Electronics & Interconnects Sourcing Leader

Role Overview

This role owns sourcing for the electronics and interconnect category — wire harnesses, connectors, PCBs, PCBAs, and electrical components — while carrying a full tactical procurement load across direct and indirect categories as OW scales from first launch toward multi-program production.

It is a both-hands role: one hand builds multi-month category strategies, coordinates FAI campaigns, and presents sourcing recommendations to engineering, finance, and leadership; the other runs the daily PO rhythm — requisitions to purchase orders, expediting, frame agreements and blanket orders, indirect buys, and tight coordination with production and material planners. Honest split: roughly 60–70% tactical execution, 30–40% category building, flexing with launch campaigns and program tempo.

The person who succeeds treats no task as beneath them — presenting a category strategy one week, helping close a cycle count or untangle a Net Suite reconciliation the next. Works most closely with: the peer buyer (mechanical), material & production planners, Engineering/D2M, Quality, and Finance.

• Own sourcing activities for electronics and interconnect categories, including wire harnesses, connectors, PCBs, PCBAs, and electrical components.
• Identify, evaluate, and onboard suppliers through RFQs, commercial negotiations, supplier selection, and contract awards.
• Develop and maintain the sourcing strategy for assigned categories, including supply base mapping, dual-source planning, localization opportunities, cost optimization, and lead-time reduction.
• Present category strategies and sourcing recommendations to Engineering, Quality, Finance, and leadership stakeholders.
• Partner with Engineering and Design-to-Manufacturing (D2M) teams on component selection, approved alternates, obsolescence management, and design-for-sourcing improvements.
• Coordinate First Article Inspection (FAI) activities with Engineering and Quality to support successful supplier qualification.
• Lead supplier qualification activities in accordance with the Orbitworks Approved Supplier List (ASL) process.
• Support the development of local UAE suppliers in line with localization and In-Country Value (ICV) objectives.
• Manage the full purchase order lifecycle in Net Suite, including requisition review, PO creation, technical and quality flow-down, supplier acknowledgements, expediting, and delivery tracking.
• Procure indirect goods and services, including marketing, communications, office services, facilities, and operational consumables.
• Establish and manage procurement automation mechanisms such as blanket purchase orders, purchase contracts, framework agreements, Not-to-Exceed (NTE) POs, and Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) arrangements.
• Work closely with Production and Material Planning to align procurement activities with the master production schedule and proactively mitigate shortages and long-lead risks.
• Resolve supplier delivery, quality, and commercial issues while maintaining an accurate discrepancy tracker.
• Maintain accurate, compliant, and audit-ready procurement records within Net Suite to support AS9100 requirements.
• Collaborate with the wider Supply Chain Management (SCM) buying team by providing category coverage and workload support as required.
• Support broader SCM operations, including inventory cycle counts, logistics coordination, receiving activities, and Net Suite reconciliations when needed.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives across SCM by developing standardized templates, improving procurement processes, and reinforcing Net Suite data discipline.