Senior Sourcing Specialist

Duke Energy; United States; On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work arrangement

Travel up to 50%

Job summary

Duke Energy is seeking a Senior Sourcing Specialist to lead strategic sourcing for potential new nuclear generation, driving high‑value procurement across materials, equipment, engineering, construction, and services. You will manage opportunity assessment, supplier readiness, RFIs/RFPs, negotiations, and governance to ensure compliant, risk-aware sourcing aligned with project milestones.

Collaborate across Nuclear BU, PMC, Engineering, Legal, Finance, and Cybersecurity to deliver value with

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree plus 5 years related work experience, or HS/GED plus 9 years related work experience.
• Working knowledge of nuclear procurement and quality requirements (safety-related & non-safety-related materials/equipment/services).

Responsibilities

• Pipeline and Category Management: develop and manage a forward-looking sourcing pipeline for nuclear plant needs and associated records.
• Sourcing Strategy Development: create fit-for-purpose strategies for high-value materials, equipment, and services aligned with milestones.
• Strategy Execution and Governance: lead RFIs/RFPs, evaluations, awards, and ensure proper approvals and documentation.
• Negotiation and Commercial Value Delivery: lead supplier negotiations, develop should-cost models, and drive cost savings.
• Risk, Compliance and Quality: identify risks and ensure compliance with nuclear procurement requirements.
• Supplier Qualification, Performance, and Corrective Action: evaluate suppliers, monitor performance, and manage actions.
• Business Partner, Project, and Stakeholder Management: align with Nuclear BU, PMC, Engineering, Legal, Finance, and other teams.
• Change Management and Continuous Improvement: improve processes, governance, and visibility.
• Leadership and Knowledge Sharing: coach teams and develop templates and playbooks.

Skills

Sourcing strategy

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Data-driven decision making

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Microsoft Word

Excel

PowerPoint

Outlook/Teams

CoPilot AI

Job description

Senior Sourcing Specialist

More than a career - a chance to make a difference in people's lives. Build an exciting, rewarding career with us – help us make a difference for millions of people every day. Consider joining the Duke Energy team, where you'll find a friendly work environment, opportunities for growth and development, recognition for your work, and competitive pay and benefits.

This Senior Sourcing Specialist position is the third level of the Nuclear Sourcing classification hierarchy and is responsible for developing and executing strategic sourcing plans in support of evaluating potential new nuclear generation. The role supports high-value, complex, and risk-sensitive procurement of nuclear materials, equipment, long-lead items, engineering, construction, fabrication, testing, logistics, warehousing, and services needed to support evaluation of potential new nuclear project development and execution.

This position leads opportunity assessment, internal supply chain analysis, supply-market assessment, sourcing strategy development, bid execution, negotiation, supplier readiness and performance support, and institutionalization of sourcing strategies. The role requires a proven track record in sourcing and negotiating extremely complex, high-value categories of spend while minimizing risk and protecting Duke Energy’s technical, commercial, regulatory, financial, schedule, and reputational interests.

A successful candidate will operate with an enterprise mindset, work proactively with the Nuclear Business Unit, Project Management & Construction (PMC), Nuclear Operations, Engineering, Project Controls, Legal, Finance, Treasury/Tax, Cybersecurity, Credit Risk, Insurance, Quality/Nuclear Oversight, and supplier stakeholders, and build alignment across silos. Success requires strong judgment, nuclear contract process discipline, data-driven decision making, executive-ready communication, commercial acumen, and the ability to deliver actionable results with minimal oversight.

The individual is expected to challenge assumptions, improve sourcing governance, support supplier readiness, drive value through competition and negotiation, and ensure all sourcing actions comply with applicable nuclear procurement, quality, regulatory, and commercial requirements. Employees at this level are fully competent in applicable concepts and procedures, work independently on most assignments, identify problems, develop solutions, and elevate unusual or complex issues appropriately.

Responsibilities

• Pipeline and Category Management: Develop, maintain, and actively manage a forward-looking sourcing pipeline, including forecasted, and long-lead equipment/material/service needs. Develop new nuclear plant category plans, assess potential spend, demand, supplier capacity, market dynamics, technical constraints, and long-term risks. Maintain potential new plant category plans and sourcing records in approved procurement and document-retention systems.
• Sourcing Strategy Development: Develop fit-for-purpose sourcing strategies for complex, high-value, high-risk materials, equipment, engineering, construction, fabrication, testing, transportation, warehousing, and professional services. Align sourcing strategies with project delivery milestones, engineering readiness, supplier qualification status, quality requirements, risk posture, tax/credit requirements, and enterprise value objectives.
• Strategy Execution and Governance: Lead RFIs, RFPs, bid events, objective criteria-based evaluations, award recommendations, commercial governance reviews, contract releases, purchase order releases, and supplier onboarding. Ensure appropriate decision gates, approvals, documentation, and records are completed before award or release. Drive disciplined handoffs from sourcing to contract management, supplier performance management, project controls, and business unit execution teams.
• Negotiation and Commercial Value Delivery: Lead negotiations with supplier management on pricing, escalation, payment terms, schedule commitments, milestone structure, warranty, remedies, change management, intellectual property, confidentiality, audit rights, flow-down obligations, and other commercial value drivers. Develop should-cost models, market and index analyses, historical benchmarks, and total-cost-of-ownership alternatives to drive defensible cost savings, cost avoidance, and value protection.
• Risk, Compliance and Quality Requirements: Identify, document, and escalation technical, regulatory, contractual, financial, credit, insurance, cybersecurity, domestic content, FEOC, IRA, prevailing wage/apprenticeship, logistics, quality, and supplier capacity risks. Coordinate with Legal, Tax/Treasury, Credit Risk, Insurance, Cybersecurity, Engineering, Nuclear Oversight/Quality, and other SMEs to ensure sourcing decisions protect Duke Energy and comply with applicable nuclear procurement requirements.
• Supplier Qualification, Performance, and Corrective Action: Evaluate suppliers and sub-suppliers for nuclear-grade capability, quality program maturity, delivery history, financial stability, capacity, workforce readiness, geopolitical exposure, documentation/traceability, and ability to support project milestones. Monitor supplier commitments and performance, support corrective actions, resolve escalated issues, and communicate recurring risks through appropriate performance metrics and governance forums.
• Business Partner, Project, and Stakeholder Management: Serve as a strategic supply chain partner to Nuclear Business Unit, Project Management & Construction (PMC), Nuclear Operations, Engineering, Project Controls, Legal, Finance, Tax, and project execution teams. Translate technical and project needs into sourcing requirements, educate stakeholders on nuclear sourcing requirements, and build alignment across business units and suppliers to achieve optimal technical, commercial, schedule, and risk outcomes.
• Change Management and Continuous Improvement: Identify how sourcing decisions affect stakeholders, processes, project controls, schedules, supplier readiness, and long-term operations. Support implementation plans, lessons learned, digital visibility, status reporting, and continuous improvement of sourcing processes, supplier readiness reviews, templates, and governance tools.
• Leadership and Knowledge Sharing: Provide cross-training, coaching, and guidance to sourcing personnel and business partners. Develop job aids, sourcing templates, evaluation criteria, negotiation playbooks, and procedural guidance to strengthen New Nuclear Generation sourcing capability and nuclear procedural compliance.

