Sr. Manager, Purchasing & Strategic Sourcing

Harmonic Drive LLC; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Harmonic Drive LLC seeks a strategic, hands-on procurement leader to own purchasing across production and non-production spend. You’ll shape the function from scratch, lead a small team of buyers, and drive supplier strategy, negotiations, and risk management for critical components used in aerospace, robotics, and medical devices.

You’ll build spend visibility, implement modern sourcing practices, and travel to supplier sites to secure favorable terms and ensure on-time delivery.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of progressive purchasing/strategic sourcing experience in manufacturing.

Responsibilities

• Lead sourcing strategy and supplier negotiations across production and non-production categories.
• Build Harmonic Drive’s first formal non-production purchasing program with vendor lists and spend visibility.
• Lead, coach, and develop a team of buyers/planners while handling complex negotiations.
• Own key supplier relationships, performance, and risk including metals, castings, machined components, and electro-mechanical parts.
• Negotiate and manage supplier contracts including terms, long-term agreements, and NDAs.
• Create and negotiate safety stock agreements to protect on-time delivery.
• Drive supplier-side resolution of excess and obsolete inventory with Finance.
• Serve as procurement contact for quality audits (AS9100/ISO 9001; DFARS awareness).
• Introduce modern sourcing: spend analytics, supplier scorecards, AI tools.

Skills

Strategic sourcing

Team leadership

Negotiation

Spend analytics

Risk management

ERP knowledge

Education

CPSM

CPIM

CPM

Tools

Dynamics 365 F&O

Dynamics AX

SAP

Oracle

Power BI

Job description

Harmonic Drive LLC designs and manufactures precision motion control components - strain wave gearing, actuators, and servo systems - that power robotics, aerospace, semiconductor, and medical automation applications around the world. Our products show up in some of the most demanding, precision-critical machines built today, and our team takes that responsibility seriously.

About the Role

We’re looking for a strategic, hands-on procurement leader to own purchasing across our entire business - both the production materials that keep our manufacturing floor running and the non-production spend (facilities, equipment, professional services, and more) that has never had a dedicated procurement owner before. This is a true player-coach role: you’ll spend most of your time leading strategy, negotiations, and a small team of buyers, while staying close enough to the details to jump in on critical sourcing yourself when it matters. If you like building something - not just maintaining what’s already there - this is a rare chance to shape a function from the ground up at a company whose parts end up in aircraft, robots, and life-saving medical equipment.

What You’ll Do

• Lead sourcing strategy and supplier negotiations across both production materials and non-production categories (facilities, capital equipment, professional services, and more).
• Build Harmonic Drive’s first formal non-production purchasing program - vendor lists, spend visibility, and controls where none exist today.
• Lead, coach, and develop a team of buyers/planners, while personally leading the most complex or critical negotiations yourself.
• Own key supplier relationships, performance, and risk - including sourcing metals, castings, machined components, and electro-mechanical parts.
• Negotiate and manage supplier contracts and agreements - terms and conditions, long-term supply agreements, NDAs, and more - and make sure customer requirements flow through cleanly into our supplier agreements.
• Create and negotiate safety stock agreements with our customers to help protect on-time delivery.
• Drive supplier-side resolution of excess and obsolete inventory, partnering with Finance on reserves and write-offs.
• Serve as the key procurement contact for quality auditors (AS9100/ISO 9001, with working DFARS awareness) on supplier records and process compliance.
• Bring modern sourcing practices - spend analytics (e.g., Power BI), supplier scorecards, and AI-assisted procurement tools - into a company ready to modernize its purchasing function.
• Travel domestically and internationally to visit suppliers, audit performance, and negotiate in person.

What You Bring

• 10+ years of progressive purchasing/strategic sourcing experience in a manufacturing environment, ideally spanning both production and non-production procurement.
• 5+ years leading, coaching, and developing buyers or sourcing professionals.
• Hands-on experience sourcing metals, castings, machined components, electro-mechanical parts, and outside processing services (e.g., heat treat, anodizing, passivation) - required.
• Solid working knowledge of supplier contracts - comfortable negotiating and managing routine agreements and knowing when to bring in Legal.
• Working knowledge of an ERP system (Dynamics 365 F&O, Dynamics AX, SAP, Oracle, or similar); Dynamics 365 F&O experience a plus.
• CPSM, CPIM, or CPM preferred - or willingness to obtain, with our support and sponsorship.
• A strategic mindset paired with a willingness to roll up your sleeves - you’ll operate at roughly an 80% strategic / 20% tactical balance.

What Success Looks Like

• Bringing previously unmanaged non-production spend under formal purchasing control and visibility.
• Building real risk visibility across key suppliers - before problems hit, not after.
• Driving fast, effective resolution when supplier quality issues arise.
• Delivering measurable, credible cost savings - and being clear about what’s real savings versus cost avoidance.
• Getting supplier agreements properly in place and current - with customer requirements flowing through accurately.

Why Harmonic Drive

• A rare opportunity to build a procurement function - not just inherit one.
• Significant room to grow - this role is built to expand in scope and seniority as you build out the function and prove out its impact.
• Direct visibility with senior operations leadership; this role reports to the VP of Operations.
• Work on components that go into precision robotics, aerospace, and medical technology.