Director of Supply Chain

Overview

We are seeking a hands-on Director of Supply Chain, US to lead our North American procurement organization and ensure the business has the right materials, at the right time, at the right cost and quality to support production, service, and aftermarket needs. This role operates alongside a separate Production organization and is accountable for procurement execution end-to-end. You will inherit an existing team and operating environment that requires structure, prioritization, and stronger day-to-day discipline.

This is a player-coach role for a leader who is comfortable stepping into ambiguity, rolling up their sleeves, and rapidly improving how work gets done. You will partner closely with Production, Engineering, Quality, Operations and Finance, with a dotted-line relationship to EMEA Procurement.

• Own U.S. / Canada Procurement Execution Lead all sourcing, purchasing, supplier management, and materials availability activities for NA operations.
• Stabilize and Standardize Bring order, clarity, and repeatability to procurement processes, controls, and ways of working.
• Support Complex Demand Ensure reliable supply across low-volume, high-mix, quasi-engineered-to-order builds, internal capital deployments, service/installed-base support, and third-party parts sales.
• Strategic Sourcing & Supplier Management Execute RFQs/RFPs, negotiate pricing and terms, manage contracts, and drive supplier performance across cost, quality, and delivery.
• Purchasing & P2P Discipline Ensure timely, accurate PO issuance, follow-through, and resolution of exceptions; strengthen procurement controls and compliance.
• Inventory & Materials Oversight Improve stockroom operations, receiving and inspection, inventory accuracy, cycle counts, and stocking strategies based on usage and service requirements.
• Inside Sales and Fulfillment Manage full order cycle for fulfillment of internal and external parts orders.
• Problem Solving & Escalation Management Personally engage in critical supplier, availability, and quality issues when needed to keep the business running.
• Systems & Data Enablement Improve use of ERP and related tools to enhance visibility, workflow, and scalability.
• Team Leadership Develop the existing procurement team through clear expectations, accountability, and hands-on coaching.

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Business, Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• 8-12 years of progressive experience in procurement and/or supply chain roles, including people leadership.
• Demonstrated success operating in low-volume, high-mix, engineered-to-order or service-intensive environments.
• Ability to manage supply chain risk, including dual sourcing, long-lead mitigation, and contingency planning.
• Strong experience with supplier negotiations, RFQs/RFPs, PO lifecycle management, supplier quality, and inventory operations.
• Strong cross-functional leadership, working effectively with Engineering, Production, Finance, Quality, and external vendors
• Proven ability to enter under-structured environments and materially improve execution.
• Deep understanding of manufacturing workflows, BoMs, multi-level planning, and production dependencies
• Willingness to be deeply involved in day-to-day work while building longer-term capability.
• Clear communicator able to work effectively across functions and levels.
• Sage X3 experience is preferred, ERP implementation experience is a big plus.
• Strong understanding of master data integrity, including parts, suppliers, lead times, sourcing methods, and planning parameters.
• Ability to drive system discipline and reduce reliance on spreadsheets and manual workarounds.

Sperry Rail is on a mission-critical journey to revolutionize the Rail Flaw Detection industry. Through the continuous development of cutting-edge diagnostic technologies and AI-assisted analysis, we are transforming railway safety worldwide. Our global engineering teams work collaboratively to develop step-change technologies that define Sperry as the unparalleled market leader. For nearly a century, we have repeatedly modernized and improved rail diagnostics through our relentless pursuit of…