Required/Basic Qualifications

Bachelor's degree 5 years related work experience In lieu of Bachelor's degree(s) AND 5 year(s) related work experience listed above, High School/GED AND 9 year(s) related work experience Must possess, or obtain within 3 months of start, Position Specific Guide qualifications for both materials and services sourcing: NSCD-285A Nuclear Sourcing Purchase Order PSG and NSCD-284B Nuclear Sourcing Contract PSG. Working knowledge of nuclear procurement and quality requirements for safety-related and non-safety-related materials, equipment, and services, including NRC, NUPIC, ASME NQA-1, 10 CFR Part 21, and 10 CFR Part 50 Appendix B concepts.

Preferred Qualifications

Graduate Degree C.P.M. (Certified Purchasing Manager), CPSM (Certified Professional in Supply Management) certification, or CSCP (Certified Supply Chain Professional) Demonstrated experience leading sourcing events, evaluating supplier proposals, negotiating complex commercial terms, developing total-cost-of-ownership analyses, and resolving supplier/contract issues. Ability to identify and coordinate mitigation of legal, credit, insurance, tax, cybersecurity, quality, regulatory, domestic content, FEOC, IRA, prevailing wage/apprenticeship, logistics, and supplier performance risks. Strong written and verbal communication skills; ability to influence across business units, engineering, project controls, legal, finance, suppliers, and leadership while operating with minimal supervision. Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook/Teams, CoPilot AI, and applicable procurement, contract, ERP, document retention, sourcing, and reporting tools used by Duke Energy.

Demonstrated sourcing experience supporting new nuclear construction, major capital projects, long-lead item procurement, EPC/constructor interfaces, supplier readiness reviews, modular construction, or nuclear-grade manufacturing supply chains. Demonstrated capability to develop supplier evaluation criteria, readiness review tools, should-cost models, risk registers, governance materials, and executive-ready sourcing recommendations.

Strong working knowledge of nuclear electric utility operations, nuclear quality assurance, nuclear safety culture, supplier surveillance, documentation/traceability, CFSI prevention, and source inspection practices. Experience negotiating high-value contracts with complex pricing, schedule, quality, warranty, audit, change management, and risk allocation provisions.

Graduate degree in Supply Chain, Business, Engineering, Finance, Construction Management, Project Management, or related field. C.P.M., CPSM, CSCP, CPIM, PMP, or similar sourcing, supply chain, project management, or technical certification.

Completion of the EPRI Nuclear Utility Procurement Course or comparable nuclear procurement/quality training.

Working Conditions

Hybrid Mobility Classification – Work will be performed from both remote and onsite locations after the onboarding period. However, hybrid employees must live within a reasonable commute to their designated Duke Energy facility, not greater than 50 miles one way. Employees are expected to report to their assigned Duke Energy facility as required and directed by their manager, on average 3 full workdays per regular workweek.

Office Setting

Periodic meetings at Duke Energy facilities, project sites, supplier locations, fabrication/manufacturing facilities, and industry conferences.

25-50% travel required for plant/site visits, supplier readiness reviews, audits, source inspections, commercial negotiations, logistics planning, project reviews, and vendor performance meetings.

Work may involve time-sensitive sourcing decisions, supplier escalations, regulatory/quality requirements, executive review materials, and coordination across multiple internal and external stakeholders.

Specific Requirements

Bachelor's degree + 5 years work experience OR Associate's degree + 7 years work experience OR HS/GED + 9 years work experience Travel Requirements 25-50% Relocation Assistance Provided (as applicable) No Represented/Union Position No Visa Sponsored Position No. This is not a Visa Sponsored Position. This role requires the ability to work lawfully in the U.S. without employment-based immigration sponsorship, now or in the future.

Diversity & Inclusion

Read about our commitment to supporting a diverse and inclusive workforce. Duke Energy values ideas that come from a diverse and inclusive workforce, and we’re dedicated to providing a work environment where all people are valued, respected and able to reach their full potential. Duke Energy is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, including but not limited to lactation, religion, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, citizenship, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, physical or mental disability, genetic information, medical condition, military status, or protected veteran status.

Duke Energy complies with all applicable state, federal and local laws, regulations and ordinances prohibiting discrimination.