Supply Chain Manager

he Strategic Supply Chain Manager leads all direct materials management, procurement execution, inventory architecture, vendor relations, and trade compliance across a high-volume, 425-employee manufacturing site supporting market-leading product brands. Entering the organization during a planned leadership succession window, the incoming manager will work alongside the retiring incumbent to execute a comprehensive knowledge transfer, ensuring operational continuity, team integration, and vendor alignment.

Reporting directly to the Berlin General Manager with functional matrix alignment to Corporate Supply Management, this role operates with high site autonomy to drive Lean manufacturing discipline, optimize working capital, eliminate material shortages, and elevate supplier accountability.

• Leadership & Team Mentorship: Direct, coach, and elevate a team of 8 Buyer/Planners and a Trade Compliance Specialist. Establish standard work, clear escalation pathways, and performance KPIs that empower the team to resolve daily material exceptions.
• Supplier Governance & Escalation: Serve as the executive escalation authority when vendors push back. Lead high-stakes supplier negotiations, resolve critical part shortages, manage price dynamics, and enforce On-Time In-Full (OTIF) delivery standards.
• Configured Environment Management: Drive master scheduling and direct material procurement within a fast-paced, build-to-order manufacturing environment where Bills of Materials (BOMs) are generated dynamically under compressed 2-4 week lead times.
• Lean Transformation & Material Control: Drive Lean supply chain initiatives, expand internal and external pull/Kanban systems, enforce cycle-counting integrity, and execute strategies to maximize inventory turns while reducing excess and obsolete (E&O) material.
• Financial & Budgetary Oversight: Partner with Site General Managers and Finance to construct annual materials budgets, analyze purchase price variances (PPV), mitigate total cost of ownership (TCO), and execute cost-out initiatives.
• Trade Compliance & Regulatory Guidance: Asist in functional oversight for international trade compliance, guiding site personnel on import/export documentation, customs regulations, and tariff impacts.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with Quality, Operations, Engineering, and Continuous Improvement teams to resolve raw material quality issues, implement root-cause corrective actions (RCCA), and streamline campus throughput.

• Manufacturing Resilience & Urgency: Seasoned operational leader with a proactive mindset, high personal accountability, and the tactical firmness needed to navigate fast-paced factory floors and aggressive supply base dynamics.
• Lean Enterprise Mastery: Deep practical fluency in Lean Manufacturing principles, value stream mapping, pull systems/Kanban, standard work, and structured root-cause problem solving (A3, 8D, DMAIC).
• Analytical & Systems Acumen: Exceptional ability to interpret complex ERP/MRP data streams, model inventory trends, and synthesize cost-variance metrics to drive business decisions.
• Cross-Functional Leadership: Strong communicator capable of influencing matrixed cross-functional teams, building trust, and driving consensus across all site levels.

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Operations, Industrial Engineering, or a related business discipline required (Master's/MBA preferred).
• Experience: 5 to 10+ years of progressive supply chain management and procurement leadership within high-volume, discrete manufacturing plant environments (distribution-only experience will not be considered).
• Systems Expertise: Advanced command of major Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP/MRP) platforms (e.g., SAP, Oracle, JDE, Microsoft Dynamics) and business intelligence tools.
• Compliance Knowledge: Practical, functional understanding of global trade compliance, export laws, and tariff structures.