Career Center

Medium-sized leading manufacturer of residential building products headquartered in West Columbia, South Carolina and operates a total of four facilities: two in Columbia, one in Memphis, and one in Mt. Pleasant, Texas.  The company has been producing products for over 75 years.  As the market leader, the company is committed to delivering high quality and innovative products that are durable, reliable, and value-added. 

Reporting to the President, the Director of Purchasing will be responsible for directing the materials management and purchasing team, which is tasked with achieving enterprise-wide service and inventory goals as well as implementing best practices to drive service level improvements. The Director of Purchasing will work across functional and departmental boundaries to ensure high levels of customer service and satisfaction relative to inventory service levels, management of materials, and communication of inventory failures and predicted supply chain barriers.

The Director of Purchasing will coordinate cross-functionally with supervisors and other leaders and key team members to provide support from planning to execution while adhering to standards and company policies. This will include developing standards and implementing procedures for materials planning, product acquisition, inventory control, material distribution, and logistics management.  The Director oversees a staff of four team members.

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES

• Develop and maintain a high-performance culture within the purchasing team, resulting in continued success in meeting functional KPIs and improved levels of customer service to interior and exterior customers for the corporate office and affiliated hubs.
• Identify and develop key talent and appropriately manage underperformers to ensure success of all individuals in the department.
• Manage tactical operations of the materials management and purchasing function and staff.
• Own and drive supply planning, both domestically and globally, and ensure the supply chain of finished and raw goods remains uninterrupted.
• Employ strong knowledge of key industry players, competitors, and market dynamics.
• Own the overall procurement strategy, policies, and procedures to be best-in-class, while identifying and implementing process improvements to increase efficiency and accuracy.
• Create and execute a strategic supplier plan for new products as well as developing effective negotiation strategies to enable success.
• Oversee all freight contracts, relationships, and cost associated with both inbound raw material and outbound finished goods.
• Manage the Inventory Management team to ensure accurate forecasting and inventory planning.
• Own and drive all things related to inventory management, including cycle counts, physical inventories and BOM reviews, material costs and payment terms to be best in market.
• Partner with production teams to ensure uninterrupted supply of raw goods and factory non-consumables.
• Liaise with counterparts in other functional areas such as Sales, Production Management, and Warehouse personnel to ensure alignment of activities and objectives and strategically plan and execute on annual budget.
• Serve with senior leadership team to support the objectives of the company.
• Work across the organization sharing and learning best practices, while also balancing current and future needs and impacts.
• Provide day-to-day oversight with a “hands on” execution role and philosophy.
• Identify vendor opportunities and challenges and partner with the Production Management team to ensure appropriate resolution.
• Maintain sufficient knowledge of all purchased products and cost drivers to optimize sourcing strategies and identify potential problems.

IDEAL QUALIFICATIONS 

He/she should possess a minimum of ten years of relevant materials management and purchasing experience within commercially driven manufacturing organizations.  Experience within the last several years ideally should be weighted in managing a procurement team that is responsible for company-wide purchasing initiatives and activities and partnering with the leadership team of a manufacturing business.  This individual must be a savvy leader with an energetic personality, who can motivate others to enable best-in-class delivery performance and provide an environment for professional growth to ensure the company’s continued success as an innovative market leader.   

He/she will possess a combination of characteristics, including results-oriented, hands-on management, team builder, solid negotiating skills, entrepreneurial, decisive, an inspiring attitude, analytical thinking, sound judgment, and strong interpersonal skills. 

 SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

• Possess a record of accomplishment and comprehensive purchasing experience including an understanding of and hands-on exposure in inventory planning, forecasting techniques, as well as operational systems and warehouse management.
• Possess a record of accomplishment in managing and motivating a purchasing team, developing key purchasing processes and disciplines, maintaining solid vendor relationships, and controlling costs within budget. This will include implementing strategic purchasing practices and procedures, establishing and overseeing parameters of accountability, and maximizing margins while ensuring best-in-class delivery performance.
• Minimum of ten years of purchasing experience that includes managing and developing a team of purchasing professionals for a medium- or small-sized manufacturer or for a division of a large corporation, preferably producing finished durable goods with quick product development cycles and high customization demands. This must include a solid capability of MRP, forecasting, and purchasing within an ERP system. 
• Operate with sophisticated management skills needed to function effectively in a team-oriented, cross-functionally organized corporate environment; the chosen candidate will be competitive, self–driven, and politically astute with high ethical standards.
• Able to travel domestically and internationally and be knowledgeable in working with vendors in the United States, China and Brazil while working through the logistics processes of sourcing product from third-party overseas vendors.
• Track record of experience in coordinating quality problem resolution efforts with suppliers, while collaborating cross-functionally with engineering and quality team members.
• Ability to utilize effective time management skills and operate in an environment with high volume deadlines, numerous internal constituencies, and manage conflicts with accuracy.
• Operate with a strong numbers orientation and utilize analytical perspectives in evaluating purchasing practices and performance. Previous oversight responsibility of pricing, margin management, forecasting, new product development, and vendor management is required. 
• Demonstrated ability to function in an employee-oriented environment, which is highly dependent on cross-functional cooperation is critical. Must be able to interface among all departments in the company.
• Well-developed ability to incorporate short- and long-term purchasing practices and disciplines that drive the company’s leading market position and further advance its capabilities to produce innovative, higher margin, and market share-driven products.
• Leverage effective communication skills in working closely with outside vendors and cross-functional colleagues. This experience should include providing integral support and processes that drive and support effective marketplace implementation of new and existing product lines.
• Experience providing leadership in terms of team building and motivating team members, while inspiring high morale and a positive work environment is important.
• Entrepreneurial in nature and assertive in personality; must be polished and able to achieve results by influencing others. Results-oriented perspective and ability to function in a fast-paced and dynamic environment are imperative.
• Proficient working knowledge of Ponderosa or other comparable ERP/Inventory and Purchasing systems, as well as MS Office including Microsoft Excel.
• Solid interpersonal and communication skills in both written and verbal form are essential.
• An undergraduate degree with an emphasis in operations, business administration, supply chain, or related fields is expected.   
• Compensation will be commensurate with experience and consist of base salary, bonus, and a full complement of employee benefits. Relocation assistance will be offered in conjunction with employment negotiations.