Director, Direct Material Sourcing

Director, Direct Material Sourcing

Full-time Regular Corp Supply Chain Chicago, IL, US

4 days ago Requisition

Salary Range: $ To $ Annually

About Us:

As a global manufacturer of complex aircraft engine components, Pursuit Aerospace is founded on a commitment to relentless, continuous, operational improvement and extraordinary customer service. We pride ourselves on competitive cost structure, exceptional on-time delivery, and industry-leading quality.

The Pursuit family of companies has cultivated long-term relationships with our customers around the world through respect, teamwork, technology, and trust. We are driven to develop industry leading process innovations and manufacturing techniques on behalf of our customers. Our exceptional quality is driven by a deep investment in and the daily practice of continually improving our people, processes, and products.

About the Opportunity:

The Direct Material Sourcing Director is a critical strategic role responsible for managing the end-to-end lifecycle of direct materials across multiple manufacturing sites. This leader will drive enterprise-wide leverage by developing robust commodity strategies, leading contract negotiations, and fostering long-term strategic supplier partnerships. The role focuses on ensuring supply capacity and continuity, driving cost deflation, and directly managing supplier relations.

Location: This position can be remote or hybrid with travel ~30% but must be located near a major U.S. airport

Responsibilities:

• Supplier Relationship Management (SRM):
  Develop and deploy global supplier strategies that maximize enterprise leverage. Act as the primary interface for strategic/critical quality and procurement matters, fostering shared accountability for on-time delivery (OTD).
• Enterprise-Wide Contracting:
  Lead the development and execution of Long-Term Agreements (LTAs) and multi-year contracts across all manufacturing sites to secure favorable pricing and capacity.
• Commodity Management Support:
  Define and improve sourcing strategies at the part-family level. Analyze market trends, macroeconomic factors, and cost drivers (e.g., aerospace alloys like titanium and nickel) to minimize total material costs.
• Multi-Site
  
  Collaboration:
  
  Partner with Site Procurement individuals and SIOP teams to resolve capacity constraints and align supplier production schedules with total enterprise demand.
• Strategic Sourcing & Transitions:
  Manage source transitions to new suppliers for multi-site engagements and lead cross-functional teams in the competitive bidding (RFP/RFQ) process.
• Continuous Improvement:
  Utilize Lean methodologies to eliminate supply chain waste, reduce lead times, and implement standard work across the sourcing function.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Engineering, or Business Administration.
• 10 years of Sourcing or Supply Chain experience
• 5 years of experience in direct material procurement or commodity management
• 5 years of experience leading a team of direct reports
• 2 years leading high-value contractual negotiations including NDAs, T&Cs, and LTAs.
• Must be authorized to work in the U.S. on a full-time basis without sponsorship now or in the future. The Company cannot offer employment to visa holders who require employer sponsorship in the future or cannot work now on a full-time basis.
• Must be able to perform work subject to ITAR/EAR regulations.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Direct material procurement or commodity management experience in the Aerospace & Defense sector, strongly preferred.
• Experience building and/or transforming a commodity-based team
• Experience with Syteline, Visual, and/or Epicor MRP systems is preferred.
• Experience with Compliance Knowledge:
  Proven expertise in ITAR regulations, AS9100 standards, and defense contracting protocols.
• Technical
  
  Skills:
  
  Proficiency in major ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle) and advanced data analytics for spend and performance reporting.
• Certifications:
  
  APICS (CPIM/CSCP) or ISM (CPM/CPSM) certification.
• Transformation:
  Experienced in leading functional and/or cross-functional business process transformations.
• Project Management:
  Experience leading cross-functional teams…