Senior Strategic Sourcing Manager

Jobtailor; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 110,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Jobtailor in Houston is seeking a senior sourcing professional to design and execute multi-year category strategies across specialty chemicals and regulated manufacturing. You will lead RFx events, negotiate contracts, and drive supplier collaboration to reduce total cost of ownership while maintaining compliance.

The role requires deep analytical skills, risk management, and the ability to communicate strategy and risk to senior stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Develop multi-year category strategies aligned with objectives, forecasts, and market dynamics.
• Lead RFx processes, negotiations, and supplier selection for strategic categories.
• Negotiate and manage contracts with pricing, SLAs, and risk-sharing provisions.
• Identify, qualify, and segment suppliers to support supply assurance and sustainability.
• Establish supplier performance metrics across cost, quality, delivery, and EHS.
• Mitigate supply risks including capacity constraints and regulatory exposure.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute category strategies aligned with business objectives.
• Analyze global supply markets, costs, and risk profiles to inform sourcing decisions.
• Drive TCO improvements through negotiation and supplier collaboration.
• Lead make/buy assessments for new product development and scale-up.
• Communicate sourcing strategy and risks to senior stakeholders.

Skills

Category strategy development

Negotiation

Supplier management

Advanced analytics

Risk management

Cross-functional leadership

Communication to stakeholders

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related field

Tools

SAP

Ariba

Coupa

Job description

Requirements

Develop and execute multi-year category strategies aligned with business objectives, demand forecasts, and market dynamics.
Analyze global supply markets, cost structures, and risk profiles to inform sourcing decisions.
Drive total cost of ownership (TCO) improvements through negotiation, supplier collaboration, value engineering, and demand optimization.
Lead make/buy assessments and sourcing decisions supporting new product development, scale-up, and process changes.
Identify, qualify, and segment suppliers to support supply assurance, innovation, and sustainability objectives.
Lead RFx processes, commercial negotiations, and supplier selection decisions for strategically important categories.
Negotiate and manage contracts, including pricing mechanisms, service levels, allocation terms, and risk-sharing provisions.
Establish and review supplier performance metrics covering cost, quality, delivery, innovation, and EHS compliance.
Drive supplier development and continuous improvement initiatives.
Proactively assess and mitigate supply risks, including capacity constraints, regulatory exposure, geopolitical risk, and single-source dependencies.
Develop and maintain contingency plans, dual-sourcing strategies, and inventory risk mitigation approaches.
Communicate sourcing strategies, risks, and performance to senior stakeholders.

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or a related field.


• 7–12 years of progressive experience in strategic sourcing or procurement, preferably within specialty chemicals, materials, or regulated manufacturing.


• Demonstrated success in category strategy development, contract negotiation, and supplier management.


• Strong financial, analytical, and commercial acumen.


• Experience managing supply risk in complex, global supply markets.


• Direct experience sourcing specialty chemicals, custom/intermediate materials, or toll manufacturing services.


• Familiarity with chemical industry quality, regulatory, and EHS requirements.


• Experience leading or mentoring procurement professionals.


• Professional certifications such as CPSM, CSCP, or CIPS.


• Experience with ERP and e-sourcing tools (e.g., SAP, Ariba, Coupa).