Snr Director, Purchasing Direct Materials

Socket.dev; Plymouth (MI); On-site; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Tenneco, a leading automotive supplier, is seeking a Purchasing Director for Direct Materials in Plymouth, MI. You will shape direct-material strategies, negotiate with suppliers, and drive cost reductions while ensuring supply continuity and quality across programs.

You will partner with Operations, Finance, Engineering, and Quality to translate market intelligence into actionable savings and working-capital improvements, leading a high-performing team and upholding governance and ethical

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field.
• 10+ years directing direct-material purchasing and sourcing.
• Strong knowledge of carbon steel and stainless steel markets.
• Experience leading supplier negotiations and cost reduction.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute direct-material commodity and supplier strategies aligned with business and financial objectives.
• Lead purchasing actions related to commodity movements, tariffs, and supply-base optimization.
• Drive savings, working-capital improvements, and cost-out opportunities through negotiation and localization.
• Partner with Operations, Finance, Engineering, Quality, and Program Management to translate priorities into measurable results.
• Lead a high-performing direct-material purchasing team with clear priorities and governance.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Cost reduction

Negotiation

Cross-functional leadership

Financial analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree

Materials background

Job description

At Tenneco, we don’t follow industry standards; we set them, and we don’t settle for being best-in-class because we hustle to be better than best-in-class. Whether it’s our Core Values – radical candor, simplify, organizational velocity, tenacious execution and win – or our Get Stuff Done (GSD) mindset, we’re determined to become the most trusted partner and best manufacturer and distributor to the transportation industry.

With a product portfolio as expansive as it is innovative, an obsessive commitment to quality and excellence, and a global presence, we’re all about getting stuff done, so we can win.

How do we make it happen?Through the Tenneco Way. Fueled by our Core Values, a winning mindset and a relentless commitment to excellence, the Tenneco Way is how we win. It’s what keeps Team Tenneco bold, driven, and unapologetically focused on pushing past limits and redefining success.

Want to learn more about who we are? Check out our website to discover the Tenneco Way

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Purchasing Director, Direct Materials is responsible for developing and executing purchasing strategies that deliver material cost improvement, supply continuity, quality, working-capital performance, and long-term competitiveness.

This leader oversees direct-material sourcing, commodity management, supplier negotiations, programpurchasing, supplier performance, and supply-risk mitigation. The role partners closely with Operations, Finance, Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Commercial, and Program Management to translate business priorities and market intelligence into measurable results.

The successful candidate will have strong automotive direct-material purchasing experience and demonstrated knowledge of carbon steel and stainless steel markets, including cost drivers, index mechanisms, conversion economics, tariffs, trade actions, regional supply dynamics, and supplier structures.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategy and Financial Performance

• Develop and execute direct-material commodity and supplier strategies aligned with business and financial objectives.
• Lead the purchasing business plan, forecast, annual operating plan, and material-cost outlook.
• Deliver validated cost savings and working-capital improvements through negotiation, competitive sourcing, localization, VAVE, supplier productivity, payment terms, and supply-base optimization.
• Lead purchasing actions related to commodity movements, tariffs, duties, freight, foreign exchange, and economic recovery.
• Ensure savings, forecasts, and financial assumptions are accurate, documented, and aligned with Finance.
• Partner cross-functionally to identify cost opportunities, support customer recovery, and resolve issues affecting cost, quality, delivery, cash, launches, or supply continuity.

Commodity and Metals Expertise

• Maintain strong knowledge of carbon steel and stainless steel markets, supply chains, and commercial practices.
• Understand key metals-market drivers, including raw materials, alloy surcharges, energy, mill capacity, regional supply and demand, product form, conversion costs, freight, tariffs, and published indices.
• Evaluate market and index movements to validate supplier pricing and develop effective negotiation and index-based agreement strategies.
• Understand the economics of mills, service centers, processors, stampers, fabricators, and other tiers within the metals supply chain.
• Apply market-based analysis to other assigned direct-material commodities.

Strategic Sourcing and Supplier Management

• Lead major supplier negotiations involving cost, productivity, payment terms, contracts, capacity, tooling, quality, delivery, and commercial claims.
• Make sourcing decisions based on total cost, capability, capacity, quality, delivery, financial condition, geographic exposure, and launch readiness.
• Develop executive relationships with strategic suppliers while maintaining clear commercial and performance expectations.
• Drive supply-base optimization through localization, Best Cost Country sourcing, dual sourcing, rationalization, and alternative-source development.
• Serve as the senior purchasing escalation point for significant supplier issues.
• Ensure supplier selections and agreements comply with purchasing policies, competitive-bidding requirements, and authorization levels.

Supply Risk and Supplier Performance

• Identify and mitigate supplier risks related to capacity, financial health, quality, delivery, logistics, geopolitical events, trade restrictions, sole sourcing, tooling, and raw-material availability.
• Develop contingency plans for high-risk suppliers and commodities, including alternate sources, capacity options, tooling plans, and decision triggers.
• Partner with Operations and Supply Chain to balance continuity of supply, inventory, lead time, and working-capital requirements.
• Lead performance reviews and corrective-action plans for strategic, constrained, and underperforming suppliers.
• Partner with Supplier Development and Quality to improve supplier performance.

People Leadership and Governance

• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing direct-material purchasing team with clear priorities, accountability, and succession plans.
• Build team capability in commodity management, negotiation, financial analysis, supplier management, and executive communication.
• Ensure purchasing activities comply with company policies, delegation-of-authority requirements, contractual standards, and applicable laws.
• Maintain appropriate documentation for sourcing decisions, approvals, commercial agreements, and savings.
• Promote ethical supplier relationships and protect confidential information.

JOB REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Engineering, Finance, Metallurgy, Materials Science, or a related field.
• 10+ years in progressive leadership experience in direct-material purchasing, strategic sourcing, commodity management, or supply chain.
• Demonstrated experience leading purchasing teams and managing a complex direct-material portfolio.
• Strong working knowledge of carbon steel and stainless steel markets, cost structures, indices, supply chains, and commercial mechanisms.
• Experience leading complex supplier negotiations and developing long-term commercial agreements.
• Demonstrated success delivering material-cost reduction, working-capital improvement, and economic recovery.
• Strong financial, analytical, negotiation, communication, and cross-functional leadership skills.
• Experience managing supplier risk, capacity constraints, performance issues, and continuity-of-supply concerns.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally based on business needs.

Equal opportunity employer as to all protected groups, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities