Head of Procurement

Waste Management (WM), a Fortune 250 company, is the leading provider of comprehensive waste and environmental services in North America. Based at WM's headquarters in Houston, TX and reporting to the company's CFO, the Head of Procurement will lead the procurement organization across the entire enterprise, including all business units and regions, for all direct and indirect categories. The Head of Procurement will manage an annual spend of approximately $12 billion and lead a team of 115 employees half are based in Houston and half are in the field.

The roles are considered hybrid with a mixture of on-site with 4 days in office, and remote employees that access WM's network of locations across the US and Canada.

The Head of Procurement is the supply chain management partner for the Business Units (BUs), responsible for sourcing and procurement processes, systems, and results across the enterprise, to include strategy development and implementation, common process definition and deployment, procurement organizational development and leadership, and delivery to support the company's business model, strategies, and financial operating plans. The Head of Procurement is directly responsible for material deflation, indirect savings and supplier development and performance, including quality and lead time reliability.

• Develop and execute a comprehensive procurement strategy aligned with business objectives.
• Identify cost‑saving opportunities, supplier efficiencies, and process improvements.
• Drive digital transformation initiatives in procurement to enhance automation, data analytics, and decision‑making.
• Ensure procurement policies and procedures comply with regulatory requirements and corporate governance.
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with key suppliers and service providers to ensure quality, reliability, and cost‑effectiveness.
• Develop supplier performance metrics and regularly review vendor performance.
• Negotiate contracts, terms, and pricing to optimize value and minimize risk.
• Lead initiatives to ensure supplier diversity and sustainability in procurement practices.
• Leverage supplier innovations to achieve business objectives.
• Maintain and continue to develop customer of choice for strategic suppliers.
• Oversee cost reduction initiatives while ensuring service quality and operational efficiency.
• Identify and mitigate supply chain risks, including geopolitical, financial, and operational risks.
• Implement contingency plans to ensure business continuity and supply resilience.

• Optimize procurement operations through best practices, technology adoption, and automation.
• Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure procurement effectiveness and efficiency.
• Drive a culture of continuous improvement within the procurement team and broader organization.

• Collaborate with finance, operations, legal, and business units to align procurement with company goals.
• Communicate procurement strategies and results to executive leadership and key stakeholders.
• Lead, mentor, and develop a high‑performing procurement team.

• Cost savings achieved through strategic sourcing and negotiation.
• Supplier performance and compliance with service‑level agreements (SLAs).
• Procurement cycle time and efficiency improvements.
• Risk mitigation effectiveness, including supply continuity and vendor risk management.
• Stakeholder satisfaction and internal customer service ratings.
• Implementation and adoption of digital procurement tools.

Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate will be an authentic, pragmatic, courageous people leader with a track record of leading large‑scale procurement organizations in best‑in‑class operating environments. While experience within industrial services companies would be beneficial, strong leaders from other industries such as industrial manufacturing or retail will be considered. More important than specific industry experience is an ability to operate at scale, build strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders, and lead through collaboration.

Im…