Director Sourcing-Textiles

Job Summary

Medline Industries has an immediate opening for a Director of Sourcing with our Textiles division. This role will be based out of our Northfield, IL corporate headquarters and will work a hybrid model. The Director of Sourcing will lead the development and execution of strategies to negotiate favorable terms, secure volume discounts, and establish long‑term contracts with suppliers and vendor partners.

This role involves managing and optimizing direct spend categories to drive cost‑effective solutions, ensure consistent supply, and proactively mitigate risks across the organization.

Job Description

• Develop and execute strategies to negotiate favorable terms, volume discounts, and long‑term contracts with suppliers and vendor partners.
• Oversee spend across key medical and raw materials.
• Provide strategic insights on global and geopolitical changes affecting tariffs, raw materials, and regulatory requirements, including new laws and natural resource availability. Collaborate with industry peers and the Government Affairs team to advocate for the organization’s interests.
• Manage a divisional portfolio of managed categories, driving continuous improvement across all Category Managers to contain costs, improve raw material consumption, and implement cost‑reduction initiatives.
• Oversee the analysis of supplier price increase submissions, considering the full impact on the division. Develop and execute negotiation strategies to achieve cost avoidance or savings, driving financial performance.
• Lead the execution of strategic risk assessments, creating comprehensive country‑specific views on sourcing risks. Develop robust risk‑mitigation plans and provide recommendations for category‑level changes.
• Lead a team overseeing diverse product categories, guiding them in understanding cost inputs and driving best‑cost strategies. Collaborate with senior leadership to develop and execute sourcing initiatives that align with long‑term goals.
• Develop and maintain strategic relationships with key suppliers, overseeing negotiations on pricing, managing supplier performance, ensuring on‑time delivery, and ensuring strict compliance with contracts. Address supplier issues and collaborate with internal teams to improve performance.
• Lead the analysis of domestic and global supply chains, offering strategic insights into the impacts of tariffs, geopolitical risks, and other external factors. Develop proactive strategies to address challenges and ensure supply continuity.
• Lead the evaluation of sourcing strategies for domestic versus import suppliers, including Make vs. Buy analysis. Guide the team in identifying and implementing optimal sourcing solutions.
• Lead the development and execution of a comprehensive, risk‑based global sourcing strategy. Oversee dual sourcing initiatives, vendor allocation optimization, re‑sourcing, and cost containment efforts. Collaborate with senior leadership to drive continuous improvement in vendor performance.
• Identify and execute cost‑savings opportunities within product categories to drive GM growth. Negotiate long‑term agreements with suppliers to optimize pricing and supply chain efficiency.
• Work collaboratively with Medline Shanghai, Supply Chain, Quality, and Product Management teams to maintain and develop vendors and products, reducing supply risk and ensuring a healthy supply chain.
• Lead efforts to resolve supplier issues when communication fails. Collaborate with internal teams to identify root causes, develop corrective action plans, and ensure continued supplier performance.

Management responsibilities include:

• Typically manages through multiple Managers
• Provide leadership and management to one or more major departments of an operating unit or to a department that has system‑wide accountability
• Strategic, tactical and operational planning (12 + months) for the function or department
• Direct budgetary responsibility for one or more departments, functions or major projects/programs
• Interpret and execute policies for departments/projects; develop, recommend and implement new policies or modifications to existing policies
• Hiring staff, recommending pay increases,…