Strategic Procurement Lead

Company Description

Join the Team Powering the Future of Sustainable Agriculture

Bend, OR | Onsite | Strategic Procurement Lead

Suterra is the world’s leading provider of environmentally sustainable products for crop protection and commercial pest control. The company is dedicated to researching, developing and commercializing safe and non-toxic products using naturally occurring compounds such as pheromones.

Suterra is growing rapidly and investing heavily in new product development and active ingredient chemical synthesis. Suterra’s parent company, The Wonderful Company, has invested over $60 million in a modern, state-of-the art facility in Bend, Oregon to synthesize active ingredients and to manufacture proprietary dispensing technologies.

We are currently looking for dynamic, creative leaders to develop and strengthen our supply chain and logistics activities.  With a variety of regulated products and with customers around the world, we intend to boost order fulfillment performance with broader raw material sourcing and enhanced coordination with customers, distributors and internal stakeholders.

The Strategic Procurement Lead will provide insight, analysis and leadership for the supply chain management team to ensure a robust supply of materials and components to launch and sustain new and existing products.  The position requires a strong combination of strategic thinking and tactical day-to-day problem-solving as well as a high proficiency with data, detail and cross-functional communication.  This role provides an exciting opportunity to power the growth of our business as we enter new markets and launch new products.

Our Commitment

Suterra is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply and bring their unique perspectives to our team.

Job Description

Responsibilities Include:

Sourcing for New Products and Risk Mitigation:

• Partnering with Product Design and Engineering to understand material and component requirements in detail.  Utilizing that in-depth understanding to investigate alternatives for commercial supply, including make/buy proposals and risk mitigation strategies.
• Identifying and assessing candidate suppliers for materials, components and services.
• Preparing and evaluating requests for proposal (RFPs) and requests for quotation (RFQs).  Generating recommendations for supplier selection that balance operational and commercial considerations.

Vendor Management: 

• Ensuring that suppliers provide raw materials on-time and within specification to align with our production and inventory management plans.
• Tracking vendor performance in the areas of quality, delivery and cost and driving vendor improvement plans.
• Negotiating commercial terms and resolving issues with suppliers including material defects and supply disruptions.
• Identifying and pursuing opportunities for improvement in production purchasing and logistics.

Supply Chain Planning: 

• Collaborating with Demand Planning, Production and Customer Service to coordinate material purchases and to pursue emerging market opportunities.
• Providing analytical support for production scheduling, inventory management and order fulfillment strategies.
• Exploring transportation modes, order quantities, lead times and replenishment triggers to optimize tradeoffs between time, carrying cost, inventory risk and production efficiency.
• Leveraging a deep understanding of which business processes can be implemented through Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and which processes should remain offline.

Continuous Improvement: 

• Soliciting and analyzing feedback from internal and external stakeholders to drive improvements in supply chain performance.
• Partnering with Quality, Production and Engineering to identify the root cause of raw material quality issues and working cross-functionally to propose and implement solutions that uphold quality, delivery and cost performance.
• Generating and assessing proposals for supply chain improvements including changes in suppliers, commercial terms, buying patterns and inventory management to support business growth.

Qualifications

Job Requirements:

• A Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Finance, Supply Chain Management, Engineering or a related technical field.
• Three to five years of experience in one or more roles in engineering, quality control, procurement, process or product development, manufacturing, supply chain management or related fields.
• Previous experience with ERP systems and an interest in becoming a subject matter expert in our ERP system, Microsoft Dynamics D365.
• Demonstrated ability to solve problems while mitigating risks to resources and deadlines.
• An ability to maintain composure under pressure and to make effective decisions quickly.
• An ability to understand conflicting incentives and to work with external parties to generate positive outcomes for the business.
• Enthusiasm for teamwork at multiple levels and across multiple functions of the organization.
• Strong written and oral communication skills.
• Rigorous attention to detail.
• Proficiency with the Microsoft Office suite of applications.

Additional Information

Why Suterra?

If you’re looking for a role where your work matters, your judgment is valued, and your effort directly contributes to growth, we’d love to hear from you.

Suterra is the world’s leader in pheromone-based pest control, part of The Wonderful Company family of brands. With a modern, state-of-the-art facility in beautiful Bend, Oregon, we’re growing fast and investing heavily in innovation, people, and sustainable solutions.

You’ll join a passionate, collaborative, and forward-thinking team where your ideas shape the future of sustainable operations on a global scale.

Suterra is wholly owned by The Wonderful Company

The Wonderful Company, headquartered in Los Angeles, is a privately held $6 billion global agribusiness company with consumer brands including Wonderful® Pistachios, Wonderful® Halos®, POM Wonderful®, FIJI® Water, JUSTIN® and Landmark® wines, as well as the Teleflora® flower delivery service.

To learn more about The Wonderful Company, visit www.wonderful.com, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. To view the current Corporate Social Responsibility report, visit www.wonderful.com/csr.

The Wonderful Company is an Equality Opportunity Employer that provides opportunities for advancement. We are committed to creating a diverse workforce that embodies a deep culture of acceptance, equity, and inclusion. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, region, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected categories.

Learn about sustainable programs and ways we give back to the community!

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

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