Strategic Sourcing Manager

Intuitive Machines, LLC; United States; Hybrid; USD 142,000 - 236,000; Full time

Job summary

Intuitive Machines – West is seeking a Strategic Sourcing Manager to build a supply chain that can flex between high-volume, cost-efficient production and low-volume, high-reliability government programs. This role may be located in Palo Alto, CA or Houston, TX with remote work considered.

You will lead procurement, supplier analysis, and cross-functional teams to ensure resilient supply plans while navigating FAR/DFARS requirements for legacy and space programs.

Qualifications

• U.S. citizen or permanent resident required.
• Bachelor's degree in business, engineering, supply chain, or a related field; four extra years may substitute for degree.
• Minimum of 8 years sourcing from a global supply base with various contract models.
• Minimum of 2 years of leadership experience or equivalent leading cross-functional teams.
• Experience on cross-functional NPI projects and knowledge of high-volume manufacturing practices.
• Willingness to travel up to 20% and adapt to changing projects.

Responsibilities

• Lead procurement and supplier partnerships, tailoring sourcing strategy to risk, cost, and schedule for each program.
• Conduct supplier analysis to identify new and existing suppliers and optimize cost structures.
• Lead cross-functional teams to assess supplier capabilities, capacity, and quality systems.
• Drive continuous improvement addressing supplier quality, cost, delivery, and risk.
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders to translate customer requirements into procurement strategy.
• Partner with engineering on design decisions to support scalable or mission-assured procurement.

Skills

Sourcing strategy

Supplier management

Cross-functional collaboration

NPI experience

Education

Bachelor's degree in business, engineering, or related field

Job description

Please review the job details below.

Intuitive Machines – West is seeking a Strategic Sourcing Manager to help build and manage a supply chain capable of flexing across two very different operating modes: high-volume, cost-efficient, and schedule-driven commercial production, and traditional, low-volume, high-reliability government and legacy space programs. This position is located in Palo Alto, CA or Houston, TX - (remote considered).

Intuitive Machines is a world leader in delivering powerful and innovative spacecraft. That legacy is adapting to include high-volume production capability for advanced spacecraft, while preserving the rigorous, mission-critical sourcing needs of traditional space programs. This role sits at the center of that dual mandate - the ideal candidate will have the skill and agility to support production environments optimized for throughput and cost-efficiency, as well as strategic, high-stakes programs that focus on lower-rate production, reliability, and risk mitigation.

Responsibilities

• Lead procurement and supplier partnership initiatives, tailoring sourcing strategy to the specific risk, cost, and schedule profile of each program
• Conduct comprehensive supplier analysis to identify new and existing suppliers, optimize cost structures, and ensure continuity of supply
• Lead cross-functional teams to assess supplier technical capability, industrial capacity, and quality systems to determine fit for either high-rate production or low-volume, high-reliability work
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives to address supplier quality, cost, delivery, lead-time, and risk compliance
• Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders (business development, contracts, program management, engineering, quality) to translate customer requirements into the right procurement strategy
• Partner with engineering on design decisions that support an efficient and resilient supply plan, including designing for manufacturability at scale or designing for mission assurance on a one-off build

High-Volume Program Focus

• Architect and scale a repeatable, agile supply chain capable of supporting serial production of spacecraft and subsystems
• Qualify suppliers for industrial-scale output while managing cost-down roadmaps and lead-time compression
• Traditional/Low-Volume Program Focus:
• Manage sourcing for custom, mission-specific hardware with extended qualification and traceability requirements
• Navigate government contracting requirements (e.g., FAR/DFARS flow-downs) and long-lead procurement cycles typical of legacy space programs

What We’re Looking For

• A solid understanding of the space industry's evolution over the past decades, along with general technical familiarity with satellite systems and subsystems
• The judgment to know when to apply traditional, risk-averse sourcing practices versus when to challenge legacy approaches to solve cost and schedule problems
• Comfort operating in ambiguity- able to toggle between structured, compliance-heavy sourcing and fast-moving, scale-focused sourcing
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills with business development, product, program management, engineering, and quality teams

Your Career

Intuitive Machines takes professional development seriously. You'll have the opportunity to define your own career trajectory, working with a manager or mentor to set goals and build a development plan.

What We Offer

Dedicated time for professional development, conference attendance, industry training, peer group collaboration, paid certifications, and education reimbursement.

Minimum Requirements

• Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Bachelor's degree in business, engineering, supply chain, or a related field. Four additional years of related experience may be substituted for degree.
• Minimum of 8 years of experience sourcing from a global supply base, using a variety of contractual models (development, supply, licensing, and service agreements)
• Minimum of 2 years of functional lead, supervisory, or management experience, or equivalent experience leading multifunctional/cross-functional teams
• Proven success working on cross-functional new product introduction (NPI) projects
• Technical knowledge of high-volume manufacturing products and industry practices
• Ability to travel up to 20% and communicate outside of standard work hours as needed
• Demonstrated ability to work in a changing environment and adapt across different projects and situations, directly relevant to toggling between high-volume and traditional low-volume programs

Preferred Qualifications

• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification
• Government procurement experience
• Lean Six Sigma process improvement experience
• Space products procurement and supply chain experience
• Industrialization in automotive experience
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders, including suppliers, engineering, legal, finance, manufacturing, and logistics
• Detail-oriented, self-motivated, and able to respond quickly in a fast-moving, ever-changing environment

In support of pay transparency at Lanteris Space Systems, we disclose salary ranges on all U.S. job postings. The successful candidate’s starting pay will fall within the salary range provided below and is determined based on job-related factors, including, but not limited to, the experience, qualifications, knowledge, skills, geographic work location, and market conditions. Candidates with the minimum necessary experience, qualifications, knowledge, and skillsets for the position should not expect to receive the upper end of the pay range.

• The base pay for this position within Colorado is: $123,000.00 - $205,000.00 annually.
• The base pay for this position within New Jersey is: $123,000.00 - $205,000.00 annually.
• The base pay for this position within Delaware is: $123,000.00 - $205,000.00 annually.
• The base pay for this position within the Washington, DC metropolitan area is: $135,000.00 - $225,000.00 annually.
• The base pay for this position within California is: $142,000.00 - $236,000.00 annually.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, health and welfare insurance, and 401(k) to eligible employees. More information on our benefits will be shared with candidates as they move forward in the recruitment process.

Additionally, this position is incentive eligible with a target based on contribution, company performance, and/or individual results achieved; the specific incentive plan and target amount will be determined based on the role and breadth of contributions.

The date of posting can be found on the Lanteris Space Systems Career page at the top of each job posting.

Lanteris Space Systems values diversity in the workplace and is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.