Senior Director, Purchasing Operations

Abbott is a global healthcare leader that helps people live more fully at all stages of life. Our portfolio of life-changing technologies spans the spectrum of healthcare, with leading businesses and products in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic medicines. Our 122,000 colleagues serve people in more than 160 countries.

Senior Director, Purchasing Operations

Our location in Lake Forest, Illinois currently has an opportunity for a Senior Director, Purchasing Operations for our Core Laboraotry within the Diagnostics division.

The role provides maximum value to the division through coordinated global purchasing and strategic sourcing for - services, supplies, packaging, chemicals, electromechanical parts and Third-Party Manufacturing in accordance with corporate/divisional policies and objectives. Direct and administer the Core Diagnostics Global Procurement functions for the purchase of raw materials, research and development intermediates; supplies; services; and equipment.

Hire, develop and coach procurement professionals to enable clear succession plans and support a sustainable on-going organization. Provide coordination for like purchases across all sites and where appropriate; across other divisions; ensuring bundling of the spend to optimize buying leverage for Abbott. Source, negotiate and contract for purchases across numerous industries and 400+ suppliers. Stay abreast of constantly changing market conditions and internal requirements and incorporate same into negotiations and supply agreements to bring the best overall value for Abbott.

Position Core Diagnostics for optimum supply chain value through selection of quality suppliers, fact-based negotiations and performance-based contracting to protect Abbott's interests. This role oversees the annual expenditure of approximately $1.4 billion. Magnitude of purchases often places incumbent in lead negotiation position to secure contracts over $100MM to meet specific needs of the division. Furthermore, this position requires a proactive approach that is relationship orientated, customer focused, team based, highly analytical, creative, dynamic (must stay abreast of global economics), and without error in its execution.

• Develop and execute procurement strategies for multiple direct materials and research categories and $1.4B+ in annual expenditures.
• Ensure global and cross divisional participation and adoption.
• Provide leadership for 4 operations (buying areas); and all off-site purchasing operations in the purchase of goods and services that affect all areas of the division.
• Maintain an understanding of complex; multiple markets and changing business models associated with a broad spectrum of goods and services that directly affect the profitability of the division.
• Solve critical supply chain issues resulting for supplier performance variability to ensure on-going business continuity including; financial bankruptcy; material shortages; changes to specifications / statements of work; contractual breaches; delivery delays and plant disruptions.
• Continually improve the efficiency of supplies, services, commodities, chemicals, biologics, Third Party Manufacturing, electromechanical and Commodity Risk Management purchasing areas within the Purchasing function by developing and implementing the most effective Purchasing systems, strategies and techniques and developing policies and procedures necessary to carry them out.
• Provide purchasing expertise to senior management on major projects involving the selection; negotiation and acquisition of equipment; products or services; proposed acquisition of raw materials; R&D materials; tooling or manufacturing services on a worldwide basis.
• Develop and provide current information to Senior Abbott Management on price/market trends relating to the purchase of capital equipment; supplies; and services costs; raw materials; and manufacturing services.
• Hire and develop a team of procurement professionals who have a deep understanding of the Diagnostics healthcare channel and the way in which the procurement team supports the success of the business.
• Coach employees to become seasoned in negotiations and contracting.
• Assure a sustainable talent bench.
• Ensure Business Excellence concepts are applied to Procurement function which will drive employee engagement and continuous improvement
• Set guidelines and develop manufacturing standard setting processes used to determine divisional price…