Program Lead, Vendor Management

Overview

Butcher Box is a certified B Corp headquartered in Boston, honored to be celebrating our second year in a row on Inc.'s list of Best Workplaces. At Butcher Box, we believe in better. We deliver 100% grass-fed, grass-finished beef, free-range organic chicken, pork raised crate-free, and wild-caught seafood directly to our members’ doors. All of our products are humanely raised or wild-caught and never given antibiotics or added hormones ever.

We’re working to build a world that’s better for all, and we’re inviting everyone to come along. For us, better means treating our planet with respect. It means improving the lives of animals and the livelihoods of farmers. It means never cutting corners when it comes to doing business. Ultimately, it means better meals, enjoyed together. Our team collaborates and supports one another, and we’re always looking for outstanding people to join our mission.

The Program Lead of Vendor Management is responsible for owning and operating the company’s vendor management program across a diverse, externalized supply base. In an asset-light operating model, this role ensures that critical third-party vendors consistently meet commercial expectations, while also delivering on the company’s social, environmental, quality, and ethical standards. This role is the primary point of accountability for vendor governance—managing relationships, performance, risk, and continuous improvement—while partnering with procurement, quality, legal, finance, and operations teams.

The role requires strong vendor management, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills, with a deep commitment to integrity and compliance. The role reports to the Head of Impact and Sustainability, with close relationships with General Counsel and finance leadership.

• Vendor Management & Governance (Primary Focus):
  Own the end-to-end vendor management program for external suppliers, co-manufacturers, and service providers in an asset-light model; develop, maintain, and enforce vendor standards, contracts, and performance expectations across social, environmental, quality, and ethical dimensions; lead vendor onboarding, classification, ongoing performance management, and offboarding processes; serve as the primary owner of vendor scorecards, business reviews, and corrective action plans.
• Vendor Relationship Management & Negotiation:
  Lead or support commercial and non-commercial negotiations related to standards, corrective actions, remediation timelines, and continuous improvement commitments; partner with senior leaders to assess trade-offs between cost, risk, performance, and values; drive alignment between contractual terms and operational reality.
• Risk Management & Issue Resolution:
  Identify, assess, and escalate vendor-related risks across compliance, reputation, continuity of supply, and performance; lead response and remediation efforts for vendor non-compliance, audit findings, or emerging risks; coordinate cross-functional decision-making on vendor performance issues, including potential exits or escalations.
• B Corp, Compliance & Standards Alignment:
  Ensure vendor management practices align with B Corp standards and other relevant certifications or regulatory requirements; own documentation, evidence collection, and reporting related to vendor compliance for audits and assessments; monitor evolving standards and translate them into vendor requirements; support senior leadership in setting goals with critical vendors related to material risk and opportunities in the supply chain.
• Cross-Functional Coordination & Reporting:
  Partner with procurement, quality, legal, finance, operations, and marketing to ensure consistent vendor governance; prepare executive-ready reporting on vendor performance, risk, and improvement initiatives; align vendor practices with external-facing claims or commitments.
• Continuous Improvement & Program Maturity:
  Design and implement improvements to vendor management systems, tools, and processes as the company scales; benchmark vendor management best practices and recommend enhancements to strengthen accountability and resilience;…