues.
• Promote continuous improvement methodologies (e.g., Lean, Six Sigma, SPC) across the supplier base.
• Support supplier sustainability initiatives related to environmental impact, energy efficiency, waste reduction, and responsible sourcing.
• Work closely with engineering, manufacturing, quality, procurement, finance, and program management teams to align priorities and execution.
• Communicate complex technical and supply chain topics clearly to both technical and non‑technical stakeholders.
• Influence to drive alignment and results across organizational boundaries.

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Mechanical, Material Science, Electronics, Physics, Chemical, Supply Chain, Operations, or a related technical field

Master’s degree in Engineering, Mechanical, Material Science, Electronics, Physics, Chemical, Supply Chain, Operations, or a related technical field, and MBA

Supply chain engineering

Supplier development

Data-driven mindset

Travel domestically and internationally

Job description

Western Digital Corp. is seeking a Supply Chain Innovation Manager to partner with suppliers and internal teams, driving new technologies, cost reductions, and resilient supply chains.

You will lead design‑for‑manufacturability initiatives, analyze trade‑offs, and scale supplier innovations to support long‑term growth. The role sits at the intersection of supply chain, engineering, and operations, requiring data‑driven problem solving, collaboration, and strong communication across technical and